#118 – Love In The Library
#118 – Love In The Library
-by Stacy Garwood-
It’s summer, and it’s warm, and while Montana’s August heat and mild humidity cannot compare to the sweltering summer heat of the gulf coast, it’s probably a given that most everyone can appreciate quiet and cool, such as in sheltered libraries or because of the gentle night breeze and midnight drive that brought this song to my attention last night. One of Jimmy’s more gentle songs, as sweet as it is surreal and sublime, hiding in a cool corner with a good book and a good song, seems quite appropriate. Love In The Library is the song that is calling out to be shared this month.
“Love in the library, quiet and cool, Love in the library, there are no rules, Surrounded by stories surreal and sublime, I fell in love in the library once upon a time…”
Love In The Library was released on JB’s 1994 album Fruitcakes. It was cowritten by Jimmy and Mac McAnally, and as always, it seems like those two men create magic together when they write song. The lyrics are poignant, the melody soft and gentle and the entire song paints a lovely picture of cool reprieve on a hot summer afternoon and a chance moment in a neighborhood library.
Fruitcakes was an album that reached #5 on the Billboard Hot 200 and introduced us to Jimmy’s own record label and studio. Initially called Margaritaville Records, which Jimmy later renamed Mailboat Records. This album was the first record that came out of Jimmy’s personal label. It was produced by Jimmy and Russell Kunkel. This album reached Platinum status, which is an impressive accomplishment.
If you have looked into my other blog posts that showcase songs on Fruitcakes, it is apparent how much this entire album of Jimmy’s means to me. And this song has always touched a deep and tender place in my heart and soul. Perhaps because I, like Jimmy, love libraries and books, and have a bit of a romantic spirit.
Jimmy was a lover of books and of stories and adventures, and this song itself is a tender adventure. Of falling in love. Of pretty girls and cool, quiet corners in libraries. Of a time when the world felt less complicated than it does today.
The song also has a nostalgic feeling, of days gone by and a simpler time, when love did come in quiet corners of libraries and coffee shops, instead of on social media and dating apps. Of course, there is nothing wrong with social media and dating apps, but they touch on society today, not society of a yesteryear.
There are mentions of kudzu crowning a statue outside the library, while sirens wail, and inside, there are marble floors and quiet tables, surrounded by books and newspapers. And a lovely siren, a far different kind than is heard outside, is in the history section, tempting in her bare feet.
Now, Jimmy is certainly a storyteller, which he can do in a song or in a story. In the five years prior to the release of Fruitcakes, Jimmy sat down and became a published writer. Tales From Margaritaville, a collection of short stories that was published in 1989, followed by Jimmy’s first novel, Where Is Joe Merchant? in 1992. I believe that Jimmy was fulfilling a dream that his mother had for him, who he says inspired his love of literature. In his words, she wanted her children “to see the world as a bigger place” than where they were just in their local area. It certainly worked with Jimmy, who traveled from one side of the globe to the other, finding inspiration and friendship all along the way.
The pandemic was mostly uncomfortable, certainly a mixed bag, but it did give the world several gifts, and one of those was Jimmy’s interviews with his daughter Delaney, and one of the songs that was featured, by both story as well as song, was Love In The Library.
The creation of this song has a story too, or at least several inspirations that combined to form the base of this beautiful song. I could sum it all up, but I think it’s better just to hear it from JB himself. He’s the best storyteller in this entire tale.
“On corner of Government and Bay Avenue, The old doomsday fanatic wore a crown of kudzu, Sirens were wailing in the gulf coastal heat, And it seemed like the whole world was in forced retreat…
I paid no attention, revolved through the door, passed the newspaper rack on the worn marble floor, Near civil war history my heart skipped a beat, She was standing on fiction stretched high on bare feet…”
Listening to the song over the years, I always wondered if those were real streets, and if so, did a library sit on the corner. Turnes out, both Government Street and Bay Avenue are streets in Mobile, Alabama, where Jimmy grew up. The library that Jimmy mentions first, the Mobile Public Library sits on Government Street, but it doesn’t intersect with Bay Ave. It actually sits on the corner of Government and South Washington, but I must admit that South Washington is a mouthful to try to fit gently into the song. As with many things in life, some of them are accurate and some of them are less accurate.
We also hear mention of Jimmy taking refuge in said library during his youth, and that there was “a cute librarian” at the time.
By the way, a very special thank you Delaney to this fabulous gift to fans of Jimmy’s everywhere, and giving us some hope and entertainment, along with a special and personal touch of the stories and songs from the man himself.
Of course, it was the Directed By Delaney interviews that ended up inspiring the album called Songs You Don’t Know By Heart, which revisits several of Jimmy’s songs, in a lovely acoustic collection. When considering Love In The Library, both the original studio recording and the freshened acoustic version are worth listening to and will be included below.
“I was the pirate and she was the queen, Sir Francis and Elizabeth the best there’s ever been, Then she strolled past my table and stopped at the stairs, Then sent me a smile as she reached for Flaubert…
She gathered her books, walked while she read, Words never spoken but so much was said, You can read all you want into this rendezvous, But it’s safer than most things that lovers can do…”
Like all good stories, this one too, must end.
This song is soft and sweet and gentle, about a tender moment of falling in love. It feels a little misty, like the gulf coast heat, but the library is closing for the day and how the story ends remain a bit of a mystery. And that’s just fine, because as Jimmy tells us so beautifully in the lyrics, “write your own ending and hope they come true”, because how the story ends is really up to us.
“Well stories have endings and fantasies fade, The guard by the door starts drawing the shade, So write your own ending and hope they come true, For the lovers and strangers on Bay Avenue…”
Stacy
Please enjoy Love In The Library. I have included the links to two studio versions of this song below. Enjoy!
1994 Studio Version:
2020 Studio Version:
The links are from Jimmy’s official YouTube channel, which I have no personal affiliation with.
Links that might be of interest:
https://share.google/9qly5Hvy7zmwwhWsu
https://share.google/ghiu9jIIowbM7nSER
https://share.google/ZWqyPw2WIquGV09U9
Directed by Delaney- https://youtu.be/oIoImwmEMhY?si=uQmpc6Osd6ECcmyb
