The Unlikely Guitarist by Kerynne Roberton

The Unlikely Guitarist

The first time I came to The Florrie
Buying tickets, they thought I’d come far.
They gave me such a warm welcome,
And asked Did I play the guitar?

Their website had clips of two hundred,
Guitarists who had a great time.
When they next said they wanted six hundred
I knew that that was my sign.

With my daughter’s guitar from a school fair
Though child sized and scraped, it would do,
I watched and then copied my first chords
Everything about playing was new.

My nails they had to be shorter,
My fingers went hard at the ends
Determined to be a guitarist
Amusing my family and friends.

To learn a bit more about playing
Round the corner, I had Ralph at hand
He’d once been my great reading buddy
And at weekends he played in a band.

Inspired by clips from The Florrie,
Encouraged by Carl from The Farm.
I started to hit many right notes
Just a few were still causing alarm.

My guitar and me travelled from Southport
At first on my own, just the one.
But as I got closer to Central
More and more with guitar bags got on.

And there on the steps of St George’s
There were families, guitar groups and friends.
There were film crews with their giant cameras,
And a queue that seemed never to end.

Now Timo had said it won’t matter
If you only knew one note or two
And couldn’t always get them right
Cos the people around you would do.

And there on my row with this novice
Was Mel who has his own band.
Nasher a hero from teen years
Ian Prowse from the band Amsterdam.

Surrounded by Scouse guitar legends
And people who’d travelled for miles
That glorious hall seemed to sparkle
As it filled with guitarists and smiles.

When we began playing that first tune
On a wave I was lifted so high,
By the choir, a band and guitarists
And emotions so deep I could cry.

An incredible night full of music,
The magical Florrie had won
The hearts and support of so many
Special memories for those who had come.

Now cancer has taught me life lessons
Like doing things that seem quite mad.
And thanking those around you
For all the great times that you’ve had.

So thanks to all at The Florrie,
For all the great work that you do
And to Timo for creating this guitarist
A huge and heartfelt Thank you.

By Kerynne Robertson