And they say you should never go back....but "they" didn't miss Yazoo the first time round!
Today, the announcement was made that Alison M and Vince C were getting together for a Yazoo tour in June this year. That incredible fusion of the head/electro/cold with the heart/vocals/warmth was the sound that woke me up to music.
And the unlikeliness of their pairing spoke volumes to a teenager who increasingly felt he couldn't follow the life-blueprint expected of him.
And their awkwardness, the lack of finesse mirrored the isolation of growing up feeling 'different', an outsider, uncertain of a place in the world.
And yet, their songs were prickly and sad and moving and ripe with imagery and meaning that spoke volumes to an awakening soul.
Like a lot of others, I listened to the recordings of the Peel Sessions, the Dominion concert - I had my first and frankly only moment of piss-weak teenager rebellion, when Yazoo played Rooftops in Glasgow (an over-18 nightclub) and my parents wouldn't allow me (a 14-year old) to go by myself. The huff I pulled....
Yazoo was the starting point of exploring music: of course, the fascination with Alison's unique voice endured. But it was a moment in time that had just narrowly slipped out of my grasp - it was music that was always past-tense. Whilst I knew others had experienced Yazoo, I had only listened. In my room.
The Yazoo Reconnected tour is like a gift. The missing piece of a jigsaw, once believed to be always lost down the side of life's sofa. It is a precious thing to be given this chance.
Good Times indeed!
