My life had become a revolving door and people were moving rapidly in and out. Tallulah had cleared off for Adelaide quick smart to lick his wounds, soon after his delusional fantasies had been so unceremoniously dismantled.
I was putting my first cover band together and the audition process was driving me crazy. It seems like you’d just find a keyboard player and the guitarist would move on. He’d settle in then the drummer would leave. Everybody had different motivations, different life circumstances and varying levels of dedication to their music. Blah di blah di blah…
However, I was about to meet some pivotal people in my life. One in particular came to audition for the position of keyboard player. In those days, in the early 80s, keyboard players were as rare as hen’s teeth and a much coveted.
New synths were coming out nearly every month and radio was awash with the latest big fat synth sounds. Drum machines were starting to hit the market and the once almighty guitarist was being relegated to a bit of rhythm and the odd solo. Keyboards were expensive to buy and cheap to sell, by the time you’re ready to sell (which might have been one year later) no one wanted them. It would set you back a quite few thousand fun vouchers (dollars), to be a keyboard player and the depreciation was a killer.
So this bloke comes to the house for the audition. The house that I was living in at the time had three or four entrances and it was confusing if you’d never been there before. I heard a faint knock right at the other end of the house and I went round the outside to bring him to the back studio. When I saw him, I had a déjà vu moment that was a bit like a volcano erupting. I recognised him, even though I’d never met him and for some reason, I went into mild shock.
I remember pasting a smile on my face and inviting him in. The audition went well but we knew that he would not stay with us. There were bands out there that were already established with lots of work. We wished him well.
One thing, however, was going right. My songs were starting to pull together and sound like the songs on the radio.
