When Singer-Songwriter
Nick Collins Broke His Silence-And Gave A Die-Hard Fan His Autograph
By Sarah Le
Moyne
Sometimes you
can’t win and if anybody read my first archival caption on the reclusive
legendary singer-song-writer Nick Collins you know that I have been a fan of his
since I was a blushing teenage girl filled with romantic notions (still am except
as it turned out it was, is for other women) and say his Moonlight Rock
(which I am playing in the background as I write this) would drive me crazy.
The “sometimes you can’t win” part is that somebody, some evil snitch, fink,
stoolie saw the caption when Googling in search of “Nick Collins” for his or
her own reasons, maybe romantic, maybe not and told Jenny that I was still all
swoony over the guy. Worse picked up on my closing sentiment that I wished that
I had an autograph from him.
All hell broke
loose between Jenny and me over that one but not for the reason you might
suspect. As a result of my plaintive plea somebody e-mailed and told me that
she could get me in contact with Nick Collins’ press and publicity agents and
maybe they could get me in to see Nick for an “interview.” The idea being that
during that interview I could gush out my sentiments and beg on hands and knees
for an autograph.
I was all set
to go after arrangements, byzantine arrangements by the way at a hotel, a chain,
maybe Marriott and not the top suite either, were made by his “fixer man” Jeremy.
Jeremy told me that he had gone out of his way to get me the interview after
Nick had seen my article about artful Rhonda and her quest, her eternal quest,
for that now valuable autograph. And my own plaintive plea for an autograph. Then
all hell broke loose at home. Jenny does not understand this long-term
infatuation, that it is totally possible to have a schoolgirl crush without[O1] it meaning anything sexual or otherwise.
I, we have never seriously discussed attitudes toward men, but she is probably off
of the Nick Collins tirade the first time and now that she has threatened to
leave more hostile than I am to the gender.
Jenny totally
discounted how important teenage passions linger as with Nick Collins whom I first
heard on the radio at home on some parents gone out Saturday night and I was minding
my younger sisters when I heard his cover of To Each This Own, a slow dreamy
ballad filled with sentimental longings (of which I was filled with as well
more toward the male side then until I got rid of some of my confusion at a
Girl Scout camp) and then switching up to Tumbling Down, a classic
Collins rocker. That pair along with the bluesy Don’t Bring On Your Love So
Strong staples of my youthful infatuation (and still can move me).
I mentioned before
this funny story when you think about it. There was, is very little really
known about Nick, most of the stuff in the fan and celebrity magazines was,
well, bullshit, press agent hand-out stuff or stuff whoever wrote the story
made up. Jeremy had a big hand in that especially the recluse build-up like he was
some male Greta Garbo. The legendary parties he supposedly threw were real
enough but strictly record company or later film company galas-minus Nick. Some
people speculated if his reclusiveness had
to do with his slight speech impediment, others his tough Billie Holiday-like
upbringing and yet others that he was so strung out on junk that he had to
hide, had to hide the pain too I would think or risk arrest or bad publicity exposure
when junkies were not well thought of no
matter how good they made audiences feel through their pain.
Eventually
Jenny came home after she did leave for a few days to cool off and I got my
interview with Nick Collins at the Best Western dink hotel out by the airport
(Nick told me he liked places near the airports in case he wanted to slip away
quickly). He turned out to be very personable and flirty a little unlike his publicity
maze. He did mention as a cautionary tale to young kids that he had been strung
out on drugs for years but he had been clean for about a year. He told Jeremy
to keep up the reclusive noise and blather so he would not be bothered while his
life was hanging in the balance one day at a time. Said I could say that information so I guess he
is ready for the female crush now. Get this though as we finished with our
interview and I was ready to put on my big push for an autograph he reached into
the coffee table drawer and pulled out an autographed photograph of himself
signed to me. Quirky guy. And no, I will not show Jenny the damn thing.
[O1]y
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