STING (If I had written GORDON SUMNER would you have known who I meant?) The rock star was born in Wallsend, North-East England in the shadow of a huge shipyard at the end of his street. His Mum was a hairdresser and his Dad was a milkman and engineer (interesting mix?). You can read more about his life in Wikipedia if you like, but Ive just finished listening to his Ted Talk about how he had songwriters block which lasted for some years. He broke the drought by starting to write about people OTHER than himself and now he has a story and a musicial to tell and sell about growing up by a shipyard. You can listen to the recent Ted Talk here: ted/talks/sting_how_i_started_writing_songs_again I guess the bit I found interesting was that after watching The Queen Mother coming to the shipyard in a Rolls Royce, he dreamed of a life bigger than the one he had: Well, I wasnt cured of anything. It was the opposite, actually. I was infected. I was infected with an idea. I dont belong in this street. I dont want to live in that house. I dont want to end up in that shipyard. I want to be in that car. (Laughter) I want a bigger life. I want a life beyond this town. I want a life thats out of the ordinary. Its my right. Its my right as much as hers. I think its great to dream. I also think Sting was an immensely talented songwriter. Dreaming of fame and celebrity (and doing adverts for Jaguar) is one aspiration, your life is no less creative if you write a book that stays in your top drawer. But I do like the idea of having great ocean-liners being crafted at the end of your street and the idea that they sail away into the unknown while we can often live in their shadows... often for a lifetime. May you hop into a tinny, cast off, set out into the lagoon of life and catch a whiting or two or three. And then, like Sting, give away your fortune ...to the nearest grateful cat.
Posted on: Tue, 24 Jun 2014 05:27:17 +0000