…and so it goes

I fucking love youtube. But as odd as this world is, my favorite clip is this audio snip from 9pm on a Friday night in June 1967 As live DJ radio (remember them?) Dave Diamond at KBLA in Los Angeles takes us to his Diamond Mine! 

Remember, Wednesday night is Fashion Night at Gazzarri’s. Cash prizes for the best Mod and Psychedelic outfits!

Gazzarri’s was nightclub that was part of the LA scene along with The Roxy, The Whiskey and The Troubadour. The famous Gazzarri Dancers were the featured Go-Go dancers on many of the variety and music shows. 

“Where Were You?” - The Mekons (1978)

An epic early Mekons post punk song and a fucking majestic intro with the drums gradually building up suspense, making you feel like your speakers are about to explode:

“…the song is romantic with a desperate, pleading quality that makes you feel both leery of, and sorry for, the speaker. It starts off accusatory, leading you to believe that the speaker has been stood up:

‘When I was waiting in the bar Where were you? When I was buying you a drink Where were you? When I was trying to hide in bed Where were you?‘

This introduction draws some immediate sympathy for the speaker. He went so far as to buy her a drink, even though she wasn’t there, and when he eventually comes to realize he’s been stood up he goes home to cry, a sad picture by most standards.  

It’s emotional, vulnerable, and somewhat pathetic, but when the second verse starts, the sadness and pathos turns to suspicion as the speaker reveals his darker side:

‘When I wave to you from a distance Do you see me? You were standing in a queue Do you see me? You had yellow hair Do you see me?‘

It’s up to the listener to decide whether the speaker now sounds more like a stalker than a disappointed lover…

…When the third verse hits, we’re taken to new levels of delusion, neediness and dejection:

‘I wanna talk to you all night Do you like me? I wanna find out about your life Do you like me? Could you ever be my wife Do you like me?‘

…These last lines are sweet, naïve, and devastating as the speaker has brought himself to a new level of delusion while the listener has figured out that this is not the story of star crossed lovers; it’s a one sided obsession…”

Scarred by war: Battlefield landscapes from First World War 100 years on