CLANCY OVERELL | Editor | CONTACT
An arvo barbecue at gran and pop’s place in Betoota Heights has seen the sharing of wisdom between the mythical pub rock uncle, and the wide-eyed nephews.
After being born to the square siblings of the family, the cousins don’t get to hear many stories about the days when pubs would be open all night – and world famous local bands would play at local RSLs.
But it’s different when Uncle Streetlights is around.
Because the 68-year-old always arrives at every family function equipped with majestic yarns about the pub rock era, his glorious holden station wagon, and his brief stint as a member of ‘Bob Hawke’s Surf Team’.
‘Streetlights’ received his colourful nickname back in the early eighties, because as the yarn goes, “when he starts lighting up, it’s time to go home”.
And this weekend Streetlights had an extra spring in his step, despite the 24 cans on his shoulder.
It seems that during a quick Dan Murphy’s run – Streetlights was excited to learn that they’ve brought back the Fosters tinnies.
“You poor buggers would be too young to remember Fosters” he says, and he firmly palms a blue can into each of their hands.
“Mate this was the go-to back in the day. I remember getting a box of these and heading down to Bondi in 1989 for the Turn Back the Tide concert. It was on a Good Friday so I’d had to pick them up on the Thursday. Anyway…”
All three nephews are currently glued to every word coming out of Streetlights’ bearded face, as their parents wince at where this story could be going.
“You wouldn’t read about it right. They reckon almost a quarter of a million people turned up for this gig. It was a protest to redirect the sewerage away from Bondi Beach. I mean, that alone is to believe that Bondi used to be covered in shit until the early Nineties. Anyway, we had Dragon, Richard Clapton, the bloody Divinyls. It was wild. Just there on the sand”
“Anyway I got chatting to this bird, she was from Argentina or something. Good sort. And I’m think–“
“I think that might be enough Streetlights” says one of the aunts.
Streetlights winks at his nephews and nods to pop’s barbecue, where they will be finishing this yarn in roughly 5 minutes.
