Tramps like them...
For the last three mornings, my editors have sent me to the Paramount Theater in Asbury Park to lean my ear against the wall to listen to Bruce Springsteen rehearse with a kind of hoe-down band. And to report on the comings and goings of fans who gather in the chilly April air to do the same and possibly get Springsteen to sign some album, picture, doodad or body part.
Many of these fans come some distance to do this. They spend days at this activity. Now, I'm a big fan. I know the lyrics to "If I Was The Priest.'' I know who Zero is - and Blind Terry. I have his albums and have seen him perform a dozen or more times. I've shaken his hand and gotten his autograph. So I've got credentials.
But I watch this hardy band of fans outside the Paramount and I know I'm not one of them. I'm paid to be there, for one thing. I asked them if they understood that what they were doing was a little peculiar? More than one of them said the exact same thing in response: "Bruce is worth it.'' A woman, acting as though she knew I was one of them, said, "You understand, don't you?''
It occurred to me then that there is a line in your head and in your life, the same line actually, and if you do not attend to it, do not pay attention to it, you'll slip over it and end up in a very weird place: your ear against a wall for hours and nobody paying you to do it. That's not quite a hobby - it's something strange.
Many of these fans come some distance to do this. They spend days at this activity. Now, I'm a big fan. I know the lyrics to "If I Was The Priest.'' I know who Zero is - and Blind Terry. I have his albums and have seen him perform a dozen or more times. I've shaken his hand and gotten his autograph. So I've got credentials.
But I watch this hardy band of fans outside the Paramount and I know I'm not one of them. I'm paid to be there, for one thing. I asked them if they understood that what they were doing was a little peculiar? More than one of them said the exact same thing in response: "Bruce is worth it.'' A woman, acting as though she knew I was one of them, said, "You understand, don't you?''
It occurred to me then that there is a line in your head and in your life, the same line actually, and if you do not attend to it, do not pay attention to it, you'll slip over it and end up in a very weird place: your ear against a wall for hours and nobody paying you to do it. That's not quite a hobby - it's something strange.
posted by Michael Riley at 3:32 PM
3 Comments:
Thus sayeth the man who debated leaving his pregnant wife...and brought his book along, just in case.
The fact that you know the lyrics to "If I was the Priest" and weren't out there on your own fruition to listen almost contradicts itself. Only the people who would be out there would know the lyrics. But kudos on the "Zero and Blind Terry" reference. Maybe you'll see some of these same folks further on up the road. (Sorry for the campy reference)
What I thought was a bit self-indulgent was that you pointed out you had shook Bruce's hand and received an autograph. Some people don't have the opportunities you've had to meet celebrities (or have the paper arrange for tickets, pay for them to be there, etc.) If you weren't "one of them" deep down, why would you want a guy's signature on a piece of paper....even if you do know who Blind Terry is?
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