Research, find connections, live it for a while.

Warren Nelson who heads up the Big Top Chautauqua’s Tent show is a wonderful writer of historical songs. Many of them get in their theme musicals like Old Minnesota: Song of the North Star So one day on the way to work I came up with the first stanza because in seven minutes I drive seven miles thru the Black River bottomlands, where really to the right is the historic Van Loon Seven Bridges Road. (No likely not the one Steve Young wrote about and the Eagles made famous.) The first stanza originally just had some stories, but as it evolved I was determined to make seven stories.

Now each has a connection to the area.... I'll let you read it and then explain.

In seven minutes, seven miles breeze by
To my right, the old road beckons
Seven bridges, and seven stories
For my delight, if I just listen.

Lizzy,
Lizzy paid no attention to crickets
But that gun shot made her jump.
Crazy Bill McGilvary shouted
“Dem swamp rattlers!
Liz listen up next time
They sound just like crickets!”

7 minutes, 7 miles
7 bridges, 7 tales.

Davey,
Davey just had an itch to fish
But he had chores galore.
Ma’s fresh pie served as a bribe
And little Jim, he won’t mind
He’ll do the chores just fine
While he finds time to fish.

7 minutes, 7 miles
7 bridges, 7 tales.

Joanie
Joanie had a hankerin for fun
Like a red shouldered hawk
She swooped in on Henry
“Kee Year” she mimicked.
In the bottomland grass,
She rolled with her new hun.

7 minutes, 7 miles
7 bridges, 7 tales.

Billy,
Billy cursed that bridge from hell.
Clinton embossed the back of his neck
As he hung motionless from the A frame.
Damn riverboat gamblers
Took his life savings
So he hung there a spell.

7 minutes, 7 miles
7 bridges, 7 tales.

Tommy,
Tommy never really came back
So he made these swamps his home.
Nam killed more than his hearing
He lost trust in people
They say the lost site of him
As waded out in the river named Black.

7 minutes, 7 miles
7 bridges, 7 tales.

Ritchie
Ritchie mumbled “How did this happen?
Rental piece of shit,” but he hated flying.
Aw a strawberry stand, and a latin beauty.
“Two bits for sweet carazon.”
“Precious what’s your name”
“Oh they call me Donna”

7 minutes, 7 miles
7 bridges, 7 tales.

Albert,
Albert was nineteen in 1865
At the Spanish Fort battle in ‘Bama.
He was 90 when they laid him down
Four miles from the bridge
He and Rynert used to fish
Sure wished he would have survived.

In seven minute, seven miles breezed by
To my right, the old road beckoned
Seven bridges, and seven stories
For your delight, if you listened.

by Dave Zeman (c) 2009 Rose Riversongs


First verse has Milgvary's name from the ferry boats and they really have massasauga snakes and their rattle sound like crickets. Second verse has the local farmlands and the rich fishing that is still done today in the area. Third verse, of course the Red Shouldered Hawk lives there and it's call is Kee Year... even yesterday I saw some birder guys standing in the ditch on the way to work. Fourth verse, the bridges were all made by the Clinton Bridge company and they are only 5 miles away from Trempealeau. Back in the old days, it was not uncommon to have gamblers traveling up and down the Mississippi river and the suicide. Well let's say it reminds me of seeing the cross that is on may way to work in the area every day; poor mixed up kid. The bridges have history, the swamp reminds me that you can get lost, so why not have them attract mixed up soldiers coming back from Vietnam in the fifth verse. Now in the sixth, the famous Ritchie Valens appears as he drives through and stops at the local strawberry stand. We're using alot of Hmong people to help harvest, but their predecessors were Mexican help, so it gets a little fictional tie. Now did you know that Ritchie Valens at one point hated to fly? Too bad he didn't stick to that feeling. The last verse ties in two Van Loon's into the story, both fought in the Civil War and one is really buried a mere four miles from the bridges and a mile from my house. I do plan to find and to post a picture of his grave. I get this sneaking feeling, he'll show up again in my writing.

Writing... yes this has no music to it yet... maybe never... but it is a song I know it. Probably too long of one... HA.

Thanks for reading.

Dave