Wishing myself back to 1949

My grandad's 78s.
You lifted the lid on the blue and silver record player, yanking down the switch to change the speed to 78rpm and balancing the record, big as a dinner plate on the little catch of metal at the top, then you pulled the arm across. Another yank on the on button and, with a loud clunk, the record dropped and the arm shot across to the outer edge of the disc.
An age of hissing and crackling as the needle found the groove and then from out of the fast whirling black disc came voices from another world.

Of all the voices I heard on Grandad's records, I loved Paul Robeson's the best; Old Man River, Joshua Fought the Battle of Jericho.

Even as a child his voice sent shivers up my spine and and 35 years later, it still does.

You can imagine then how excited I was to spot that in 1949, on April 17 and 18, Paul Robeson performed at the Harringay Arena.



To give you a flavour this is Paul Robeson here at St Paul's Cathedral.


So the next time I'm stuck in Harringay's Homebase queue, maybe I'll close my eyes and imagine myself in a different age. In 1949, sitting squashed up in the middle of a row wearing my best blouse, my eyes fixed on the stage, feeling the tears pricking at the corner of my eyes, as Paul Robeson begins to sing My Curly Headed baby and hearing one of the greatest voices of all times reverberating around the Arena.