I NEARLY had to pinch myself. Here I was! Fi will be out of her mind when she finds this out. A backstage pass to the inner sanctum of Band Practice! I could hardly be more excited if Willy Wonka had invited me himself.
It was May now, late Autumn, and it was already twilight, so the music room had a magical look that it just did not have in the daylight. Michael introduced me to everyone. I knew all their names, of course, but I pretended like I didn’t, just for show. Of course, they didn’t know my name. That was like, a rule of school. You only know the names of the kids above you, the kids below you in age are not worth knowing, but you never let on that you know the names of the kids above you because that would mean that you had been totally idolizing them. Which, of course, you had.
Benny, Pete and Asher. Benny had a head full of sandy-coloured dreads and was very well known around the school for breaking out the djembe in the middle of class. He was a natural-born percussionist. Everything was a drum to him. He drove the teachers nuts.
Pete was a shy bookish guy, slim build with glasses who played the cello. Asher was your typical dark brooding type who played bass, naturally. And Michael was on guitar and vocals.
It surprised me that he sang. I don’t know why. He often surprised me though. If anything should surprise me, it’s that I’m surprised that I am surprised.
There was the usual jokey chatter before they got down to it. They were all a bit annoyed that Michael had detention all week because they had a performance at lunchtime on Friday afternoon, and you could tell that they were nervous.
There was no need to be. Michael finally calmed them all down and they took their positions. Michael put on his guitar strap, emphasizing the impressive hang of his shoulders, and I nearly swooned away. Oh man. Can’t even deal.
I was glad I didn’t go unconscious though because only moments later, Michael adjusted the mic to suit him and said into it ‘Jojo babe, this one’s for you.’
I blushed so hard, I wondered if I did permanent damage to my capillaries. But I loved it. It was painful to be looked at by all those boys when he said it... but I loved it too.
Peter came in with the cello first, with one slow note bending down and then up and then down in pitch, like the low moan of the wind. Michael’s guitar was hoarse against the smoothness of the strings as he picked out a moody but sparse melody. The bass came in, low and urgent. The drum was simple. Just the bass drum, at long intervals, like a heartbeat.
The sound was glorious. Low and moving, like the sounds of the sea at night. They allowed it to build and build, and the look of focus on Michael’s face was so fascinating. He always fascinated me, I always wanted just to stare and stare at him, and I realized with a squee of happy that I could totally indulge desire that right now.
Then, he began to sing.
His voice! Whoa. I wasn’t expecting that at all. I was surprised – again! It was so ... hmm, I don’t know how to put words to it. His voice was warm and smooth with beautiful pitch, but there was another quality to it that I just don’t think I can describe. It was like... it was like there were bells singing along with him, but they weren’t there at all. It was like his voice had color and shape to it, as well as tone. And, like everything about him, it seemed to come from a place of total shamelessness. There was no self-consciousness at all about it. That gave it this quality of intimacy and vulnerability that I had only really heard in a couple of other professional singers. He really did amaze me! He could not possibly be human.
I sat there entranced as the music washed over me. I’d like to say something about the other musicians but, truthfully, I’d be making it up because I didn’t look at them once.
And no wonder. Michael was just enchanting to watch. Every intimate gesture on his face told a story. He was shy and then happy and then embarrassed and then sadly sweet. A whole movie played out on his features.
At one point tho, he looked me straight in the eye and sang these simple lines in a soulful murmur -
Hearts whisper a songline,
Sing me back to you,
Red horizon, you rise, and rise
Dream shadow made girl,
We remember and remember and remember each other,
Remember our way home.
I melted into a puddle right there on the spot.
