"Smokey Black Nights" is an unreleased song by American singer and songwriter Taylor Swift. It is the fifteenth track on Taylor's Songs and B-side single from the "Lucky You" demo CD released by American record label Leesport in 2003.[2]
Background[]
Swift started writing "Smokey Black Nights" while on a vacation in Stone Harbor in the summer of 2002. As seen in a diary in her 2020 documentary Miss Americana, she finished a first draft on January 19, 2003. And it's the one of the first songs she’s ever written. The song is about summers she spent in Stone Harbor, (a small town along the New Jersey Shore) crushing on the boy who lived next door to her parent’s summer house.[3]
In a 2009 email exchange with The Philadelphia Inquirer, Swift said of this song: "There was a little demo I made when I was eleven, and I think it’s floating around the Internet. It’s called 'Smokey Black Nights' and it’s all about being at the shore."
In support of Swift's seventh studio album, Lover, Swift collaborated with Target and released four deluxe editions of the album. Each deluxe edition contained a number of Swift's old journal entries. In an entry from May 17, 2003, Swift mentioned the titles of two songs - "Not One Day" and "Smokey Black Nights".
Lyrics[]
[Verse 1]
Let’s watch the tide chase the waves onto the sand
I wonder if a broken heart can feel the warmth of my hand
And I wonder what a piece of driftwood has seen all through his lifetime
Let’s walk away the past through the smokey black nights
[Chorus]
I've seen a million things
Spoke a million words
Now I only want to speak to you
Waiting for the words
Counting every bird
There's nothing I'd rather do
On the smokey black nights
[Verse 2]
Still through the haze I can make out constellations
I'll make one of you and me as we sit in the sand
And I saw that sunset gleaming as my eyes went wild
Let's walk away the past through the smokey black nights
[Chorus]
I’ve played a thousand songs
Sang a thousand words
Now I only want to sing to you
Waited on a wire
Staring at the fire
There’s nothing I’d rather do
On the smokey black nights
[Chorus]
I've walked a thousand miles
Smiled a thousand smiles
Now I only smile when I’m with you
Waiting for the words
Counting every bird
There's nothing I’d rather do
On the smokey black nights
[Outro]
So walk with me as the sweet wind dances
I'll write a song for you and me on the smokey black nights
Gallery[]
