From the past

Last Sunday I woke to the gurgle of voices in the street. This was unusual on several counts. Although we live in a heavily residential area, it's quite quiet on the street. It was also 8 o'clock in the morning. After shuffling into the front room the Frog informed me that the Brocante I'd mentioned the day before was happening NOW. I stumbled out onto the balcony and indeed, all the little doozers below were feverishly setting up tables and laying out shiny things. 

I hate Brocantes, second hand shops, white elephant stalls, stuff like it. I don't know why. Is it all the old dust that is carted around? Or the smell of age and the thought of my own mortality? Or am I just too much a part of the throw away generation? I don't know, I just hate them. But on the other hand, it was just THERE and like the two poles of a magnet are drawn together, I just had to go; with my camera. 

It's difficult to comprehend the amount of crap there is out there, and the fact that these people think that other people want to buy it, and that there are people out there who will buy it. But then part of its attraction is the hunt for the real crackers. You know the stuff you thought nobody could possibly have anymore. So, come on hands up? Who had one? 

Another thing that existed in the late 70's early 80's were The Specials. Although there are a bunch of albums, and the band went through name changes and various incarnations, the original line up only did two LP's. Their songs form the soundtrack of my youth where you either loved or hated Thatcher, people cared about stuff and pop stars sang about things that mattered. Apart from Terry Hall, I couldn't pick the band out in a crowd, but they form a part of my aural history. And from that  soundtrack I've seen quite a few of them: Elvis Costello, The Buzzcocks, Blondie, Billy Bragg, Joe Strummer, but I haven't seen them all. I read an issue of The Word a couple of years ago that was dedicated to the Madness come back (they never split up) and the The Specials reunion tour and I remember thinking then that there was a band I would love to see. And I did! On Tuesday. All that was missing was a Nutty Pure and a 15p bag of chips. 

And just a final note (if you look down here). Voting for the second challenge at Rach Harrie's blog goes on until the 14th October. You can read my entry here and then please remember to  vote for me here (if you want to that is). And this time I really mean  see you Monday when I shall be getting to know Rosalind Adams who writes in the rain.