My Bijou! A Maylor Love Story

Is This The Real Life...Is This Just Fantasy..Part 2

August 1975

Rockfield Farm Wales

Roger's POV

Since I basically destroyed lunch yesterday, it was still my turn to cook. That's okay. I owed everyone an apology for my temper. Someone was kind enough to clean up the mess I made in the kitchen. I don't know who it was but I suspect it was Deacy or maybe John Harris. I was in a good mood today when lunch time rolled around so I was happy to prepare it. Brian slept really well last night and I eventually drifted off myself. When I woke up I was thrilled to find him still in bed with me and sound asleep. He woke up later and was feeling good and actually hungry for a change. I noticed he hasn't been eating much. He says the heat makes him lose his appetite. I was able to shake off the uneasy feeling I had about the prior day's events.  Brian slept and we had a good morning.  I chalked this all up to fatigue.

I made Brian a sandwich first, which was easy since he didn't take bacon on it. He ate the entire sandwich and some crisps as Freddie, Deacy, John Harris and Ratty watched. I finally got the bacon cooked up and made their bacon, lettuce and tomato sandwiches. As I enjoyed my own meal I watched Brian look over his song notebook. He was working on something but hadn't told me what it was yet. I was keen to know but didn't want to press him. He excused himself before we finished eating and headed back to the studio. I took the last bite of my sandwich and started cleaning up.

"Hey Rog...got any plans for tomorrow?" John Harris asked me. We had designated no work on the weekends since we were spending about 12 hours in the studio every day. Our producer, Roy, insisted we take the weekends to refresh ourselves and get some rest and relaxation. I knew the guys had been talking about what there was to do in rural Wales. I was up for pretty much anything.

"I've got nothing planned...what did you have in mind?" I asked as I wiped down the stovetop. He pulled a brochure out of his pocket to show me.

"There's a place nearby where you can ride dirt bikes....there's trails and even a track for racing!" he told me excitedly. "You in mate?" he asked as I looked over the brochure. It looked fun and wasn't something you could do in London. It would be nice to get some fresh air and unwind.

"Sounds great...what time are we going?" I asked him.

"We're heading out at 11..." he replied.

"Okay...I'll be ready.." we finished with lunch and headed back to the studio. Brian was recording some guitar work for my song. I got situated behind the console as Brian readied his guitar. Roy came in and took a seat next to me. Freddie and Deacy were lounging on the couch behind me. They were looking at some catalogue. I was hopeful that adding some driving guitar sounds to my song would improve the piece overall and better impress my bandmates. I had shown Brian my ideas and he felt he could deliver what I wanted.

"Brian...we're ready when you are..." Mike, the engineer, announced over the intercom. Brian nodded and spoke into his guitar mike.

"Count me in.." he asked. Mike prompted him and started the tape. I sat and enjoyed Brian's ideas for my track. It was mostly what I asked for with some added flair on his part. He finished up and I smiled as I pressed the intercom button.

"That's a great start..." I commented. I wanted it a little faster and edgier. "Can we pick up the pace a bit and add some edge to the riffs?" I asked him. He seemed to know what I wanted and nodded.

"Okay..." he told me and we played the backing track again for him. I liked his changes.

"I'll give it a go now..." I told Roy and stood up to go in and try a vocal track. "I'm coming in Bri.." I told Brian in the intercom. He waited on me as I got in front of the microphone and pulled on some headphones. I found a stool to sit on since I'm so used to singing while sitting at the drums. I nodded to Roy who set us up to record. We did several takes and I was happy with a couple of them. I figured I could make a decision later. Brian could add some guitar overdubs once we settled on a final version.