:: The Wendy House ::

In 1979,  at 15yrs, I was in full fledged teenage identity crisis. A skinny insignificant white girl living in a box on a 1960’s Wimpy Housing Estate.  Several albums captured the insignificance, energy and disorientation.  I’ve never liked Supermarkets.

The Clash sang Lost in the supermarket

In 1979 I was about to take my first set of exams,  Oxford University ‘O’ levels.  Family and the School’s career officer were encouraging me to think about my career.  Should I be a

• a police person?  Not allowed,  too short. 
• a jet fighter pilot?  Not allowed, too girl.  
• a nurse?  No,  too much cleaning icky messes and being nice to sick people. 
• a train driver?  No,  I’d have to follow-tracks and I like making my own way.
• an Engineer?  It’s what dad wants me to be,  but it seemed just a bit practical and dull to a 15 year old me.
• an architect?  Hmmmm… …possibilities….   how long to get qualified…  7yrs?!  I arranged some work experience for myself in an Architects office to get an idea of what 7 years would lead to…

Meanwhile, XTC were Making plans for Nigel who apparantly had a future in, a national industry, British Steel

My14th birthday present (1977) from my brother was a studded dog-collar and a ticket to see The Stranglers play on their ‘No More Heros’ tour at the now defunct warehouse called the Bristol Exhibition Centre.  2000 tickets were sold for the concert.  The warehouse was licensed to hold 1000 people.  There was a bit of a squish as people rushed to be in the 1000 that got in and police tried to manage the chaos.  We squished ourselves to about 3 foot from the stage  where we became soaked in sweat, beer and de rigeur spital.  It was wonderful.  Brothers are fabulous,  I can whole-heatedly recommend them.  

The Stranglers played ‘Peaches’

This brother also gave me the NME christmas centrefold spread of the Strangles bass player, Jean Jacques Burnel, tastefully  nude.  I hung the centrefold on my bedroom wall.  My brother gasped, then told mum.  Mum summoned her wisdom with the phrase ‘Gwendolyn can put whatever rubbish she wants to put on her bedroom wall’  Mothers are fabulous,  I can whole-heatedly recommend them.

In 1973 my pre-teens were spent enjoying and observing the evidence of early outbreaks of total clothes rights that came with the flamboyancy of Glam Rock as people on the street took their lead from popsters like The Slade, Marc Bolan, David Bowie, Gary Glitter, Roxy Music, Wizzard, and around this time I belatedly discovered The Bonzo Dog Doo-dah band and of course…. 

The Sweet sang Ballroom Blitz.

I credit them as inspiration for a pair of tight red trousers in my wardrobe that make appearances most winters like Sweet songs in the UK.

The following song’s lyrics were common playground chant’s that probably significantly influenced the formative years of anyone from my generation named William…

The Sweet sang little willie

Before I had any influence over the parental record collection, and I’m not sure that I do now, mumzie would play music by artistes that included at least one keyboard.  Mumzie has an impressive vinyl collection covering Rachmaninoff  through early Niel Sedaka to Barbara Dickson.  Her collection judiciously excludes Barry Manilow and the flamboyant charms of Liberace. 

In 1975 Mumsie was thrilled by a Niel Sedaka cover featuring multiple keyboards,  and a man called ‘captain’ wearing a hat.   Though still pre-teen, I was beginning to develop serious scepticism about my parent’s music tastes…

The Captain and Tenille sang ‘love will keep us together’ in 1975. 

I do love the sound of a banjo before bedtime.  This lullaby is the first song that I remember singing.  During those good old days, sing-along-a-mumzie was a regular and highly valued feature of my daily life (1966).  The lullaby musical genre appears slightly under-exploited by current popsters.

The Seekers sang Morningtown ride

Thanks to Scarlet for introducing ‘jukebox monday’ on her blog, an idea I am shamelessly apeing here in The Wendy House.