The other day as our livingroom grew quiet, I heard a familiar xylophone enhanced tune. it sounded like a soft radio playing in the corner.
"Is the Cure playing tonight at the bowl?" I asked Anna.
The Cure was indeed playing at the bowl, going from familiar tune to familiar tune. I found out from Nicholas the next day that they weren't doing so well until the sun went down. His theory (I love his theories) is that they couldn't see their audience any more. That would have been about the same time I started listening. As the sun sets, unless there has been a sugar onslaught, Sammie's eyelids set.
The wonderful, now overplayed songs reminded me of being fifteen. Of wearing Guess? jeans. Owning a Guess? jacket. Working at Baskin Robbins. Having braces. Owning bright white shoes that were a lace and velcro hybrid. Going with Sean and Cookie, fellow employees at the ice cream shop, to the under 18 club in Monterey (I can't remember the name). We would invite random girls we knew to go with us. Usually Anne would, even though she was older and obviously more mature. Sean really liked her, but she didn't take him seriously. I listened to bands like U2, The Talking Heads and Oingo-Boingo (I was also a closet Metallica fan because of my brother).
I rememer the same Cure song with the xylophone playing as I sat in the back of the teen club sipping on a straw connected to 95% ice 5% watered down coke. I asked some mopey girl in the corner what the song was. She said it was The Cure. I bought "Standing on the Beach" or whatever that "Boys Don't Cry" album was the next day.
Six months later I was a new man/boy. The braces were gone. I was listening to DRI, Minor Threat and Slayer. I had come out of the Metallica closet. The Guess? jeans had been replaced with beat up Jimmy'z I grabbed from Brit. We were out late at night looking for parking lots to skate in. My previous Sean friend had moved and I had a new Sean friend.
We passed kids hanging out in front of the teen club, they were still playing The Cure in there. Someone called my name and I walked over to say "hi", wiping sweat off my forehead. As we left, Sean asked how it was that I knew any of those dorks. I shrugged, chuckled and skated off.
4 comments:
some styles degrade gracefully. others just end up giving you the creeps. I'll always have a place in my heart for the Cure though.
Oh! The Cure. How I love thee still. I'm not as cool as you Casson.
I really should have paid more attention to your new wave leanings. I feel that I missed out on something.
i remember when i would listen to girlfriend in a coma over and over again and just absolutely believe i felt what the smith's were talking about, but then be at home searching in the dictionary (the actual book) for what the hell a coma was. . .i seriously do miss those days. and i seriously do love the cure, too. thanks for bringing me back casson. and thanks for the coffee this morning.
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