1. A Summer Song (2:36) - The opening measures sound mighty loud; either the guitars and drums were too close to the microphones during the original recording, or someone had a machine on full blast while digitally remastering this song. Anyway, this moderate-tempoed song was the only C&J song to reach the Top 10, and is one of two I hear on my local oldies radio station. Instruments include orchestral strings and horns (both common throughout this album). Now that summer has gone, so has the girl with whom the narrator spent the summer. He copes with sad, rainy autumn nights by reminiscing on their time together.
2. Yesterday's Gone (2:28) - This fast song is the other C&J I hear on the radio. Yesterday, by definition, is gone; in this case it means the summer during which the narrator and the girl were lovers. He hopes that next summer she'll remember the day they had fallen in love.
3. Willow Weep For Me (2:29) - The tempo is slightly slower than moderate. The horns blow in a subdued tone that matches the narrator's sadness. Now that his girlfriend has left him, he asks a willow tree to lower its branches and give him sympathy. This tune is very old--it was originally sung in the 1930s.
4. If I Loved You (2:12) - This song has a moderately slow 12/8 tempo. The narrator guesses what would happen if he loved the girl. He would be afraid to tell her so; words would stick in his throat. The title would imply that he doesn't, but still I wonder--DOES he love her?
5. My Colo(u)ring Book (2:27) - This song 3/4 tempo slightly slower than moderate and a slow 13-second intro with guitar strums. During the intro, the narrator asks his crayons if they are ready to color him. Once they are, the drums enter. They color his eyes gray, his heart blue...his girlfriend gone? There's no color named "gone"...wait, maybe he means black all over her, to make her a silhouette; only her shadow remains in his life.
6. What Do You Want With Me (2:50) - The tempo is moderate. I like the guitar licks that open and close the song. Whatever the girl wants with the narrator, she is the type of girl who would (if allowed to) tear men apart from their lovers, love them temporarily, then leave them broken-hearted. The narrator has a lover with whom he's very happy, and he won't let the girl get between them. Although the song softens a bit at the end, I hear a long final chord.
7. Four Strong Winds (2:36) - This song has a similar tempo to the previous one. The north, south, east and west winds will always blow lonely; the 7 seas will always run high. But the narrator and his girlfriend no longer know the good times they used to. Now that the good times are gone, he's moving on. But he promises that he'll look for her if he ever returns.
8. From A Window (2:05) - The night before the setting of this song, the narrator saw a lit window, and through it, the girl to whom he's singing. But it's unclear whether he was outdoors or looking from his own window. In any case, he vows to make the girl fall in love with him.
9. It Was A Very Good Year (2:23) - The tempo is somewhat slower than moderate. The only instrument is a guitar. The best years of the narrator's life were the years he was 17, 21, and 35. Now he is an old man who has little time left on Earth.
10. Donna Donna (2:56) - This song, slightly faster than moderate, also features just a guitar (or maybe two). The lyrics have nothing to do with any woman named Donna; the name in this case is simply repeated many times in the chorus. The main character in this song is a calf who realizes he is about to be slaughtered for his meat and wishes he could be free like a swallow he sees flying in the sky. I've also heard a version of this song by Judy Collins.
11. Too Soon My Love (2:29) - This moderately fast song features a xylophone or some similar instrument. Here's a third song lamenting the end of summer and romance. Time flies fast when people have fun; no wonder the narrator's summer (and romance) ended too soon.
12. If You've Got A Heart (2:45) - This is my second favorite C&J song (after "Yesterday's Gone"). I like the moderate tempo and the playing of horns and a xylophone (or similar instrument) just before the title line. The narrator is tired of the girl's capricious behavior. He tells her to tell him she's forever his, or leave him alone. He wonders whether she is capable of crying or considering other people's feelings.