Random Memory

I am in Virgin Records, Corporation St, Brum in about 1972/3. It was one of the early Virgin shops outside London. Racks of vinyl albums to explore and four aircraft seats on which to sit and listen to your choice of music.

I walk in with my friends Alan, Keith and Tony. One of the aircraft seats is vacant and this is odd. One of us grabs the headphones and there is indeed something playing. It is the instrumental break from a track on the new Uriah Heap album, The Magician's Birthday.

We ask at the counter to get this information. Coincidentally they are playing at Birmingham Town Hall that night. I think it was a January Saturday.

A moment's pause for the days when it was possible to do something that night on spec.

We bought the album and tickets for the gig. I imagine that we pooled our money to do this. Normally someone had money and someone was broke. It evened out.

And so it was that, it turned out, we went to the gig and it was recorded for a live album and the four of us let out a huge scream together at one point and you can hear it if you know when to listen on the recording. And the drummer broke a stick so he hurled it into the audience and, for the only time in my life, I got it and still have it. Two random, attractive girls started a conversation with me simply because I had such a souvenir. On the way out of the venue I had to hide it up my sleeve for fear of forfeiting it in a very one-sided fight.

Those weren't the days (see post a few days ago) but there were some moments.