Esh, the leaves are arranged in opposite pairs on the stem, but the orientation of the pairs varies. I drove over to my old neighborhood today to find the original plant. I think I found it. Two photos linked below; one of the overall growth habit, one of a branch. Full plant Closer view of branch Remy, thanks - I do love the Purple Smoke Bush, but this plant is not it. Bboy, it could be a privet. I found pictures online of various kinds of privet and I can't say it's not a privet, but I didn't find any mention of privets whose foliage turns black. Hopefully the better photos I've linked of a better example of the plant will be useful... thank you!

Thanks, bboy, I knew that was true for Crataegus, but wasn't sure about this. That is easy to remember.

Thank you all very much for your feedback!!! I am pretty sure that it is Campis Radicans -- as it looks identical to the vine on this campis radicans photo link. My interest stems from looking for a great vine/shrub to grow up the 6 ft. cedar fence in my back yard. I hope to achieve an attractive green look most (if not all) of the year --with some nice periodic flowering as well. I noticed this Campis Radicans growing on a neighbors fence and thought it might be a good choice for me. Any thoughts on a better choice? I live in the Denver area. Here is a link that might be useful:

I think its some type of burning bush