Metallica, "Escape"

Posted by Luminator (A) on June 28, 2016 at 20:29:24

If you scroll down to the post about The Fixx's "Secret Separation," you'll read about my friend Jenny. She and I both attended Presidio Middle School. We never had any classes together, but we did have common friends. Like me, Jenny listened to a wide variety of poplar music, and even talked about it, from time to time. Another thing we had in common was that Presidio was not our assigned District school. I came from the Western Addition, and she came from the other side of Golden Gate Park, the Outer Sunset.

In April 1986, I went over to Jenny's house. It was a surprisingly nice (warm, fog-free, no wind) day, so Jenny and I decided to take a walk. Though we did have Walkmen in small bags, we did not use them. We walked past the windmill, up Sutro Heights Park, and by the parking lot leading to Lands End*. I don't know far into Lands End we got, but we spotted someone getting off the main path, and seemingly down the cliff. Jenny and I followed, and discovered that there was a narrow and steep path down the cliff.

And then it happened. Jenny was a few steps ahead of me, and she got to the bottom first. I saw her eyes get big, and she covered her gaping mouth with one hand. She had stumbled upon maybe half a dozen adult males sunbathing nude.

I smiled, grabbed her two shoulders, slowly spun her around 180 degrees, and escorted her back up the cliff. I told her that, since I had played organized sports since age 7, I was accustomed to being around naked males. IOW, it was no big deal. But I had to admit, seeing naked men north of 40 years old was unusual. To comfort her, I made up some line that her and my ages combined wouldn't add up to the youngest guy there. I honestly don't think Jenny had ever seen that many nude adult males, so I can understand why she was sort of taken aback.

But shortly after we had gotten back on the main path, Jenny was in good spirits. We eventually made it to China Beach. "Oh good," said Jenny, "I gotta pee." She then tried to push me into the women's restroom.

Jenny and I found a flat enough rock to sit on. I don't know how the conversation got there, but she said that her favorite song from Metallica's Ride The Lightning was "Escape." I don't know; when she made that statement, all of the sights and happenings on that walk crystallized, became permanently etched in my memory bank.

I learned more about Jenny from that conversation, as she candidly revealed more about her background, past, and herself. Now, when you are 13 or 14 years old, and have never had a boyfriend/girlfriend, you force yourself to come up with what you have in common, and then don't know what to do about the differences. Since middle school, Jenny and I had always thought positively about each other. But on that April 1986 day, all we could think about were our differences in ethnicity, religion, schools, family, and even neighborhood. We did not have the guidance, experience, or tools to tackle, let alone overcome, those differences.

I'll never forget nervously chewing on my lower lip. In the inertia, I did not have the strength to look Jenny in the eye. My eyes looked a little lower, watched her repeatedly lick her lips.

At that age, when you like each other, you want to do something, but what? Jenny blinked, snapped out of the frozen state, flashed her wicked smile, and began (lightly) punching me in the shoulders. I smiled back, put up a forearm in defense, then used my open hands to catch her punches. In doing so, the push-back caused her to punch herself in the pelvis. She momentarily paused, feigned a gasp, and then started whaling away at me.

Both of us being giddy, we must have squealed like little girls. Eventually, our hands interlocked. Out of breath, we pulled closer. You could feel the urge to kiss, but at that age, you just let out a breath, turn away from each other, and start drifting with rubber legs back up the hill.

Perhaps because "Escape" was the most conventional song on the album, it was Jenny's favorite. Other people liked it as well, but "Escape" was never released as a single. Moreover, Metallica never played it live. Thus, it historically has never gotten the attention it should. But that just means, as an audiophile, you get to enjoy it more. Instead of being everyone's rock song, "Escape" feels personal and special. And hey, doesn't it make you feel good, when you sing, "Life's for my own, to live my own way?"

-Lummy The Loch Monster

* I mention a number of San Francisco locations. I typically do not have photos (as a minor, I never had a camera), so you can always Google these landmarks.

Escape (Open in New Window)

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Topic - Metallica, "Escape" - Luminator 20:29:24 06/28/16 (1)

RE: Metallica, "Escape" - fantja 16:16:53 07/02/16 (0)

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