I was there at Wembley Stadium that day, aged only 15, only my second gig (and the first one without parental supervision). I thought of Queen as music my dad liked so I was primed to ignore them, as indeed everyone in the stadium ignored Madonna (on the screen), but they were too good, and I had to admit they had been the best that day (apart from Bowie who was the real reason I was there, and why I spent a couple of hours on the phone to get tickets for me and my friends).
Of course subsequently we learned that the majority of the money raised had ended up in the pockets of warlords to buy guns so that child soldiers could shoot each other, but we didn't know that at the time, and it was a gig that I knew would never be surpassed in my lifetime, which indeed it hasn't been. That was a formative experience of group cohesion if ever there was one. And I still can't believe our parents let three fifteen year olds go up to London on the train on their own!
I savored this piece. As kids, we instinctively reach for pots and pans and our bodies in order to create rhythms. We swirl and twirl to reach alternate states. We participate in sports, band, theater, etc. in groups to learn how to cooperate, coordinate and create with each other. All of this *can* lead to sublime world community experiences such as the one you so eloquently highlighted here. Such an epic, joyful and SHARED moment in time! Thank you, Jamie.
Loved reading this since I remember this concert so well. But it also brought up the question: When do we have these collective moments now? At best, we do continue to experience this at a smaller scale, in concert halls and buskers on the street, and maybe that’s all that matters.
The Queen clip sent me on a deep dive into other classics of the 70s and 80s. Thanks for the prompt, bares out the truth of "If music really is the food of love, we’d do well to turn it up."
The layers of relevance here for me, bonkers. Thank you Jamie (going to South Africa next month)
Everyone’s spine can be a ‘lightning rod’ for n/um, umbilini, kundalini, life force, etc etc, during group song and dance. Most thorough communal healing there is.
Ps- I was taught to train for trance dance on a mini trampoline. Not the same as in a group but I’ve been solitary a long time. Highly recommend this, with headphones on and driving drums, I like U2… and Queen ❤️🤣
I was there at Wembley Stadium that day, aged only 15, only my second gig (and the first one without parental supervision). I thought of Queen as music my dad liked so I was primed to ignore them, as indeed everyone in the stadium ignored Madonna (on the screen), but they were too good, and I had to admit they had been the best that day (apart from Bowie who was the real reason I was there, and why I spent a couple of hours on the phone to get tickets for me and my friends).
Of course subsequently we learned that the majority of the money raised had ended up in the pockets of warlords to buy guns so that child soldiers could shoot each other, but we didn't know that at the time, and it was a gig that I knew would never be surpassed in my lifetime, which indeed it hasn't been. That was a formative experience of group cohesion if ever there was one. And I still can't believe our parents let three fifteen year olds go up to London on the train on their own!
I savored this piece. As kids, we instinctively reach for pots and pans and our bodies in order to create rhythms. We swirl and twirl to reach alternate states. We participate in sports, band, theater, etc. in groups to learn how to cooperate, coordinate and create with each other. All of this *can* lead to sublime world community experiences such as the one you so eloquently highlighted here. Such an epic, joyful and SHARED moment in time! Thank you, Jamie.
Loved reading this since I remember this concert so well. But it also brought up the question: When do we have these collective moments now? At best, we do continue to experience this at a smaller scale, in concert halls and buskers on the street, and maybe that’s all that matters.
The Queen clip sent me on a deep dive into other classics of the 70s and 80s. Thanks for the prompt, bares out the truth of "If music really is the food of love, we’d do well to turn it up."
The layers of relevance here for me, bonkers. Thank you Jamie (going to South Africa next month)
Everyone’s spine can be a ‘lightning rod’ for n/um, umbilini, kundalini, life force, etc etc, during group song and dance. Most thorough communal healing there is.
Ps- I was taught to train for trance dance on a mini trampoline. Not the same as in a group but I’ve been solitary a long time. Highly recommend this, with headphones on and driving drums, I like U2… and Queen ❤️🤣
In my experience, we are still working on the second part of this equation-We learned to talk.
We learned to listen.
What an amazing book you wrote!!!
Thanks for this reprise, Jamie.