#14 Follow Me

 

(Note - This features Brendan O'Neill and not Ted McKenna)

Album: Top Priority, 1979

 

The period following the release of Photo Finish had been successful for Rory, so when it came time to work on the follow-up, Chrysalis Records had promised to make it a top priority. “In typical Rory style he named the album after their promise so that no one at the record company would be able to forget their guarantee,” writes Dónal Gallagher.

 Recorded at Dieter Dierks studio, like Photo Finish, Top Priority saw its release on September 16, 1979. It was the second of Rory’s album to feature the immense talents of Scottish drumming legend, the late great Ted McKenna. Gerry McAvoy, as in all Rory’s solo albums, played bass.

 Top Priority embraces a heavier rock style. Interestingly, at the time, he was drawing heavy metal fans at his live shows, which perhaps is a testament to his appeal. He himself didn’t mind that, though wasn’t about to go all out metal! There is still a strong folkish blues feel to several songs. In particular, the album opener, ‘Follow Me’ has a mild touch of the mystical:

“I want to plant a star on the sky
One you can find at the end of the night
I want to climb a ladder to space
And leave without trace
Cause now is the time”

 For me especially, this brings Neil Gaimanesque imagery. I can almost picture a ladder sprouting to the skies and Rory stealthily climbing it, which is perhaps an indicator of just how much Gaiman I’ve read combined with how much I listen to Rory and a slightly vivid imagination (and the fact I am writing this with a heavy dose of hay fever!). But beyond this brief touch of the fantastical, there is a more down-to-earth feel to ‘Follow Me’. That is one of optimism, hope, and moving on from tough times:

“I've been locked in this cage
Gonna break away before it's too late
I'm gonna rewrite the page take the stage
And live tomorrow today
You'll find the dreams you mislaid.”

On the face of it, ‘Follow Me’ is a straight-up rocker, but it’s a song worth paying close attention to. Rory probably put as much into his lyrics as he did the music when it came to crafting his songs. He may be renowned as a genius on guitar and certainly deserves more credit as a great singer, but purely as a wordsmith, he could easily have written a creditable novel or book of poems.

‘Follow Me’ is a song in which he appears to be putting his feelings on a plate. He was notoriously shy and private (in a good way), and not many interviews could really break beyond the professional talk of guitar models, views on the music industry, or the history of the blues amongst other things. It seems to get an idea of Rory’s innermost thoughts, you probably can’t do any better than just turn on his music and listen.

Dónal notes on the official site, “At the time of Top Priority’s release Rory’s fear of flying was worsening, whilst touring commitments around the World were increasing. Just Hit Town is Rory talking of his fears but declaring he has no intention to change his lifestyle to hide from them”. Though Dónal is referencing another track on the album, ‘Just Hit Town’, ‘Follow Me’ could easily be seen as another statement from Rory that he intends to keep going on, no matter what, and more specifically do it his own way.

The other aspect of ‘Follow Me’ is that he invites you to join him. It’s an intensely positive message. If you have struggled with a negative mental state, it’s a song that I can speak from personal experience with lifelong anxiety disorder helps immensely. There’s nothing more awful in the human experience to find yourself trapped in a sense of perpetual dread, fear, and worry about screwing up, not being good enough, struggling to function in a ‘normal’ fashion. And then you play this song – it’s like the sun beaming through the storm clouds.

An interesting thing I’ve noticed in talking with other fans of Rory is that several also have similar issues with anxiety and phobias. Rory is a good influence in their lives, his music, live performance, and in a way, his general essence providing a salve and inspiration to get through it. That is the sort of thing super legends like John Lennon and Bob Marley are known for, but Rory proves you don’t need to reach that level of stature to have that kind of impact on people’s lives.

“Won’t you follow me?” He asks. Well, thousands upon thousands gladly do.