Musical Memoir

Bohemian Like Me — One Tale From Middle-Class England

Reminiscing with The Dandy Warhols

Ah, the Dandy Warhols. I loved them already, I’d bought their first major album, The Dandy Warhols Come Down. Their sound and aesthetic fitted with my secret desire to live an alternate life as a heroin addict rock star. Their lead singer had the wankiest name in alt-rock, Courtney Taylor-Taylor, but he was hot. HOT I tell you.

Their new single, Bohemian Like You, though, I hadn’t even heard until it came on the radio, one day a few years later. In fact, the sound was quite a bit different and I didn’t realize it was them at first. Poppier. But then I recognized Courtney’s voice.

They had me at the first line!

You got a great car Yeah, what’s wrong with it today? I used to have one too Maybe I’ll come and have a look

I did have a great car! There was always something wrong with it and people who used to have one were always offering advice. I could relate. It’s the same car we used to travel to the surfing beaches of Devon and Cornwall in, but by now it had quite a few years more on the clock.

And now we had a newborn baby too. That’s what this song brings back to me. As soon as I hear it after almost 20 years, I’m transported immediately to my kitchen, that first time the song came on the radio, dancing about on the chequerboard floor with my new little boy.

No one can ever explain to you the love you will feel when you have a child. When I think of that moment I’m filled with happiness.

‘Cause I like you Yeah, I like you And I’m feeling so bohemian like you Yeah, I like you Yeah, I like you And I feel whoa, woo!

The kitchen was in the first real house we bought. We’d owned an apartment before but the soundproofing was so bad we could hear the old lady next door stirring her tea. So we moved.

The house was exactly what we wanted. In the town we loved, walking distance to the centre, an 1850s end-terrace. Double-fronted with a large garden and even better it had just been renovated.

It retained some period features, like the fireplaces, but had been modernized and extended. Prior to moving in, heavily pregnant, I painted walls and sewed curtains. I planned out the nursery and bought furniture that fitted the aesthetic.

We moved in and it felt like we were living the dream. And then — it rained.

The new extension that had been built leaked like a sieve. Water ran down the walls as soon as the rain began. Water seeped through the wooden patio doors which had not been correctly sealed and stained my new cream-coloured carpet (yes, I know). Water dripped through the ceilings. And not just in the extension.

Still heavily pregnant I climbed out onto the flat roof and passed rubber sealing compound up to my husband on the roof of the upper floor. We sealed for England, every seam, orifice and crack.

And we did stop the water! We had several happy months there, my little one came along, and I spent my days sitting cross-legged on the kitchen floor feeding him pureed carrots and rice pudding.

And then they came — the booklice.

Booklice thrive on wet plaster. Although we’d sealed the house, the plaster had never fully dried and these bugs were now running over every surface. Multiplying daily. It was an infestation.

With a bambino in tow and the rain starting to penetrate again, I couldn’t stand it. We sold up and rented a cottage in a beautiful little English village, hoping to buy something when I went back to work.

But the best-laid plans always turn to crap, and the universe had other ideas. I was made redundant while on maternity leave. House prices rose enormously. So — we took an opportunity that we may not have done if it weren’t for the booklice.

And that’s how I ended up in Canada. What could be more Bohemian than fleeing to another country?

Thanks to the Mother Superior, KiKi Walter for this musical prompt and to The Dandy Warhols for reminding me of a very special time in my life and how I got to where I am now. Here they are…

The Dandy Warhols — Bohemian Like You (Official Video) — YouTube

Tagging a few music lovers C.A. Jaymes Scott-Ryan Abt Scot Butwell Lee David Tyrrell Anthony Overs Julius Evans The Sober Vegan Yogi Michael L Butler Alex Markham Pierce McIntyre

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