A great blast from the past!! A few weeks after the song Games Without Frontier came out in '86, along with "In Your Eyes" a tasty gig came my way. My vibrating beeper suddenly woke up, which back then meant a client was trying to reach me for a photo shoot or someone wanted to buy coke from their dealer if that was their scheme.
Then the same client rang my phone before I could check the number on the beeper. I grabbed the receiver placed it on my ear and this client said "hey are you free for the next few days... how about going to Philadelphia and spend a couple of days with Peter Gabriel." It was the early stage of my photography career and to me it sounded as if someone called me saying on flashing capital letters, "Dude you just won the LOTTO!! Caaaaan youuu DIG iiiit?"
ZOOM ZOOM and there I was in the City of Brotherly Love hanging out with Peter.
During our brief time together I discovered many great things about this cerebral artist, his love for humanity, his strong belief for current issues and his unyielding passion for politics which he perfectly and harmoniously blended with his musical talent. A genuine genius and social justice warrior.
Our last day together Peter pulled out a couple wrist bands. At that point he placed one on my right wrist next to my watch then I copycat his moved. He called it "friendship bracelets” and told me to make a wish at that moment, not to take it off and that when nature took its toll on it not to be sad, to let it go and the wish would happen. There wasn't much for me to say then and I kept moving my head up and down.
Years went by and true to my word I never took it off and it stayed on my wrist until it literally felt apart. I didn't want it to disappear at all ... I even shed tears when finally it was swallowed by my trashcan and by then I couldn’t even remember what the original wish had been.
I really get attached to things, or so I have been told... who knows it could be my ADHD. But that lost felt almost the same as when I found out that daddy and mum were Santa.
Where ever you are #petergrabriel I send you love and wish you well my friend.