Happily Ever After

Life in The Rural Retreat with a beautiful wife, three cats, garden wildlife, a camera, a computer – and increasing amounts about running

Earlier posts can be found on Adventures of a Lone Bass Player, where this blog began life. Recent entries can be found here.

Strangers On A Train

by Russell Turner - 16:01 on 12 July 2018

“I may be old but I’ve seen all the best bands,” read the slogan on the T-shirt of one of the guys queuing to leave the Hydro after Paul Simon’s gig last night. See them while you can.

Paul Simon looked old when he came on stage, and his voice on the first number, America, was not good. For a few minutes I worried I’d wasted my money. The next song (can’t remember which) was better and by the third, The Boy In The Bubble, it was fine, at around 90% of what you’d hear on records. Not bad for a 76-year-old.

Anything from Graceland got the biggest cheers (especially You Can Call Me Al) apart from the final song of his second encore set when he left his ace band behind and sang The Sound Of Silence alone. Cue long ovation until the lights went up. A great night, only slightly spoiled by peering over the shoulder of the man in front to learn from his phone that England had lost the big game.

The train trip home was enlivened by conversation with two women on their way to a weekend at Three Chimneys on Skye. One had been a semi-pro singer in her youth, successful on Opportunity Knocks with her trio and busy in concert halls and weddings. Several stories were swapped. She then went on to work for TV, helping produce Taggart and Rebus. I couldn’t compete with that, or her friend’s tale of being seated at an awards night dinner table with Paul McCartney, Steven Spielberg and other equally big names the day after her husband had photographed Angelina Jolie for a magazine. Why they weren’t in first class I don’t know.

The Rural Retreat looked very humble when I returned, but The Pride was pleased to see me – until it was fed and disappeared. Some things never change.

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