Testosterone Or Desperation
More live music at the Prince of Wales tonight.
I got rather a shock whilst I was sitting quietly supping my pint before the band came on. I saw a young woman who looked just like someone I worked with, some twenty-odd years ago. Although when I looked more carefully, this woman is maybe just a tad younger than my co-worker was then. Maybe she's her daughter, who knows. It's one of my more serious flaws, that I just lose contact with people who I used to know and like. Maybe it's due to my upbringing as a forces kid, where you just got used to losing touch with people as they, or you, moved on every three years. Or maybe it's simply sheer incompetence on my part. Either way, it's a big cause for regret as I grow older.
One of the things about a community pub, like the Prince of Wales, is that there are so many stories there, most of which I'll probably never know. I saw a young woman tonight who should have been attractive, but her shoulders were slumped and she looked really unconfident in herself. She was there with a young man, and I was thinking, "You toerag, why aren't you making her feel good about herself?" There could have been any story there of course, but I do think that if you're going out with someone you should help them to feel their best.
On the other hand, there was another couple who just seemed to be sparking energy off each other. They seemed to really be doing one another good. Again, I have no idea what their real story was, but I can easily wish them the best.
Then there was the half-dressed woman who came in to sway seductively in front of the band - dressed mainly in Rita Skeeter glasses, it seemed. She gave the impression of being high as a kite on something - maybe natural exuberance, maybe more. But the band played better while she was there. Although the (very young-looking) sax player did seem to sweat a lot.
Which brings me to tonight's band. the Grey Cat Blues. Unsurprisingly, given their name, they played blues - some traditional blues songs, some fairly poppie bluesie numbers - with bass, drums, electric guitar and saxophone. They were very competent, and it was an enjoyable evening, but ... Well, it was a bit like the difference between Clapton in the Sixties, when he was hungry, and Clapton in the Nineties, when he wasn't. Or it was like Gary Moore, playing blues when he's too old to rock. They played very well, but there was no edge, no pain.
The trouble with blues is that it doesn't have the natural excitement of rock. But what it can have, at its best, is sex and pain. Some blues guitarists, when I listen it's like it's tapping into something deep inside me, and drawing out the hurt. This band was just enjoyable music to listen to. The highlight was toward the end when they played Cream's version of Crossroads. The bass player finally opened up to go beyond his mostly supporting role. There's something about live bass, when it really takes off, that you just never get from a recording. Then they finished with a couple of Chuck Berry songs, which was fun.
All in all, an enjoyable evening. Although I'm not sure the new landlord is looking after his Brakspear's properly - I had to move over to Guinness half way through the evening.