People I've Known

Petey’s eyebrows were always raised
He had a devil’s smile
He could make his BMX bounce for days
When you asked him something, he thought for a while
Petey always loved to hang outside
He never wanted to go home
We never really understood exactly why
Until we all read Petey’s poem
Sometimes I wonder how Petey turned out
He made us laugh so much
His infectious smile made us fall about
Then we all fell out of touch

Laughin’ at a joke when I’m all alone
Trippin’ through the seeds that I’ve sewn
The smell at midnight of a pizza stone
Reminds of the people I’ve known

Suzie had a million plastic turtles, all blue
Her voice was gruffer than Kim Carnes’
She got pregnant, and we never knew who
The last time we kissed was behind the barn
Sometimes I wonder how Suzie turned out
Was she still rollin’ like thunder?
I might’ve given everything to bail her out
I might’ve even loved her

Laughin’ at a joke when I’m all alone
Trippin’ through the seeds that I’ve sewn
The smell at midnight of a pizza stone
Reminds of the people I’ve known

Big Red who dealt us dope
Jackknife Jimmy, my lifeguard boss
Alison painted a kaleidoscope
On the church’s giant cross
Sometimes I wonder where their lives led
Was Big Red still in prison?
Did Jimmy drown like the rumors said?
Was Alison still missin’?

Laughin’ at a joke when I’m all alone
Trippin’ through the seeds that I’ve sewn
The smell at midnight of a pizza stone
Reminds of the people I’ve known

Oh, the people I’ve known
The things that they’ve said, the places we’ve gone

Take care
I wonder where
You’ve gone

Oh, the people I knew
I hope that they care as much as you

CREDITS:

Lyrics: Terry Breakman
Music: Terry Breakman, Adam Yas, Ben Flanagan
Vocals: Adam Yas
Engineer: Aaron Hellam
Producer: Terry Breakman

©2026 Terry Breakman