"Oh I can't do this, I feel silly!" Susan exclaimed, looking down at a black leather jacket she had borrowed. The girls laughed and convinced her that everyone dressed this way when they went to see THEM. It was a kind of cavern uniform they all wore to show devotion to the Beatles, and consisted entirely of black clothing,and a leather jacket. As they walked,Jill explained to her about signing in at the bottom of the stairs once they got in. She and her friends had membership cards but new people always had to sign the book to get in.
It turned out to be quite a short but cold walk from the Liver Building due to usual British freezing weather for January. On turning down Mathew Street she cheered up, seeing a mass of leather jacketed girls and boys cramming to fit through the small cavern door. As they neared the entrance they could hear everyone talking about this "fab" group. Maybe it was just the usual Liverpool enthusiasm for music taking over - they'd soon be back to "Rory Storme and the Hurricanes" with that strange drummer who wore all those rings.
When they eventually walked through the opening she almost fell down the steps plunging down to the dark cellar. It was dark and smelt of disinfectant, but with so many people packed in like sardines it was certainly not cold down there. As they scrambled to the front with their ice cold cokes one of Jill's friends told her about the group playing. Apparently they had just changed name from The Mars Bars to Gerry And The Pacemakers, and had been with the Beatles in wherever it was in Germany. They seemed to be pretty good but were on their last song.
The atmosphere in the damp cellar was almost at breaking point as everyone chattered about this group that they were all there to see. She felt lost in all the excitement and settled herself on a chair at the front to listen to all the shouts of "fab", "Hamburg", "Pete", "the gearest", "Beatles". Staring around at her surroundings she noticed a grinning face peering around the edge of the stage. The chatting grew into shrieks as the group appeared and the grinning one screamed out into a rock'n'roll number. He turned out to be John - the cheeky one who Jill liked.
Susan had never seen or heard anything like it in her life, the power radiating from the four leather clad Beatles was more than anything she had experienced before. They jumped around on stage, chatted in the middle of songs, and yelled things into the audience that her mother would certainly not approve of, but the music was unbelievable.
She finally felt part of something, that this was why she was living - just to be there...at that moment in time. She got all this just from the group and the atmosphere they created. The damp, smelly cellar didn't matter anymore, suddenly it too was part of the magic. Everyone packed in tight together going through the same thing, the condensation running down the walls and dampening your clothes, the heat being so much that anyone could pass out any minute. They were all part of it and would be in her soul forever.
She began to blend in with everyone and understand them. She even felt as though she knew the group and felt drawn to the left-handed guitarist who was staring dreamily into the depths of the audience. He looked straight at her and winked, causing her to realise that she had been staring in his direction for quite some time.
When she stepped out into the dark Liverpool street she felt different. She was clinging to the atmosphere of it, but the cold wind blew the experience away to leave a glowing feeling that would stay with her.
She stood there running the whole experience through her mind, but her chain of thought was broken when the other girls came whooping and screaming out of the entrance. Jill bounded towards her and grabbed hold of her shoulder. She lent closer, eyes sparkling, and stared at her in amazement.
"I can't believe Paul winked at you!" she enthused " oh Paul's girls will be jealous."
Susan whispered his name and the other girls began to giggle.
"She's got Paul fever just like half the girls down there"
Just then they heard footsteps behind them as the Beatles climbed up the steps with their guitars. They were all complaining at the weight of Pete's drum kit when Jill ran up to the van to speak to John. Paul began talking to one of the other girls.
"How are my little Beatlettes then... and who's this you've brought with you?" he asked, nodding in Susan's direction and grinning.
"Oh that's Jill's cousin. She likes you!" the girl answered. Paul laughed and returned to the van.
When Jill and Susan got back home, Jill's mother went mad complaining that they must have been down to that “nasty cellar again”. She scolded Jill and sent them upstairs to dry their hair and get rid of the nasty smelling clothes. The experience had left them both in a bedraggled state but they agreed that is was worth it....even if they had got some funny looks as they walked through the dark Liverpool streetssopping wet as though they'd just got caught in a heavy rainstorm!
