June noticed me looking after them. “What’s wrong, Jim?”
“Sherry just got her license. Do you think Merry will be safe?”
“Sherry passed her driver’s test, Jim,” June said, shaking her head at me. “She’s proven that she’s capable. I doubt that the state of Illinois will give a license to a dangerous driver.”
Of course, June’s impeccable logic only made me worry even more. After all, this very state gave a license to my father. My father loved to drive, even after consuming enough alcoholic beverages that he would be asked to leave the premises that he consumed them in. Of course, he would insist on driving home. My mother and I were occupants with him on too many of those occasions.
However, I didn’t think equating Sherry with my father would be fair. I actually liked Sherry, after all.
June and I arrived at my apartment a few minutes after Sherry and Merry safely arrived.
I heard some guitar music with a lovely voice singing as I came upstairs. It took me a moment or two to recognize the singer as Kristen, singing a version of Proud Mary, totally unlike any that I’ve heard before.
“What’s wrong, Jim?” June asked, as she noticed me stop on the stairs.
“That’s Kristen singing,” I said.
“Really?” June asked. She looked at me. “That doesn’t sound like her voice.”
“You haven’t heard her sing when she thinks she’s alone.”
Apparently, Kristen didn’t adapt her voice to make herself sound like the original performer, as I tended to do. That was something that my friend Roy taught me a few years prior. When I was learning to sing, I admitted to Roy that I hated hearing my own voice when I played it back on tape. His suggestion was for me to try to imitate other singers. It took some work, but Roy and I both shared a love of music that made the effort worthwhile. Soon, we were imitating each other as well, which is why our voices sounded so nice together when we sang duets.
Anyway, I continued to stand in the stairway as Kristen finished her song.
“That’s beautiful,” I heard my sister tell Kristen. “I always thought that Ike and Tina Turner’s version was sexy, but I think I like your version better.”
I instinctively grinned at Merry’s remark. I’ve lived for a number of years listening to my sister compliment my music ability. I was glad that Merry was willing to do the same to my Goddess.
“Here’s one that I’ve been working on,” Kristen said.
I heard a delicate acoustic guitar intro. I closed my eyes, trying to place the chord sequence.
It didn’t take very long. She started hitting the chords more forcefully, and then I heard Kristen sing:
I was floored. Aside from the fact that she was playing an acoustic guitar, Kristen was able to perform that number that would rival Grace Slick of Jefferson Airplane. The effect was very ethereal.
“Kris is very talented,” June whispered to me. “She and you would be a killer…”
I noticed June had stopped talking. I turned to my friend, and saw that she was just shaking her head.
“Why don’t the two of you play together?” June asked. “I mean, she was there in the jazz band at school, but the two of you as a singing duo would be wonderful!”
Actually, I was thinking the same thing. I remembered that the Swifts had told me that Kristen had formal voice lessons and could play the guitar. I was just curious as to why Kristen would perform for others, and she had never offered to do so for me.
“What’s wrong, Jim?” June asked, noticing that my face must have registered some of the emotions that I was feeling.
“Nothing,” I lied.
June wasn’t convinced, but she had the sense not to push too far.
After Kristen finished Somebody To Love, the others in the room were complimenting her again.
I started walking up the stairs again.
June was a bit surprised that I started going up, but she caught up quickly.
When June and I entered the apartment, everybody’s attention turned to me and June.
I noticed that Kristen’s guitar was against the love seat where Kristen was sitting.
Nobody mentioned Kristen’s singing and playing when I arrived.
I had no idea what to make of this.
“Jim! June! Come on in! We’ve been waiting for you two!”
Kristen gave me a big kiss, and then gave one to June. Merry decided to get in on the action, and gave me a kiss on the cheek, and did the same to June. Lynette, not wanting to be left out, kissed the two of us as well.
“Is that your guitar, Kris?” I asked, indicating the instrument leaning against the love seat.
“I was picking at it before,” Kristen said. “Lynette wanted to hear me play.”
I waited a couple of seconds, but Kristen didn’t add anything else. She didn’t offer to play for me, I noticed once again.
June probably knew what was going on in my mind. Even so, she said, “Ooh, can I hear you play a song?”
Kristen blushed, and said, “Maybe later.”
I felt hurt that Kristen didn’t seem to want to play in front of me. Why was that? She never had any problem playing piano at the school, although I now recalled that she only started playing to help Amy.
Lynette changed the subject and she, Merry, June, and Sherry started talking about cheerleading.
I sat down on “my” recliner and pretended to listen to the girls talk. In my mind, however, I was brooding over Kristen’s actions.
Later on, we all went downstairs to the play room and Kristen started up a game of pool. Lynette and I teamed up against Sherry and Kristen, and I only took a half-hearted shot at a stripe and missed.
After Kristen and Sherry won, Merry and June were up. I excused myself and went into my studio.
Why wouldn’t Kristen play for me? She didn’t seem to have any problems playing for anybody else—even my sister!
I looked at my electric piano, and started doodling on it. After a couple of minutes, I was startled when I heard Lynette’s voice behind me.
“What’s got you upset, Oogie?”
“Nothing,” I lied. I continued playing what I had started before… a doodle that consisted of my left hand playing a D-minor and G-major back-and-forth progression, with some improvisations with my right hand.
Lynette noted, “That sounds a bit familiar. What is it?”
I started thinking about the chord progression that I was using. It was simple, and as Lynette had indicated, it did seem a bit familiar. Instead of answering, I simply shrugged and continued doodling.
“You’re either upset at June or Kris. I can’t believe that it’s June, so you’re mad at Kris. What’s wrong?”
Again I shrugged, and continued the improvisation.
Lynette continued to listen to me play, and I tried to think where that chord progression came from. I continued bouncing back between D-minor and G-major for eight beats at a time.
Suddenly, the song hit me. To make sure, I filled in the missing chords, continuing to improvise with my right hand. D-minor to D-augmented to F-major and finally to G-major. ”A Taste of Honey,” I said to Lynette, playing the melody line finally.