BOMAW 12-14
Page 7
Vivian rolled her eyes and was about to look away when he gripped the cheeks of her face in one hand, turning her head back to him, "You're hell to deal with when you get mad!" He laughed, "Don't be mad at me, okay?"
Vivian sighed, calming down, "I'm not mad at you."
"Well all I gots to say is, we can all relax now." Cara spoke up.
Just then the stage lights came on, and the spotlights above the entire club began flashing and rotating among the tables as if searching.
Hwa-soo -(pronounced - Wa-so)- the Korean club owner took to the stage, she was an odd looking combo with her cowgirl ensemble, hat - boots and all, standing taller due to the 3 inch heels on them.
"You all regular - know what time is - you all new - sit still, join in clap, whistle, cheer, but no boo!" She ordered the crowd, who of course, boo'd her to wind her up.
"Stop that! No boo - I kick you out!"
Everyone laughed, in a joking jovial mood.
"I know who gonna sing - you sing good - or they boo you even if I say, don't boo - they drinkin' crazy, boo you anyway. Got you name, I call you in order, so get ready. Most all, have a good time! Okay, firs' victim..." Hwa-soo grinned, "...you get up here, where you at?"
Everyone looked around, at a table, there were people pushing at a woman to stand and go.
"Come on lady, we don't got all night!" Hwa-soo called out, everyone laughed - she had no decorum or stage training, she was as forthright and direct as they come.
Finally the woman made it to the stage, nervous as can be, climbing the stairs, taking deep breaths to calm herself, she took the microphone, looked out at the crowd, "Okay, you sons'o'bitches, I was tryin' to change my mind, but since I can't, don't you bastards boo me! I know what you drove here, there will be a flat waiting for you, in no time flat!" She announced gruffly, causing another round of hilarity.
Vivian turned to Jake, looking at him expectantly, "You sign a sheet or something?"
He nodded that he had.
"When is it your turn?" She asked, with all the others at their table looking, listening - also anticipating his turn.
"Got time for one more drink."
Tony and Cara volunteered to make the drink run for everyone at their table. All eyes from their table was on Jake, back and forth from him to the performances on stage, each time a new person took their turn, they looked at him wondering was it his turn yet? Along with the thoughts, what would he sing? Could he sing? Their anticipation was clear.
Vivian was also anticipating, while she knew that he could sing, she wondered would he actually go through with it, considering this crowd. After all, there were easily well over a couple of hundred present, not a small audience, she wasn't sure of the numbers, but she knew it was close to three hundred if not that or over. She felt as nervous as she imagined him to be, however looking at him, he seemed to be relaxing more with each performance up on stage.
The fourth act was in place, the third woman, she had a lousy voice, but she was funny - which made up for her terrible vocals. Her witty self digs certainly brought about enough laughter that the audience didn't mind a bit. At the end, everyone clapped, including them because as was clear, she was a comedian using the stage to get that act exposed and it worked because some were still laughing after she left the stage. Next act, a guy, he sang a slow syrupy song, he wasn't too bad, but no one wanted to hear a slow song - and a few drinkers made that obvious by booing, followed by the suggestion, "God-almighty, go shoot yourself - booo!" Despite those few numbers at the end, a few bleeding hearts clapped. When he turned to leave the stage, those at the table turned to look at Jake once more, he'd just finished his drink - winking, he shook his head, not yet.
With each performance that went up on stage, Jake was reading the crowd - watching their reaction, gauging their mood, letting the spirit of them pass over him. What he realized in those few moments that he sat preparing himself, was that, to win them, he had to become one of them, put a tune, a mood to what they were feeling. They needed to laugh, they wanted to enjoy themselves and in a way, be apart of what was taking place on stage. He knew what he had to do, and was glad that he'd been working over various tunes way back when he'd decided this was the route in life he would take.
The last performer before he would take to the stage was a Lana Travert, she had a voice like an angel, singing Dolly Parton's song, Eagle when she flies - and no one could take their eyes off of her, and just like Whitney Houston who took one of Dolly's songs and made it a monstrous hit, this woman's voice, did to that song, what was meant to be done. Even Craig and Jade were swept away with her voice, not a person stirred while she sang and upon completion, the crowd burst into robust applause - Jake included, tucking his bottom lip around his teeth to whistle shrill and loud. Jake felt her song, her performance was perfect, after her, they wouldn't want anyone else singing such a song, they were ready for what he would give them, they were feeling good now, the good deed for the evening was in giving praise where it was due, now - back to the good times, and that was what Jake would give them, a good time. He reached for his guitar.
"Well - here goes! Wish me luck baby!" He leaned over, kissed her temple, and stood heading for the stage.
Vivian's heart started going so hard and fast, it interrupted her breathing, actually made her ears ring. As Jake had done everything in life, he made his way to the stage with a determined stride as if not a care in the world; as if this night was not going to be the determining catalyst for his possible singing career.
"This gonna be interesting." Jade leaned towards Vivian to whisper, followed by turning her seat to face the stage as best she could from where they were seated.
The woman Lana was so busy grinning, over the moon happy that she'd been liked, applauded and whistled at that she was in no hurry to leave the stage, in fact, had Jake not appeared next to her, taking possession of the microphone - she might have stayed to do another song.
"Oh!" She gasped, surprised to see him there grinning down at her.
"That was real pretty..." He began, winking at her and turned to the audience, "...wasn't that pretty, come on - one more time, give this lady a big ol'hand would you, know damn well you can do better than that, hell!" He roused them for more. Because many of them recognized him, the crowd turned it up - a few standing. She smiled bright and looked to thank Jake until he started showing her the way off the stage, gently urging her by taking her arm and escorting her to the steps she took to come on explaining with his warm disarming smile, "You did a good job getting them warmed up for me, my turn now. Careful, wouldn't want you to fall going down."
She looked a bit outdone, clearly she'd wanted to do a few more, but didn't want to make a fool of herself before everyone, so took her leave while giving him a narrow eyed glare she hoped he'd feel burning through his back.
Wasted gesture because the minute Jake turned away from her, she was forgotten, striding back to center, long legged and fine, his cowboy hat perched and slanted just right, he hadn't even started yet and the women were calling out to him.
"Hey Jake!"
"Ja-a-ake! Long time no see ya'darlin'! Up on that stage, you gone strip for us?!" One boldly called out, everyone broke into laughter, including Jake; answering back, he made sure to use his deep sexy voice, "Not this time! Hello ladies, and to all that know me - and uh - for those that don't - gimme a minute." The way he said it, made the women howl like crazy and he hadn't started singing yet.
"I wanna see you strip! Come on now, take them clothes off for us! You used to in school!" One shouted.
Vivian sat shaking her head.
Jade leaned towards her again, "Girl, you must be done lost your mind? You engaged to him? Yo'mama ain't teach you no better than that? Gurl you don't marry no man like that, that's to play wit', that's all - just to play. A'huh-huh!" Jade leaned back, settling in on herself, satisfied with her evaluation of this situation, dragging her eyes from Vivian to Jake up on stage.
Vivian t
urned away, her heart going in her chest still, her stomach a bit queasy as something told her, what she was seeing, was going to be happening, 'for'sure'nuff!' but on a larger scale.
"Calm down, calm down, no I'm not about to take any clothes off, not this time." He winked, joking and received boos for that, while others laughed.
"If you all don't mind, thought I'd try my hand in a little something different tonight - give you all who know of me, an alternative view of me. I'm game, what about you?"
They all cheered, hyped and ready for anything.
"Yeah..." He went into the voice, that deep rolling voice, that had a way of hitting a women wa-a-ay down where it counted at the same time hypnotizing, lulling them, putting them under his spell, tossing the strap of the guitar over his head to hang off one shoulder, talking to them as he went along. "...went through that ol'karaoke machine, Hwa-soo - we gone have to work on that - because right now - I wanna have a little fun..." With his guitar before him, he starting strumming it, first as a warm up, and then hitting cords of an actual tune that reminded one of a warm summer night, he was already getting feedback from some - pleasantly surprised that he could even play the guitar and from what they could hear, really well - they started clapping, crying out excited as he strummed the background melody to his words, "... what about you all, how about a little fun?"
The audience all shouted out in agreement.
"Shit, me too! I wanna have a little fun - working overtime, fucks with your head, don'it?"
Again, cheers from the men, followed by clapping.
"Ohhh yeah - so I tell you what, I wanna teach you a little something, so you can join along in this song with me, somethin' - re-e-e-eal simple - I'm gonna tap on my guitar the beat that you're gonna pound on your tables... you game?!"
"YEAH!" They all called out.
He strummed, thinking about it, then decided he would explain, "... see, when I was a little boy - bad ass little fucker if you must know..."
They whistled out in agreement.
"... everyone would be in bed, and my parents were up, listening to the radio - hell - my father always knew where to find those old radio shows - they didn't need the TV on, just that old fashioned radio show. And there was this one particular song, by Phil Harris, that always sent them into laughter, my mother just giggling away - and I would think, "What the hell'so'funny?!" yeah, at seven years old, I thought that way."
Clapping, smiles and nods with laughter.
"Sooo, one night I rose from my bed, my brother's were sleepin', and I snuck down the stairs, and listened to this song, that sent them into laughter. Man I'm telling you, I've always loved that song, so much, I memorized it, and to have a little fun, I'm gonna sing it to you, tonight, with your help! So first, your part... goes like this..." He rapped on his guitar, three hollow pounds, 'Boom-boom boom.' of the rapid successions for them to understand the rhythm, "... now let's hear you all do that, at same time, boom-boom boom, ah yeah, but somebody missed the beat, come on, let's get this right, boom-boom boom... oh yeah oh yeah, that's it, one more time, boom-boom boom."
The audience was filled with excitement as they eagerly went along with him, ready now for the song he would sing.
Vivian was smiling and joining in, watching Jade and Craig out the side of her eye, tapping on the table, but not giving it quite their all - trying to be inconspicuous.
"I think you got it, now let me get my part down," He changed the cords he was playing blending into the song he would sing, some recognized it right away and cheered out loud, clapping happily to hear it again, "Aaah so some of you know it! Sneaking out of bed when you should have been sleeping too?!" He smiled brightly, "That's okay, I wanna take you right back there tonight, now when I get to singing, I'm going to nod my head, and you do your thing! Let's test that out," Jake nodded, and they all pounded the tables, "You kind'ah slow, one more time," He nodded his head, and everyone was right on time, "Sounds to me, like you get the idea, let's begin shall we?"
Once more cheering broke out as he played his guitar, waiting for them to settle down, and listen for when it was there turn, "Here goes... the title, is, The Thing..."
While I was walkin' down the beach
One bright and sunny day
I saw a great big wooden box
A-floatin' in the bay
I pulled it in and opened it up
And much to my surprise
Oh, I discovered a... *boom, boom boom*
Right before my eyes
Oh, I discovered a...*boom, boom boom*
Right before my eyes
Jake laughed, "That's it, you've got it..."
I picked it up and ran to town
As happy as a king
I took it to a guy I knew
Who'd buy most anything
But this is what he hollered at me
As I walked in his shop
"Oh, get out of here with that...*boom, boom boom*
Before I call a cop"
"Oh, get out of here with that...*boom, boom boom*
Before I call a cop"
Vivian laughed, and caught Jade trying not to smile, while Craig was starting to get into it. As for his brother Cecil and Kate, they were having the time of their lives. Vivian looked to Tony and Cara, the same with them, smiles of enjoyment all around. She turned back to gaze up at Jake, in complete awe of him actually, that he could get up before all of these people and do something like this. It took something extra special, some particle of a rare ingredient to take a chance and get up on stage, willing to risk the displeasure of a vast audience, the ultimate put down should they boo you; this was the price, the risk and he was taking it. Yet, all along, he'd had nothing to worry about, because they were eating it up. They all needed this, this whimsical, silly, novelty song that he had obviously mastered because it sounded incredible, funny and yes, country - but everyone was enjoying it.
I turned around and got right out
A-runnin' for my life
And then I took it home with me
To give it to my wife
But this is what she hollered at me
As I walked in the door
"Oh, get out of here with that...*boom, boom boom*
And don't come back no more"
"Oh, get out of here with that...*boom, boom boom*
And don't come back no more"
I wandered all around the town
Until I chanced to meet
A hobo who was lookin' for
A handout on the street
He said he'd take most any old thing
He was a desperate man
But when I showed him the...*boom, boom boom*
He turned around and ran
Oh, when I showed him the...*boom, boom boom*
He turned around and ran
He must have planned it, the entire thing, surely he had? This thought went through Vivian's mind. He must have some inner sense that was keen to know what everyone here would like to hear. As for her, she'd never heard the song before, and as she sat listening to him sing it, she was glad that she was hearing it for the first time from him. She wondered if other women like her, who looked up at their man on stage, felt such a feeling of pride, elation? Yet also, such a feeling of trepidation? She looked around her, looked at the women around her, their eyes were on him, heavy and heated. For just a moment, quickly the image of all the women changed into hungry wolves, fangs out, dripping, drooling, tongues hanging out, licking their chops at him, panting like bitches in heat to be humped by the prize wolf, her future husband. Vivian shook her head, blinked and they all returned to normal - if that were possible, to call them normal.
I wandered on for many years
A victim of my fate
Until one day I came upon
St Peter at the gate
And when I tried to take it inside
He told me where to go
Get out of here with that...*boom, boom boom*
And take it down bel
ow
Oh, get out of here with that...*boom, boom boom*
And take it down below
The moral of this story is
If you're out on the beach
And you should see a great big box
And it's within your reach
Don't ever stop and open it up
That's my advice to you
'Cause you'll never get rid of the...*boom, boom boom*
No matter what you do
Oh, you'll never get rid of the...*boom, boom boom*
No matter - what - you do
Jake gave his guitar a strong double strum off with a couple of rapid pounds and the crowd went into enthusiastic clapping and cheering, whistling out loud!
"OH YEAH!" Jake stood smiling as everyone clapped, and because he was the last on the list, as Hwa-soo knew it, she rushed forward to the stage, "You stay! Do another song!" She yelled up at him, and turned to the audience, "He do another song!?" She asked loudly over their cheering.
Everyone clapped yelling out, "ANOTHER SONG! GO ON JAKE! DO ANOTHER! YEAH!!"
He cheesed broadly, glanced at Vivian, winked and back to the crowd, "Well hell, you've convinced me! Okay Hwa-soo, you know the one I picked, get it on." He winked at her. She turned looking towards the stage where the big screen TV with Karaoke words sat, and gave a big wave of her arm, Jake's chosen song came on. He settled his guitar into place, to add his own bit over it. Everyone knew the song, especially the ladies.
He set himself to sing, Exile's - Kiss you all over - the moment he opened his mouth, singing low, sultry and hot, Vivian knew it was over, chill bumps raced all over her body, up on the stage, he owned the song, glancing at her throughout at the key places of it. The women in the club, were going nuts, especially the ones that knew him. Vivian sat with the place spinning around her, watching him perform, her heart banging against her breast plate without stop, she almost felt faint from the sudden panic attack that overwhelmed her, tears rushed to her eyes and already, she could see that he would be, like a runaway train, one that it would be impossible for her to stop. It wasn't just the audience, the women that were going nuts, no, it wasn't so much them, it was him - Jake - he was shinning! He was sparkling, it was as if he was already a star, and everyone there, were just now discovering that. On top of that, it was also something about him, the way he was up on that stage, he was getting high on it. The yelling, the screaming, the calling out his name, was like a swift and powerful narcotic, shooting him up past the clouds clear to the moon. From where Vivian sat, she could see it. See it in the way that he moved, that voice that he sang with, how he used his eyes, his mouth, his overall body language was totally different from the man she'd come to know and love. Maybe this was the side of him everyone claimed that he was like. The carefree crazy Jake that could make you laugh at him and long for him, all in the same moment. Right now, what she saw, was a man with the ability to light the fire of many women, and he did - he set them aflame! She was there to witness it - this was such a tiny scale, just a tiny drop in the bucket, what would their lives be like if he continued on? Right now, she knew that if he kept this up, before the right people, he would take off, no doubt about it. And it didn't matter to her one bit, that for the majority of that song, he was looking her way, telling her in his own way, that she was the one he would be kissing all over - as he'd done plenty enough before. That didn't matter, what mattered to her was, the fact that if he made it to the big times, she would have to share him, and the problem was, Vivian wasn't one who cared much for sharing ... especially her man. He finished the song, the applause was maddening, and that damn Hwa-soo, had the audacity to shout for another song and Jake, damn him, fulfilled the request and sang another song.