I took The Lish to her first ever gig. It was to see Ariana Grande – a Nickleodeon
star with a voice that betrays her diminutive frame. Not Aretha Franklin by any stretch of the
imagination but certainly a rich and full bodied R&B sound. Actually she is quite typical fare for a
young female artist coming out of the US right now. Her sound is not to my taste but I appreciate
that she has talent. I just wish she’d
put some clothes on over the talent. It is
the age old dilemma for women: how to make friends and impress people. I hope my Lishy realises that without the
voice, she’d just be a lap dancer.
While this is my place to purge, today is not about
that. Today is about celebrating this
very special “first”. I’m fully aware
that it’s likely more special to me than it will be to Lishy, at least until my
time comes and the event takes on the premium only afforded by death. I may be wrong, she may yet grow up to love
music to the degree I do and think back on how cool her first time was…or not.
It was at the O2 Arena – a large venue made all the more gigantic
by being 9 years old. I got her into the VIP lounge – a gesture
lost on her where she asked for a glass of tap water (long may her simple
tastes last). I think she may have been
feeling a little overwhelmed as indicated by the tight grip on my hand as we
took our seats.
Then the lights dimmed and a roar went up from the
crowd. This caused her to grip even
harder to the point where the tips of my fingers turned a deep plum in
colour. And then finally out prances
Ariana having apparently forgotten to get dressed. Anyhoo…..
It wasn’t long before Lish Losh was bouncing around with her
hands in the air, like she just didn’t care.
It was something else to be there with her for this.
My first gig was at the Hammersmith Apollo to see The Time
(Morris Day’s band – he was the band in Prince’s film Purple Rain). I must have been about 14 and I went with a
friend and her older sister. I remember
vividly the feeling of awe at seeing the drum kit on a pedestal, the keyboards
and all the mikes set up around the stage and the blackness. It marked the beginning of my fascination
with drumming for instance. It was
surreal to me that I would finally be seeing a musician in the flesh and interestingly
I really was there for the music unlike if it had been say Duran Duran where I
would have been there just for John Taylor.
I am quite proud of that.
Don’t’ get me wrong I
have since gone to see many bands for the male tottie but none of those
experiences compare with seeing a truly talented musician do his or her
thing. And so if Ariana Grande’s thing (even if her
trademark is a pair of cat ears) does it for Lishy, then it’s A-ok with me.
