'My courage fails.'
September 1985. Forty years ago. Pretty much now. My parents dropped me off at the University Residence Halls in Fifer's Lane near Norwich and drove off, back to South West London. Leaving me unrealisingly to walk into life. I kept to myself for a couple of weeks for the most part. I was unnnerved by going into the kitchen and hearing people discussing their A Level Grades.
I stuck to my room and played my cassettes. Didn't get to know my neighbours for a couple of weeks. Saw Rod the guy next to me playing right wing for the block football team one Sunday. Good looking, charismatic literature student. Like me. The literature student bit. Ben and James I met discussing left wing politics in the kitchen one afternoon.Also good looking. Also charismatic. I suppose I was presentable myself.
Eventually we found each other properly and bonded fast. James, Ben and I were all Londoners. Blackheath, Hampstead and Teddington. We started crossing the Fifer's Lane fields to the student bar most evenings. Fortifying ourselves with pints of snakebite and black. Talking loud I imagine. Not getting on with all of the other guys in our block though I was generally mild of manner.. Getting to know the girls upstairs. Romantic skirmishes. Walking into life arms wide open.
Most evenings ended in Rod's room with the four of us crouched over cups of steaming tea or coffee. A silver kettle with a bubbling spout. Discussing evrything excitedly. Like the kids in Stand By Me and the commentary at the end of the movie from Richard Dreyfus.The film came out at about this time. I'd say just as Dreyfus does that I've never had friends quite like those three before or since.
We listened to The Smiths. To Talking Heads and Tom Waits. To Marvin Gaye. And we listened to Eden by Everything by the Girl.Being expelled from the Garden of Eden. It's inevitable folks. It's going to happen to us all.. Prepare yourself for it. Start building your ark..Select your companions carefully. Prepare for all eventualities Stormy weather. But pack a parasol too. So you can sunbathe on the deck.
That's probably enough biblical mxed metaphors for one post, Now, almost forty years on a mist drops over me as I write this. I don't imagine I felt tuned into Eden fully at the time, Preoccupations which seemed quite adult for me. I didn;t know much. I certainly didn't know much about relationships. I still wonder whether I do actually. I've had some fun.
But Eden still sounds pretty wonderful. Enduring. There's a commitment about everything on here. It feels engaged. Warm.
Strangely, I was thinking about this album today. Think I was having an imaginary conversation with you about my formative musical influences. This was one of them. I got very into them and bought a lot of their early singles, too. Plus, Ben and Tracey's solo albums.
ReplyDeleteThere's a story behind this. About my friendship with Rod which was an important one, There were some things Rod played which he clearly had a deep affinity which I only came to appreciate fully later, Steve McQueen and this particularly, This had a strange effect on me listening yesterday
DeleteAh, nice! Those friendships you make at university are so important, and so strong. You've just reminded me that the first record my friend Phil played me at university was Treeless Plain by The Triffids, followed closely by Spring Hill Fair by The Go-Betweens. Life changing for me. But now I want to listen to Eden again.
ReplyDeleteThey were so important and so strong these friendshops Darren . Unfortunately in my case we rather fell out or moved apart in the second year. As you get older you come back to the friendship which was the important thing if that makes sense.. Treeless Plain my sister sent selections from when I was on my year off in Switzerland. She introduced me to the band. Spring Hill Fair I bought from a record shop in Twickenham. Significant moments. I like the things I fell for at that age and stand by them.
ReplyDelete