Angie took him to the pub on the corner, he sat on the table and drank his vodka and milk slowly. At eight the lights dimmed and a spotlight illuminated the small stage. A big round of applause for Jonathan Josiah.
Jonathan sang All Around My Hat, a jolly song. It was followed by a number very slow and delicate, almost melancholic. He bowed his guitar – every once in a while he played a chord, a harsh fourth or an ugly seventh.
It was music that grabbed your heart from behind and wrenched it this way and that way and some other way.
The cat was entranced, he jumped down from the table and half ran to the stage. He produced a long wail, a long whine and a long screech. Rob, who was a friend of Jonathan, put a microphone on a short stand in front of the cat. The cat wailed and whined and screeched. Rob, who was recording the gig as a demo tape, adjusted the balance.
The pub went quiet, just Jonathan’s voice, the occasional chords and the indescribable sounds from the cat. Soon even those sounds died away. There was silence for a minute, then the applause.
Jonathan and the cat were empty, they had given their all, Angie brought Jonathan a beer and a vodka milk for the cat. Angie fancied Jonathan.
They went on tour as “Jonathan and the cat” around the pub circuit for the next six months.
Your heart is crying loudly Your voice is breaking clear You need not take this road Your emotional overload