𝑀𝑒𝑙𝑜𝑝ℎ𝑖𝑙𝑒

➪ ello elmo

CHAPTER TWO

Knee deep in my closet, most of its insides were on the floor, and there wasn't much space there to begin with. Three kids crammed into one small home in Dartford never fared well, and since I was the only girl, I was lucky enough to get my own bedroom.

I decided on a plain black mini dress, the first outfit I picked out, to match the heavy eyeliner I threw on moments later.

"Hurry up, Bobbie!" My brother Mick hollered as I raced downstairs, earning a 'fuck off' then getting scolded by my mother, Eva. That's how things worked when you lived at home, and I hated it.

"Ta mum," I kissed my beloved saint of a mum on the cheek, you'd have to be a saint to deal with me and Mick our whole lives. After all, who really expected future rockstars to behave like angels? "We won't be out too late." She dropped her gaze and passed me a knowing look, which told you everything you needed to know. Mine and Mick's idea of 'staying out late' was very different then most others.

"Afternoon, Jagger siblings." Keith's lips lazily held a cigarette, leaning against Mick's car. Like often, you could find the three of us drinking in nightclubs (or sneaking into them) trying to find the music. Finding music, and finding the music was two entirely different things.

The three of us virtually had the same music taste and records, so much so that mine and Mick's collection had blended together so it took up one half of the living room, or any spare space we could find in our own rooms.

"G'day, Richards only child." I retorted, sliding into the backseat while Mick took driver's side and Keith took front. "Clever," Keith grimaced as Mick drove, turning slightly to face both Jagger's. "Excited for the show?"

Mick, Keith, and I, along with a couple school mates were in a show we called 'Little Boy Blue and The Blue Boys'. Quite a lengthy and misleading title for a group of scrawny teenagers, but it fit us. We were cocky, thinking we were clever, in those days. I was only eighteen, parading behind my brother and his friends, it was bound to go to my head. We showed up to the Ealing club like we owned the place, cigarettes lit and unbothered expressions on our faces.

All three of us loved rhythm and blues with all our soul, it was the defining genre of rock. Without rhythm and blues and talented black artists, rock and roll would simply not exist. Mick had read about a club, newly focusing on R&B, and wanted to check it out. That meant, all of us went as well. We were like a three headed monster, you couldn't get one of us without the other two hot on his tails.

It was a dingy little place, with alcohol at the ready and smoky with cigarettes. It was located under Ealing tube station, and the roof was cobblestone, so you'd hear feet walking overhead if you listened close enough. You walked down to enter, and with each step, I felt something in my stomach that told me today was important. Something was going to happen, on April 7th, 1962, and I couldn't keep off the silly little smile.

"Introducing a local group, Blues Incorporated!" We managed to find a couch we quickly claimed as the group was introduced, and I sucked air through my teeth. Blues Incorporated was a highly respected, a little famous, group around Dartford. They constantly switched up their members, and tonight was no different.

A man who called himself 'Elmo Lewis' joined the lineup, as well as a lad named 'Charlie Watts'. I cheered and clapped, drinking with my buddies, before Elmo's solo came on.

It was a song we'd heard many times before, by Elmore James. Elmo portrayed a perfect rendition of 'Dust My Broom', and me and the lads were blown away. Charlie provided a perfect backbeat, drumming like it wasn't a big deal. His face looked rather bored, like he had other places to be.

I knew then, sitting next to Keith and sharing a drink with Mick, that those two would somehow be twisted in the fates of the future, our future, and everything in between.

Mick was the first one to pluck up enough courage and talk to Elmo, coming back to report what the interesting man had to say. His grasp on the music scene seemed bigger than ours, and seeing how cocky we were, we wanted in on it. We were surprised to find out he had his own band at this time, then neutral about it, cause they deserted him in the next few weeks.

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photo: baby 'elmo'  with his sister, barbara.