Does anyone know this man called Ed?
Does anyone know this man? If so, I have a small request I hope you could pass along to him...
His name is Ed. He's a very talented singer/songwriter/musician. He sometimes plays in this little band called Pearl Jam, you may have heard of them. I've been listening to his music for a very long time. I can still remember the beginning - I was in the Air Force stationed at Myrtle Beach AFB, SC. It was 1992 and we were home after being deployed to Saudi Arabia for Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm. While in the desert I listened to a lot of music to pass the time. Queen, Motley Crue, and The Doors were regulars in my cassette player. But after we returned home, I remember a day I was with my friend Sid at his house. He wanted me to hear this great new song. I can clearly remember him singing Evenflow at the top of his lungs. We played it over and over. And over. I was hooked.
Flash forward to 1996. Out of the Air Force and now a college student at age 26. I was new to the city of Augusta, GA but met a guy named Krischan in biology class. We were lab partners and became good friends outside of school. The love of music was something we had in common. We'd often visit the Red Lion Pub on $5 pitcher Wednesdays and listen to live music. No Code had just been released and Pearl Jam was touring. I was able to acquire two Ten Club tickets the the show at Memorial Stadium in Charlotte, NC. Krischan and I split gas money and headed to Charlotte. What a great show! We both bought shirts. Mine was a maroon shirt with the No Code wheel on the front and a track list on the back. The track list looked like it was hand written on a piece of ruled yellow paper, then taped to the back of the shirt. Can't tell you how many times people stopped me to let me know someone had stuck something on my back 
In the spring of 1999, I was preparing to graduate from the Medical College of Georgia. At the same time, the book Pearl Jam: Place/Date was released. I was browsing through the book and came across a familiar sight. It was a full page spread, taken from the stage. It looked just like Memorial Stadium were Krischan and I saw Pearl Jam. I looked at the credits and sure enough, the photo was taken from our show. As I searched the crowd I was able to locate both myself and Krischan. It's nice to say I have my picture in a Pearl Jam book
Present day. I'm older now. 47 to be exact. Lots of life experiences, and like most people, not all of them have been great. Got married. Moved to another new town after graduation. Had twin daughters. Became a stay at home dad. Watched one of my daughters fight for her life after being diagnosed with osteosarcoma (bone cancer). Got divorced. Started over at age 45. But one thing didn't change - my love for music, and especially the music of this guy called Ed and his band. Was lucky enough to see them live a few more times, and also got to see Ed live at Ryman Auditorium in Nashville on his last US solo tour. The music means so much to me - I can put on a record or play a cd and certain songs with take me back in time. Evenflow. Every single time I hear that song I can still see Sid screaming it at the top of his lungs.
So, after starting over I met this girl. Oh my god, this girl! After meeting her I knew there was different about her. So beautiful, so smart, so wonderful. Now I know that when you first start dating someone new, it's exciting. You feel all those wonderful feelings. I've experienced that several times in my life. But you've got to listen to me - I have NEVER had feelings for someone like I had for this girl. This girl, April. The more we spent time together, the more I knew that this was what love really was. For the first time in my life I experienced TRUE love. We listened to music together. I introduced her to Ed's music, specifically his Ukulele Songs. I told April that one song in particular really had personal meaning to me. Longing to Belong. It was how I felt. Whenever April and I were apart, I longed for her. I felt incomplete without her. 47 years. It took me 47 years to find true love. My soulmate. And believe me, I didn't believe soulmates existed until I met April. Now I believe.
As much as I love music, I am not musically inclined. I was never in the high school band. I can't play any instrument. I even suck at air guitar. And please, please don't ask me to sing. No amount of autotune could make me sound good. But I was longing. So I tried. I bought a ukulele. I looked up ukulele tabs. I watched YouTube videos. I practiced. And practiced. And practiced. When I played the notes, it wasn't perfect. I made mistakes, my fingers didn't always cooperate. But, if you had ever heard the song you could tell what I was playing. It made me smile. Now to add the lyrics. Let me just say I have deep respect for people who can play an instrument AND sing at the same time. It was a disaster. No way I could do both at the same time, which I guess was fortunate because as I said earlier I cannot sing. I was dying to try out my newly acquired ukulele 'skills' on April. I just hoped she'd like it.
I had been telling her for weeks about a surprise I had for her. One night I sat her down and asked her to close her eyes. Not sure what she was expecting but pretty sure she wasn't expecting me to surprise her by butchering one of Ed's songs. As she sat in front of me, eyes closed, I took a deep breath and strummed the uke. I did my best. At the end, there was a smile, a couple tears, and hugs and kisses. I think I did ok, even though it was just an instrumental performance.
We recently planned a trip to Europe. London, Paris, and ending in Germany where Krischan is now living. When I got the Ten Club email about Ed's new solo tour, I looked at dates. On June 7th he would play in London. On June 7th April and I will be arriving in London on the Eurostar from Paris. I was fortunate to be able to get two tickets to that show. We are soooooo excited! Here's where my request comes in - I'm not sure what the set list will be, but if you know this guy Ed, could you please ask him to include Longing to Belong at the June 7th show in London? It would really mean the world to me. And April could finally hear the song live, complete with we'll sung lyrics.
Sincerely,
Longing in Georgia
Comments