Many songwriters say they don’t write songs – they just channel melodies that already exist. That’s a bit like what this stage of my residency feels like. I’m not creating everything yet – just making space to notice things around me. Special everyday things and people I’ve missed before.
This could not be illustrated more clearly than by the unveiling of the Butterworths sign on the old Zanzibar site last week. Generations of us growing up in Newcastle thronged to its dance floor over generations. Teddy boys, mods, indie kids and ravers all experienced the thrill of being young and belonging on its dance floor.
But the building eventually closed and fell into disrepair. People said it was an eye sore and just needed pulling down.
Yet hidden silently on its wall was another story, now revealed in all its glory. A perfectly preserved F&E BUTTERWORTH LTD shop signage – marks tracing a forgotten family history dating back to the 1900’s waiting until someone uncovered them. The internet buzzed with stories of the family and its shop, and people tried to trace the sign writer who’d created the work. We fell in love with our town and it’s history through something we’d lost and found again.
As we come out of lockdown we all have the chance to celebrate the things we took for granted and briefly lost. That’s what Newcastle Common is about for me.
Thanks to Sam Roberts, Ghost Signs, Newcastle-under-Lyme Markets, Jenny Amphlett, Brampton Museum, James Johara and all that chipped in with comments and detective work over the weeks.
More here https://www.patreon.com/posts/48069836
~ Ian Mood
