I found myself at the Cavern Club tonight. Freda, who was just as excited as I was about my new job, decided that going at this point would be beneficial. The Beatles were playing, after all…
Freda rushed over from her house almost as soon as I told her I'd been hired to assist Mr. Epstein and his clients. Being as she lived only two houses down from us, she was in my bedroom in less than five minutes. She must have run down the street, as she was out of breath by the time she plopped down next to me on my bed.
"We need to go to the Cavern," she insisted, catching her breath. "There's no better time than now!"
Suddenly she was up on her feet again, making her way to my tiny closet and set of drawers. She threw both the doors and drawers open and began rummaging through my clothes.
"The Beatles have a set tonight, and I've been dying to get you in to see them," Freda said, holding a black skirt out to examine it. She lay it out on the bed next to me, then went back to look for an accompanying shirt.
"If I can work my magic, I think I can get you backstage to meet them."
I was surprised. "Really? And what exactly is this magic, Fre?"
She selected a black turtleneck and turned back to me, blushing and smiling a bit. "I'm going with Gerry… you know, from the Pacemakers?"
"No!" I squealed. "I thought you only went on one date with him?"
Freda laughed and turned back to my clothes. This time she grabbed a white, long-sleeved blouse and studied it for a bit. "Two dates, actually," she replied with a hint of a giggle in her voice. I suddenly wished I had someone to giggle over.
She walked over to me and held both tops out for my approval. We'd done this many times before, she and I, trying to decide what to wear to work the next day, or for a date and whatnot. I picked the white blouse, thinking I'd look rather smart and professional. I was introducing myself to my new charges, and this was almost like a second interview, so why not look that way? Freda shook her head, thrust the black turtleneck at me, and whisked the rejected top back to my closet.
"Why not the blouse?" I asked.
"I just realized that you'd look like you were going to church, not a club. We can't have that," she replied, now rooting through my shoes.
I quickly tore off my twinset and dressed in Freda's chosen ensemble. I looked in the mirror and had to admit I looked nice, ready to go to some little coffeehouse where we'd snap after a group sang or read poetry or something, drink black coffee, and smoke French cigarettes. I don't know what I was expecting, exactly.
When Freda and I made it to the Cavern, it was drizzling slightly and the street we walked along smelled of rotten fruit. We went right up to the queue and waited to be let in. I looked around at the kids that were also in line, and realized that Freda was absolutely correct when she picked both my outfit and hers. Freda looked gorgeous in the corduroy skirt she'd made, paired with a black turtleneck as well. Her hair was slightly straightened, which looked very hip. If you were to have passed the throng of people being let into the club that night, neither one of us would have stood out as being out of place.
Meanwhile, the line got shorter. It seemed that no one was turned away. When Freda and I were very close to the entrance, I noticed the bouncer. He was extremely tall (I would have only hit the middle of his chest standing up straight at my full height), with curly blond hair and thick, Buddy Holly-like glasses. He seemed older than Freda and I, perhaps by five years or so. He was shaking hands with people, slapping guy's backs, joking around; he was friendly, I'd decided. We inched forward in the line, and he noticed Freda before we even hit the door.
"Freda! Good to see you," he said, then gave her a quick squeeze. "Haven't seen you here in a while."
Freda laughed and smiled up at the man. "I'm a working stiff, Mal. I don't have the time I used to anymore."
"I can understand that. I have two jobs now. Wooler hired me to be a permanent moonlighter."
Freda looked pleased at that. "A promotion, I see."
Mal smiled down at Freda and laughed at her little joke. He was about to open the door for us when he noticed me.
"Who's your friend, Fre?" He asked, his eyes never leaving mine.
She turned to me. "Mal, this is Alice Duncan. Mal Evans is the bouncer of the club, but works at the post office during the day," she then explained to me.
Mal stretched a large hand toward me, and I shook it. "It's nice to meet you," he said.
I struggled to find words, but then spoke. "Same to you, Mr. Evans."
He laughed at this (a hearty guffaw, if I remember correctly) and asked me to please call him Mal. Or if I didn't like that, Malcolm. He smiled at me one more time, told me again it was lovely to meet me, then let us both into the Cavern.
Oh, the Cavern Club. Freda and I descended into the common area, the walls wet with condensation, people dancing wildly and drinking, a band up on stage. Freda waved to some of the friends she'd met here, then introduced me by saying she'd been trying to get me to the Cavern for months. I couldn't understand why I hadn't come sooner; the air was like electricity, the music loud and fast. I even had a rum and coke. It was thrilling, and I never wanted to leave.
I was just about to go dance to another song when Freda held me back.
"The Beatles are going on now," she said loudly enough to be heard over the racket of the joint, and then steered me away from the dance floor.
We sat down in some chairs set up by the arches closest to the stage (Freda had to elbow our way beyond some posh girls that were taking her 'spot') and shared Freda's drink. It was a good thing she'd pulled me away, because I was hot and very flushed in the face; not the kind of look I wanted to have when meeting my employers. Speaking of, they took the stage almost as soon as I thought that.
They were four boys, all looking to be only a tiny bit older than I, and were all in leather. Wielding instruments, one of the guys charged up to the microphone and introduced himself as Paul, then went on to call out the names of his bandmates. They fooled around with the crowd for a bit, then proceeded to power their way through an energetic set that got the crowd to their feet. I looked to Freda to see that she was grinning widely, really enjoying herself. To be honest, I was too.
We danced for a little bit to one of their new songs to be released in the next month entitled 'Hold Me Tight.' I saw Mal Evans briefly, dancing on the far side of the club with a girl. It seemed as though everybody loved this group, and it wasn't hard to see why.
The music stopped after a few more songs, and the Beatles exited the stage and to the back of the club. Freda took a sip of her drink, finishing it, then grabbed my elbow and whispered 'come on.' We quickly slipped past the girls in the arches and to the dank hallway behind the stage where there were only two rooms.
"…see the blond bird in the front?" one asked.
"Fancy a shag with her do you, George?"
They all laughed after that.
"No, just a cigarette and a drink!"
More laughter.
I was wondering if this was a good idea, if I should turn back, when Freda lightly knocked on the door. They all turned to face us.
"Guys, this is Alice. She's going to be working for you."
