The Messenger Volume 2002 Article 21 Issue 1 The Messenger, 2002 2002 Naima's Rhythm Graham Eng-Wilmot Follow this and additional works at: http://scholarship.richmond.edu/messenger Part of the Fiction Commons Recommended Citation Eng-Wilmot, Graham (2002) "Naima's Rhythm," The Messenger: Vol. 2002: Iss. 1, Article 21. Available at: http://scholarship.richmond.edu/messenger/vol2002/iss1/21 This Fiction is brought to you for free and open access by UR Scholarship Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in The eM ssenger by an authorized administrator of UR Scholarship Repository. For more information, please contact [email protected]. aima's by Graham Eng-Wilmot Les absentmindedly rubbed the yello\v­ driving cap stepped around a cabinet and ing receipt between his thumb and forefin­ approached Les. "Yuh lookin fo sumpin spe­ ger as he read the store sign. "Blue's cial?" he said, adjusting his small rimmed Memories - 6 St. Mark's Place." He looked glasses to size up Les. "Yeah I knows yuh do\vn at the slip of paper in his hand and arc. Yuh done came to the right place. Yuh's thought, "I'll be damned - it's still here." searchin for some memories of yuh child­ A metallic bell rang as he pushed open hood I bet. 01 Blue here will fix yuh right the door to the shop. A photo of Louis up. What tunes yuh tryin to remember?" Armstrong's grin and the sweet swoon of an "I didn't come for records today Sir." Aretha Franklin chorus, "Daydreaming and "Son, I gots the best vinyl selection in I'm thinking of you, Daydreaming and I'm the Village aight? But if yuh came fo posters thinking of you," drifting from the in-store or somethin else I gots that too. And yuh soundsystem greeted rum. The walls were don't have to call me 'sir' youngblood. Yuh covered with album covers, '60s and '70s done makin me feel old - Blue will do." music posters and memorabilia. And the dis­ "Sure ... Blue. Actually I didn't co1ne play shelves were packed with neat stacks of for anything musical. I ... well ... someone records, all bagged in protective plastic sent me one of your old store receipts and I sleeves, carefully sorted by category - soul, \Vas in the area, so I thought I'd come by and r'n'b, jazz, funk, rock, blues, gospel. sec if you were still here." Les, who was the only customer in the "I still be here son, Blue's Memories store, was immediately struck by the nostal­ since 1963, but I don know bout yuh receipt. gic atmosphere of the place. His eyes Lotta peoples come through here sell all \videned to take in all the photos of black they records one day then come and buy em musicians: Jirni, Ella, and James Bro\vn, BB back the next. So what's so special bout the King, Sade and Al Green, Miles, Coltrane receipt? Somebody break the bank on vinyl?" and Bill Cosby. He'd never seen such an "No. Nothing like that. I think it may assortment of history packed into one place. have belonged to my mother. But I'm not But it aggravated him. He was too used to sure. It's been a long time since she passed." the open space of his immaculately clean Aretha's sonorous voice faded out and apartment - minimal and uncluttered in Oliver Nelson's "Stolen Moments" ushered every way. in an atmosphere of melancholy over the "What kin I do fo yuh youngblood?" speakers. The mellow, but intense melody asked a raspy voice from the back of the line silenced the honks, squeals and yells of store. A short, older black man conservative­ the bustling crowd on the streets outside ly dressed in a wool sweater vest, slacks and with one musical sigh. 24 "Well let me see the receipt an see what wrote it. Yuh moms, Naima Harris, came up I kin remember. My memories is as good as in here and sold off her entire collection of anyone elses. Man listen to Freddie Hubbard vinyl. All soul music son. I member it clearly blow that horn. I love this here solo." cuz she had a shopping cart - one of those Les handed the old man the yellow slip. silvuh chrome deals with the \vheels that "Oh see here son. This ain't a receipt for don't roll straight and squeak up a storm. purchase. This is a receipt fo sale. Somebody Yeah man. That cart was overflo,ving \vith musta sold me some records back there in ... albums and she rolled it right in the same let's see ... slip says October 17 of '73." door yuh came in today. She musta had Blue started rummaging behind the everything. Yuh could tell they been played, counter muttering the date over and over­ but they was all clean. I almost didn't have stopping to look at the slip again-checking the heart to buy 'em all from her." the date and then back to rummaging. "Are you sure about that Sir? I recall "Ah here it is. Muh box of records here playing with a couple Beatles albums my from '73. Yuh gotta keep these kinda things mother had, but our living room cabinet kid. Yuh never know what the taxman gone always seemed empty." ask you bout. Here we are. October 17. Oh man. " "Needle drops of Blue \vent silent. H e slid his glasses memories spanning the six down so they barely remained perched on his nose as he looked over the scrawled short years between his birth records of transactions-the vinyl he had and her death. 11 bought and traded nearly 30 years ago. Les stared at the storeowner and began "Son. I told yuh sure as sheetrock is drumming his fingers on the glass counter­ hard I member. I even got some of the top, starting to get annoyed with the rum­ albums written down here - the mage of the old store and its keeper's ancient Impressions, Nite-lighters, Isaac Hayes, recordkeeping system. But he 'vas also curi­ Funkadelic, all them James Brown records, ous about \vhat information the receipt yeah ... Every single James Brown release might yield. He somehow knew it was his up to then, even the foty-fives - 'Mother mother's. Although he wasn't quite sure why. Popcorn,' 'Sex Machine,' 'Super Bad,' 'I Got He only remembered broken fragments of that Feelin,' 'Out of ... " her. Bits and pieces of images and sounds, "Did she tell you why she was selling touches and evoked feelings. Needle drops them?" interrupted Les. of memories spanning the six short years "Yeah son, jus calm down. She just kept between his birth and her death. looking at me with a half-hearted smile and "Yuh moms name Naima youngblood?" I axed her if she was sure about sellin em. said Blue as he read out of his notebook. She said yeah - she needed the money fo "Yes, Naima Harris," Les said, surprised her baby. An I told her that ain't no man that the old man could decipher the 38- worth as much as these here musics, but she year-old scribbles of notes. told me it wasn't fo no man man, but her "I was wrong fore youngblood. I know six-year-old baby. Youngblood - that musta all bout this receipt. Or at least that day I been fo yuh." 25 "It must have been. I wasn't exactly liv­ of memories-the records, posters and pho­ ing in Brooklyn Heights then." tos. There in the corner flipping through the "Hey now, fo some people music is life funk records was a tall, bearded black man youngblood. I member thinking that bout with permed hair. I-le was garishly dressed yuh mother as I looked in muh cash box try­ in a tight '70s outfit of all white with a 5- ing to give her everything I had fo them inch wide silver belt buckle, silver necklaces slabs of plastic. She bout looked like her and a floppy, felt women's hat with a pea­ heart was gone burst when she walked out cock feather stuck in the brim. that door with a couple hundred bucks. "Ain't you got any mo Funkadclic Yeah. It took me near a month just to put records up in here Blue?" asked the funky­ those records out to sale--1 kept hoping she looking black man in a deep baritone. \vould come back fo em. But she never did." "What yuh sec is \vhat I got." "She must not have had time. She died "Now ain't that a damn shame. I fly my that December of a heart attack. I was only black ass all the damn way down here and • n SIX. cats ain't got my shit." "No,v that's a shame son. But peoples "That's funny," Les thought as stepped do what they got to. Getting by. But yuh onto the sidewalk. "I was sure there were no gotta member, life's just a moment in time. other customers." And we go round and round. Yuh come to He shut the door and the bell tinkled. the right place fo memories youngblood. Blue put a\vay his box of records and sat Yuh gotta go back to go fowad's what I down behind the counter, staring vacantly always says. Yuh sure I cain't find yuh some­ into space, contemplating the last few state­ thing to listen to-maybe jog yuh mind?" ments of Bill Evans' piano solo and the "Thanks, but no.