beauty is goodness

it was a bit of a curse, really. macallister sumner was born in liverpool in 1982. that 9th of may was just another day for many other people, but for the sumners it was a blessing. thomas had been diagnosed cancer only two weeks before and linda was already too old to be a mother, but both were able to live long enough to see macallister grab his first instrument.

it was thomas's four-string bass. macallister was four and he loved the loud, deep sounds his little hands were producing by hammering the bass. his dad didn't mind macallister killing his bass, he simply smiled from his deathbed. thomas died hours after this incident.

by the time macallister was 16, almost 17, he could play the bass like no other kid he knew could. he started playing thomas's old bass, but macallister found out that he was left handed and playing it upside down didn't allow him to play at his best. he managed to convince linda to buy an appropriate bass and a whole new world opened in front of his eyes.

macallister was good.

very good.

by the time he was 20, he was in a band. as many other bands, they had loads of trouble finding the right name for them. books they had read, street names, words concatenated at random: they tried everything and decided to stick to beauty is goodness, after a quote by tolstoi, whom macallister admired.

by the time he was 23, beauty is goodness was already on the cover of q, nme and les inrockuptibles and were about to play glasto for 150,000 muddy people. good riddance.

by that time, macallister sumner was no longer called that. it was just macca. and he hated it.

he was no paul mccartney. although he was also left-handed and played the bass, and co-wrote most of the hit singles of beauty is goodness (who could ever forget their first hit, i never thought i could fall this low?), he hated being called macca. he hated being called the next big hope of britpop, but not as much as macca.

by the time he was worldwide famous, he was already an orphan. his mum died shortly after i never thought i could fall this low made it to top of the pops, with a calm, satified smile on her face.

(end of part 1. can someone tell me if they like this short story, please? should i carry on?)

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