Deana Carter – Strawberry Wine (Official Music Video)
Inspiration Behind Strawberry Wine:
The lyrics of Strawberry Wine reflect upon Matraca Berg’s childhood experience growing up on a farm in Wisconsin. Matraca and her aunts would sneak away each summer to drink strawberry wine. Deanna Carter then takes these memories using a metaphor to compare Strawberry Wine to their first relationship, falling in love. The lyrics of Strawberry Wine highlight a youthful innocence, the pursuit of love and nostalgia.
Biblical Application:
Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit, 19 speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord, 20 always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, Ephesians 5:18-20.
Exegesis of Strawberry Wine:
He was workin’ through college
On my grandpa’s farm
I was thirstin’ for knowledge
And he had a car
Summertime was my favorite time of the year growing up. While out of school for three months, there is a sense of freedom which Deanna points to in this opening stanza.
Yeah, I was caught somewhere
Between a woman and a child
One restless summer
We found love growin’ wild
On the banks of the river
On a well beaten path
It’s funny how those memories they last
There is a mix between exploring the farm as the crops flourish and memories of her first love.
Like strawberry wine and seventeen
The hot July moon saw everything
My first taste of love
Whoa, bittersweet
Green on the vine
Like strawberry wine
This chorus provides a metaphor between tasting alcohol and love for the first time as a teenager.
And I still remember
When thirty was old
My biggest fear was September
When he had to go
The end of the summer was always tough to come to grasp with as the day after Labor Day is when students were forced to go back to school every fall.
A few cards and letters
And one long distance call
We drifted away
Like the leaves in the fall
But year after year
I come back to this place
Just to remember the taste
Despite whatever promises were made before the summer ended, this couple slowly drifted apart. Visiting this farm brought back a flood of memories.
Of strawberry wine and seventeen
The hot July moon saw everything
My first taste of love
Whoa, bittersweet
Green on the vine
Like strawberry wine
Childhood is a time of exploration. Sometimes when you are left alone, temptation leads to poor decisions.
The fields have grown over now
Years since they’ve seen a plow
There’s nothin’ time hasn’t touched
Is it really him
Or the loss of my innocence?
I’ve been missin’ so much
Yeah
The lack of farming suggests that the grandparents have passed away. With this property left in the family, visiting isn’t the same, but the memories still come back.
Strawberry wine and seventeen
The hot July moon saw everything
My first taste of love
Whoa, bittersweet
And green on the vine
Your first taste of alcohol and first kiss stick with you.
Like strawberry wine and seventeen
The hot July moon saw everything
My first taste of love
Oh, bittersweet
Green on the vine
Like strawberry wine
The repetition of the chorus suggests this song went a little longer than necessary,
Strawberry wine
(Oh, oh)
Strawberry wine
Flavored alcohol tends to be one of the first drinks teenagers try.
Final Thoughts:
As someone with a photographic memory, places I visit, and songs usually flood my mind with memories. I grew up in Delaware with some special friends like Jeanette and Stephen, spending many summer nights together. While we would push the envelope from time to time, doing things we knew that were wrong, we were kids learning from trial and error. This is part of growing up or as Michael W. Smith once sang about, Living and Learning.
by Jay Mankus
ExpressYourself4Him 