Jerry Harrison in Talking Heads played a Prophet 5.

It cost $600 which was clearly unattainable to my 70s teen self so I made an appointment with the loans officer at the bank. I was just trying to figure out how you do it, like when I was 21 and wrote to George Martin to let him know I was available if he needed someone. A very reasonable offer I thought.

The Bank of Montreal loans officer, in his green leisure suit,  told me he used to be in a band when he was younger and I shouldn’t pursue it he added he knew people who made it and people who didn’t and kid – it’s not worth it.

I said what band were you in? He said the Squires. The Squires? You were in the Squires with Neil Young? He was surprised that a teenager 10 or 15 years later knew them but by then I had a respectable command of Neil Young’s bio especially being a Winnipeger.

I was impressed – he wasn’t a loans officer at the Bank of Montreal he was the god damn drummer from the Squires! But me being impressed was not his goal; he wanted to set me straight.

A few years later I was in that band that people who don’t know me think of as my last name.  We were doing very well and traveling all over Canada playing to big crowds. Next time in Winnipeg I thought I would pay a visit to that loan officer and more or less brag to him that he was wrong.

At the bank they were freaked out by my nerve asking if they could find him for me. He no longer worked at that branch and I said can you look up where he is? I think they pressed the emergency button under the desk to alert the cops. I got the message. I never met him again.

I get where he was coming from but why kill an idea inside the mind of an enthusiastic youth? Or maybe it’s necessary for anyone who sticks to the life of being an artist that they have to move through 50 people trying to stop them. Like it’s all various levels of survival in a video game.

like it’s all about La Decima Vittima!