Musicblock

Thursday morning. An early walk up Mount Eden. It’s a forgiving incline, not too tough but enough to tax. I’m listening to Neil Finn’s 2017 album Out of Silence. I turn a corner and Chameleon Days begins with its gentle percussion and I’m intent, waiting for the gorgeous piano to start. This melody is the hook that grounds the song and it’s brilliant. Someone is walking towards me. Although I’m always half-lost in what I’m listening to, I’ll always share a nod or a smile with whoever passes me on the way. More often than not I have two thoughts – what’s playing in their ears and how is their dog so well-behaved? Chameleon Days is in full flight. Neil Finn’s falsetto washing over me. I lift my head and the first thing I register is the hair. Grey, shaggy, cool, definitely cool. And where the hell is his lycra? No-one walks up Mount Eden in denim. We smile at each other and, as he passes me, I twig. My god, it’s Neil Finn. Only in Nu-Zil!