Whatever Tomorrow Podcast

Episode 2: Bus Stop Boogie

In this episode of the Whatever Tomorrow podcast I’ve got a new song ‘Shine’ as well as spoken word in ‘Bus Stop Boogie’ and ‘Let It All Be’

*IN THIS EPISODE:*

00:00 – Intro Music & Welcome
00:54 – Creative Update: New recordings
03:15 – SPOKEN WORD: “Bus Stop Boogie”
05:05– MUSICAL PERFORMANCE: “Shine” (Original Song)
08:13– A thought on art and interpretation
09:00 – SPOKEN WORD: “Let It All Be”
10:05 – Sign-off & Outro

Bus Stop Boogie

Bus stop in the gentle rain,
Waiting,
Waiting.

Old couple arguing about something, nipping at each other.

Dressed like they are on a hill-walking expedition in monsoon season for the trip down to the bingo.

Sharing a packet of Wotsits.

The wet grass.
Cars rolling by in the street,
Turn up the volume,
Ian Dury and the Blockheads
Burst through my headphones.

And I’m traveling,
Borneo,
Bordeaux,
Fantastique.

Feet tapping,
Moving,
Near ready to fly.
Suddenly, shoulders start going,
And the arms,

Like a dad dancing special at a wedding,

I’m moving.

The Missus is over the road walking a dog,
Chuckles and gives me a wave.
Saxophone solo hits,
I give her a wave back.

And I’m moving like Jagger,

Moving smooth like an old soul band,
Busting some moves like Sam and Dave,
Found the 46-year-old version of the splits,
I’m channelling James Brown.

The lights are on at the bus stop,
Like a late-night club.

Me and her are dancing together,
She always was a great dancer,
Natural rhythm,
Her perfume.

The dog’s the DJ,
Spinning the songs,
Looking at us like,

“You got this.”

The old couple are boogying together,
They used to do salsa,
They announce,
“You young ones are missing out,”

They laugh.

As me and my lady dance closer,
Slower,
As the beat hits,

And we are dancing down
The Champs-Élysées,
Santa Fe,
Troon Bay,
Roses and fireworks.

We hear the bus,
but it can wait.

At least a beat.

(c) Paul Andrew Sneddon


Let It All Be

I see an advert at the bus stop.

The open road of the USA,
highway stretching through Monument Valley.

Nah, I’d rather be here.

On the bus,
headphones alive,
listening to something real —

like Traquair and the Tranquilizers,
or Steve Adams singing,
“Have you washed your hands?”

Heading to Irvine beach
in the peelywally Scottish sun.

The kind of day
you need sunscreen and a hoody,
just in case.

The old town is alive with
sun seekers,
joggers,
families
and old ones.

Down those old roads,
along the harbour.

Smiles at the Hac.
I get the feeling
that might be my kind of place.

Past the ghost of The Big Idea,
drawbridge up.

I’m going to walk from Irvine to Barassie
along the beach.

The water slowly rippling in,
the sound of seagulls,
and the further along you get,
the people fade away,

and it almost feels like you are alone.

Arran in the distance,
keeping a watchful eye.

Jumping over the streams and sandbanks,
the occasional dog sprinting past,
chasing his ball.

I run my hands through the water.
Take a breath.

I turn off the music.
Take a seat in the sand.

Just sit back,
and let it all be.

Life is life.

(c) Paul Andrew Sneddon

Sunday Nights

Kettle’s boiling.

Wee man just scored the winner, 20-18, in the garden cup.

When did he get so good?

Running circles ’round the old man.
Rainbow flicks and nutmegs.
Almost make me wish I’d gone easier on him in those first games.

Hear you calling from the kitchen: “It’s ready!”

Toasted cheese or roasted cheese? Cheese on toast… We never could agree.

And a spot on the couch, your smile, your laugh, as you steal the best seat.

Your eyes smiling, 20 years of love, as you turn on the TV.
Everyone Loves Raymond, family favourite, a Channel 4 special, familiar as the Ayrshire rain.

Smiling faces, all together.
Sunday evening.

(c) Paul Andrew Sneddon

Top Five

Photo by Ryan Johns on Unsplash

I was bored one day.

Writing lists:
Top 5 songs.
Top 5 taxi rides.
Top 5 bars.
Top 5 boozy nights I can remember…

Top 5 places I woke up.

At the bar:
As the light stole in,
Like a thief.
Her smiling,
We need to get out of here.

In her bed:
Ayrshire Rain at the window,
Our bodies tangled.
Under the covers.
Never want to leave.
I have to leave now.

On a bench outside the station:
With the rain coming down.
And a note in my pocket.
And a ticket home.
And a hangover.
Like an old friend.
And the ticket inspector looking confused,
Did you sleep here last night?

Aye pal, with a guitar case for a pillow.

Now I just need to hear the rhythm of the train tracks,
Like a steady snare.

On the beach:
First rays of an Ayrshire morning
Guitar next to me,
Notebook filled with songs.
Dreams.
Early walker looking at me like,
What the fuck?

Here with you:
I’m older now,
I was younger then.
I’ve learned a little,
Just enough.
There’s nowhere I’d rather be.

(c) Paul Andrew Sneddon

Last Dance

Part 4 of Rock and Roll is Dead

Across the bar, Ami was flicking through her notebook of songs and lyrics, glancing at the empty glass and empty seat opposite her.

They would have to play fucking Idlewild at the end of a breakup. Fuck it. It was done.

Call me a fucking bitch. Prick. He’ll be away home to tell his maw all about it. Either that or he’ll be back for an acting award.

She pushed her specs back up her nose and swallowed hard. How the fuck are people together for forty years? she wondered. What the fuck do they talk about?

I mean, come on, dating a dentist? Plenty of money, but the chat? Christ. Putting my guitars away. Fuck off. The cheek of it.

Ah well, fuck him. What’s done is done.

She had lost some security maybe but now she had her freedom. Fair trade.

She browsed her phone; there was the listing. Wednesday night. The open mic would be on down the road. It had been a while, but she had a new song that she was aching to let out into the world.

She looked over to the bar and saw Lauren holding court. She wondered about all the Idlewild songs tonight; it seemed unusual for this bar. Normally it’s all new songs and rock and roll.

She got up and walked to the door. She heard the two lads arguing about Led Zeppelin and online, but she kept walking out into the cold Glasgow night.

She walked along the pavements as the streetlights lit up, and she could hear the thud of bass from the Riverside Dome.

(c) Paul Andrew Sneddon

The Edge of the Volcano

Photo by Martin Sanchez on Unsplash

Sometimes I feel like I’m standing on the edge of a volcano.

The silence of the night. Weighs you down. Sometimes it makes it hard to breathe.

I felt like if you whispered then the whole world would hear.

But you knew it couldn’t be true. Could it?

I watched the cold, steady rain fall through the early hours.

The light reflected on the puddles and cracked pavements as daylight bled in.

The streets were empty, the silence broken by an occasional ambulance as it sped up the street . Its lights flashing, siren howling at the crossroads.

Life and death.
In a moment.

I sat by the window.
I’d been up most of the night.

Sleep had become like a fugitive lover you could no longer depend on. Here and then gone, with no guarantees when it would be back.

My brain was running ragged, worrying about everything and nothing all at once. In an exhausting battle with itself.

I’d given up trying to sleep and got myself a coffee. It sat untouched on the window frame. That smell used to give me comfort.

Now, like so much of life, it just drifted past.

A little mountain of silver packaging sat next to the coffee cup, my constant companions. Pills to slow a racing heart, antidepressants, and sleeping pills. The doctor had scared me off the sleeping pills. They were very addictive, so I should take one or two and then stop.

How bad could it be?

Bad.

It felt like I was back at the volcano’s edge again.

I was already hung up on insomnia and everything else. I really didn’t want an addiction to pills to go with it. But I’m not a doctor. Maybe I should have just gone for it.

The room was cold, and I noticed my breath in front of me.

I picked up my notebook. The page screamed back at me. Empty. Line after line. A song unwritten.

Words unsaid.

I looked out the window and saw a milk float making its way up the street.

Had I slipped some gap in time? Who gets milk delivered these days? It made its way up the street but didn’t stop at any houses.

Just kept going.

Was I dreaming?

I caught my reflection in the window. My beard was a little greyer. A few more lines on my face. But I didn’t recognise my eyes.

The brilliant blue was gone. Just dulled and faded.

A scream built up inside me.
My heart raced.

I opened my mouth but no sound came.

Silence.

I drew in a deep breath, closed my eyes, and tried again.
There was a small rumble, which quickly evaporated to nothing as the breath escaped my lungs.

Emptiness.
Everywhere.

I wanted to dial 999.
Call an ambulance.
Call a doctor.
Call someone. Anyone.

My words choked me as I looked around desperately, my hands at my throat.

I watched as the number 22 bus made its way up the street.
I saw the lights.
People setting about their day.
Travelling into work.

I tapped on the window.
I hit the window as hard as I could, but no one noticed.

I slumped back in my seat, exhausted.
My arms fell heavy to my sides as I felt the sweat rolling down my forehead.
It felt like my head was melting as I looked into the window.
It seemed like the world was shrinking and my face was disappearing.

Into nothing.

I looked around the room.

My guitar stretched out, losing its shape, melting before my eyes.

The room began to bend and stretch, losing all shape. An endless emptiness stretching as far as I could see . In every direction. Forward and back.

The future and the past.

I woke up on the floor.

7 a.m.

I had slept for 15 minutes.

My mouth was dry.
My head ached.

I looked up , and there was no roof.

Just rain.

© Paul Andrew Sneddon