"He
did something I never saw anybody do before he went onstage," says Billy
Bragg. "He brushed his teeth."
The
British punk troubadour is on the phone from the UK, reminiscing about the 10
years he spent with Austin's transplanted Britrock institution, Ian McLagan,
who played keyboards in his band.
"We're
playing these little clubs, these old theatres," continues Bragg in his
thick Cockney accent. "Mac would always brush his teeth before he went on.
I used to laugh at it and think, 'That's so old school.'
"Y'know
wot? I find myself doing it now. I realized, 'This is a pro who knows he's not
just walking out there. He's going to a special place. He's doing something
really important, and he wants to look his best.'
"And
by God, he was always immaculately turned out. One of my guitar players used to
take photographs of his shoes underneath the Hammond – just his shoes. They
looked so great, poking out from underneath the organ.
"Whether
he was in a big auditorium or a tiny little club, or a backstreet boozer in
England, he brushed his teeth, he put his best shoes on, polished them, and
went out there and played his heart out."
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