wait up david wait up…!
i called through the foggy morning to my friend
we were in a holiday inn car park
and we were stumbling through the tempe hinterlands
and we were about to go onstage in ottawa
and we were smoking a joint in davids bedroom
we were tuning up in a caravan down the coast
david, did you ever go to australia…?
david never went there …says someone out of earshot
dave shook his head wearily..i’m here n now, aint i?
everyone laughs
its a song isnt it?
on the first solo record after he left that super group
i never liked what eric did on lowboy
but i hear he still plays it to this day:
lowboy, how low can you go boy
the stuffs out the back
but the sky has turned black
yeah you can rest yer head
now the pigs have been fed
is there anything you can still enjoy…?
i guess i should write copyright d. neil
but i cant be bothered
davids not likely to sue me
the photo of a mans face comes on the screen
its lenny weissmann
davids manager lawyer and enabler
its an old photo
jesus i didnt know weissman had so much hair…
david grins : he pulled most of it out over me
everybody laughs
the band pull into focus
they all laugh
but there is a huge emptiness contained in their mirth
aw theyre all numb says david rolling his eyes
more laughter from the band n the crew
some seedy shady lady steps out of the shadows
lenny was a good guy…he was great for david…
she looks around for a challenge but finds none
in the harsh lights she looks so old
like she smoked 1 million cigarettes n drunk 1 million whiskies
i’m marilyn savage….david wrote deadline for me
someone strums the sad chords that start the song
a descending minor pattern that never seems to lead anywhere
but suddenly merges back into the beginning imperceptibly
ah…that was davids genius says weissmann looking up from his desk
the woman takes the microphone
she wanders out onto the stage
the fiddle player n pedal steal begin to softly wail
the crowd recognize marilyn savage
everyone here probably saw that documentary
everyone saw her interviewed by johnny carson that time
when david first came to l.a.
the drums roll in
marilyns got a croaky old voice but its pleasantly in tune
shes an octave up from where dave used to sing it
never thought i’d see my name in a headline
never thought i’d get myself off of this deadline….
from this distance she doesnt look too bad
david whispers in my ear
we need some vancouver stuff says a voice down the line
cut to vancouver autumn 74
i had my twentieth in davids uncles place out in some lake
marilyn savage was there n her brother boyd
who did lights for david in the early days
god! look at the fashions
david looks kinda cool tho
somewhere between a surfer n a prince
i wish this had sound
it does have sound! says boyd savage twiddling a dial
the party fades up into real life
here we all are so young n splendid n alive
its good to be alive smirks david n the band all laugh
david n the band have a troubled relationship
too many drinks n drugs n violence
too many opinionated girlfriends says david on one old interview
i only met david a year ago in canberra
he was supposed to be at university…..
david never went to australia said weissmann
blatantly contradicting me
i think you’ll find steves memory a little uh….
marilyn savage :its true…david was never there
you can believe whoever you like
but one year later to this day in june
there i was
playing bass with david at the new genoa orpheum
sold out!
we were all so nervous
david tuned n retuned his guild 12
the one they say i stole but it was a gift, i swear
backstage we were harmony rehearsing alberta
alberta was a bit of a hit
lenny kept saying the harmonies were all wrong
alberta now you gone n made me cry
steve youre singing the wrong words man says david gentlemanlike
we sit in daves bedroom
we were trying to write this song called my secret star
david had gotten some girl pregnant
he’d shaved off his beard n cut his hair
he was using eyeliner
he had a coke habit n was experimenting with bisexuality
he ran out of money n briefly worked as a wine salesman ha ha
after the accident he married a doctor and moved to florida
yes he came n saw me play in miami in 1986
he was wanted by interpol at that stage
the so called doctor had run off in his yacht
david was barely recognizable in his sunglasses n grey hair
we decided to do davids beautiful song “normandy”
i hear he wrote it about his dad
we thought david might come on
but he never did
when the show was over
there was no sign of him
i dont stay out late much anymore he said sadly
cue the song “scarlet”
we see archival footage of davids plane taking off
unbelievable that they chartered their own plane
the plane climbs into the clear blue sky over the pacific
david sings :scarlet i cant believe my eyes
you dealt me out from your pack of lies
and baby if this is really the end
please introduce me to yer friend”
david shoots the final scene
the cocktail of drugs
lenny fires a shot
david has a blast
marilyn savage on her knees in the back of the plane
the captain says we gotta turn back
glass shatters
someone screams
someone else is shouting
i watch the screen transfixed in the darkness
david nudges me in the next seat
youll like this bit
the blood swirls into the chamber
weissmann is slapping davids face
the plane is losing altitude
the long duel guitar solo reaches its climax
a ball of flame on the horizon
becomes the rising sun
david emerging from the sea with his surfboard
we see marilyn sitting on the beach waving
young lenny weissmann with that big mop of hair
the screen goes blank
a sign comes up
the end / fin
i look for my name in the credits
nah…no mention
that would be david
in spades