Chapter 9

Josie and I looked at each other and she said we could. The producer sent a dresser off to the shop to get a pair of totally different gowns for us to change into. We turned to the others.

“Girls,” Josie said. “Edie and I have been playing around with duets using guitar and piano. Allan has got hold of a CD we produced in the stable studio. He wants us to fill in with twenty minutes of duets. It’s nothing like Pixie music.”

“Is it something like you two did in the early days?” Donna asked.

Josie nodded.

“That’s all right then,” Donna continued, “Is it good with the rest of you girls?”

The others all agreed with Donna, so we were good to go.

I told the producer that I would like a microphone in the baby grand and that Josie would sit next to me with her guitar. I asked that they have the full sound piped over the hotel PA system in the lobby, seeing that it was quieter tunes. “Also, it would be nice if we had our extras dancing in real time.”

He thought for a moment. “It sounds good. I just hope you can deliver.” His body language showed that he was still not sure. He was probably thinking about some of the other singers in case we bombed.

With the changes decided, we did another segment, now out of sync but I was sure it would be fixed in post-production. The clock man was given the time to set, and we did another twenty minutes.

The segment after that didn’t need the Pixies in it other than the introduction, so Josie and I went off to change into the new gowns. The dresser had come back with a beautiful pair of gold evening gowns and gold shoes to match. We had our faces cleansed and changed, getting a new and dramatic make-up and jewels to suit. We were ready. We then waited until the producer was ready to film and decided on three songs.

“These three songs should do the trick,” Josie said. “I think we picked the only three that aren’t sad ones.”

I sat at the baby grand and played some notes. Josie sat next to me with a borrowed guitar and strummed a few chords so that the sound people could get a mix and for the extras to know what they would be hearing.

They first recorded the introduction. Janet announced, “Welcome back to our party. We’ll now slow things down a bit so that you can all get your breath back. Tonight, is the first live performance of the Stable Sisters.”

The opening shot across the top of the piano showed the two of us and we started playing and singing. I loved it, me at a baby grand in a great room full of dancers. As we sang, we forgot where we were and put our hearts into it, moving from one song to another until we had finished the three and then the dancers applauded as we stood to take a bow.

I rather hoped that the producer would want a second take, but he came over, gave us both a hug and told us it was a wrap. Then we got back into our Pixie outfits with our original make-up to finish the show.

We all had a light lunch and got back into the recording. We kept at it until we had reached the countdown, and everyone cheered at “midnight”. General hugging and kissing ensued as the credits would be running. Finally, the director called cut and we all went off to get back into ordinary clothes. The TV people dismantled the set and retrieved all of the gear and microphones.

Allan told us that we had a meal to go to -- on him. We all made our way to our favorite Italian place where he had booked a big table. As well as the Pixies and Flora, we were joined by my parents and families of the other girls. A lot of them I had never met before. It was very up-beat, and we ate and drank with a lot of laughter.

As it drew to a close, Allan stood and proposed a toast. “To the Pixies,” and then told us that the Dude Ranch would be hosting a private Christmas party for us all as well as some other invited guests. They wanted to thank us for making their club the place to be for nearly six months.

He then told us that a digital version of our album was on the internet and a few of the radio stations had picked up on some of the songs. I was surprised since I hadn’t had time to listen to the radio for weeks.

On Monday, Josie and I took our cash and did some serious shopping. We splurged on gifts for the others in the Pixies, for our folks, and just a little bit for ourselves. We saw matching necklaces in one shop with ‘Sisters Forever’ in enamel on a gold base with jewels. We bought one each to give to the other. Tears glistened at the thought of someone who I would give my life for.

We did almost nothing on Tuesday except sit around and talk about what we had done over the last few months. Life doesn’t have a roadmap. Often you just go down a path to see where it leads. It could end in a bog or on a superhighway.

We had been lucky. But had also put in the hard work. All of the Pixies were solid musicians and had become seasoned performers. We didn’t know exactly what the following year was going to throw at us. In my heart, I knew it would be good.

My mother was organizing lunch in the kitchen and gave out a shriek. We rushed in to see what was wrong.

She pointed at the radio, and we could hear ourselves singing. It took me a few seconds before realizing that we were hearing the Pixies being played on the radio. That proved to be a total mouth-gaping moment for all of us.

That evening the four of us sat in front of the TV with snacks and drinks and my parents saw the Christmas show for the first time. It was almost the first time for Josie and me as well. Having been part of the stops and starts of putting it together we were amazed at how smooth and unblemished it had come together.

As the credits rolled, I clung to my sister with tears flowing. Mom tried to fold us both in her arms.

Even Dad was sitting there with a stunned look on his face. He was the first to come to his senses. “You girls were so good; I can’t believe that I’m sitting here with a pair of superstars like you two.”

We started to get it together, but Mom was totally wiped out and couldn’t stop hugging us.

“Just wait until they show the New Year’s effort,” I said. “It makes that one look like a kiddy party.”

“In what way?” Dad asked.

Josie hooted. “Because the two of us get twenty minutes on our own, that’s why. And it’s all down to you giving that CD to Allan --- thank you very much!”

Mom suddenly stopped hugging us. “What, the two of you, on your own? Without the rest of the Pixies?”

I smiled. “Yes, Mom, just the Stable Sisters, hogging the screen for a whole twenty minutes. It was a lot of fun.”

“Stable Sisters?” Dad asked.

Josie said that it sounded all right when she thought of it.

The phone started ringing and it didn’t stop until after midnight, so many of our friends, neighbors, and business associates wanted the let us know how much they enjoyed the show.

I hardly ever put my mobile on, and Josie went mad with hers until the battery died. Many of the messages on hers were referring to various Facebook and internet sites. All you had to do was type in “the Pixies” to get what seemed like a couple of million places where our audiences had recorded us on their phones and were now putting them up with abandon.

We got some sleep that night. In the morning, but a little later than usual, we had breakfast and handed out our gifts to each other. There was a lot of “It’s lovely” and “You shouldn’t have” along with hugs and kisses.

My folks had bought us girls matching dresses and Mom admitted that she had gone to our favorite dress shop where the ladies had shown her what we had worn on Sunday. Although mainly gold, these came to our knees, with sparkles.

We loved them and just had to change into them for our lunch at the Dude. We added our new necklaces and some other glitz and became a very smart group that Dad drove into the city.

The lunch lasted until dinnertime and then became dinner. The place was not quite full, but a lot more than I had expected had arrived. I met the parents and siblings of all the Pixies for the first time with time to be sociable.

The staff from Allan’s office, others from the recording studio, Harry with Jack, and Matt, the other two venue owners that Allan had introduced me to; TV people, Hal, and Shirley, most of the stars and band from the New Year show were all there, and a few more that I hadn’t met before. They were obviously somebody special, the way were being treated by the other movers and shakers.

Josie introduced me to her parents, Alicia and Brad Sanders, and her mother took me aside and told me that she was very happy that her daughter had discovered true friends to be with, after that “horrid Reynard boy.”

She said that Josie now seemed more adult and that she, her husband, and her son Jordan, were so proud of her.

Josie joined us and she and her mother hugged.

I wondered if it was the first in a very long time. I also met the families of the other girls, and they were all very proud of their daughters and were all wondering what the next year would bring.

Donna’s parents worried that she wouldn’t finish medical school. Donna assured them that she would become a doctor. “Come hell or high water.”

They were even happier when I said that both Josie and I had Business Administration to complete and that nothing would stop us from that, now being so close.

Janet’s father had not been invited. I knew that Janet and her mother didn’t really care. We did get to meet Jack, one of Charlie’s school friends. It seemed that he and Donna had been going steady since that first night we had “gone for a few drinks.”

We gave out the gifts that we had bought for the other girls and got some back in return. During the afternoon the stage curtains were drawn to reveal a stage set up with amps and instruments, including the club’s baby grand.

Someone called out “Jam session” and we were drawn to the stage like moths to a flame. The band went up and started playing tunes from the two shows, so we took turns to singing while they pumped out the backing.

There were a lot of microphones scattered around so we could all do our bit. It was crazy singing with the other established stars and having a lot of fun. The other guests clapped along or danced as we let it loose and let our hair down.

It seemed like a set-up as the stars sang and then left the stage, leaving the small band with just us Pixies up there. They started playing one of our album backings.

They had it right and we just stood there and sang along with it. Pet and I saw a couple of violins which we picked up to give the authentic feel. The band kept us up there with another couple of numbers and then their leader called out for Pet and me to solo.

She had an evil grin on her face. “They expect country fiddling, do you know any Paganini?”

I nodded, and we agreed on a piece we both knew. We stood there to give them a short, but very effective, recital of one piece from that master with me being able to do the more strenuous bits because I had stronger fingers -- while Pet displayed much more technique.

The looks on the faces of our audience was something to behold, as only my parents had heard me play classical music. Even the rest of the Pixies, except for Josie, who had heard more of my playing than the others, stood back with wonder in their eyes. We got a round of applause when we finished, and the band hit the intro to “Devil.”

We all laughed as we did our, now usual, closing number. Only it turned out that it wasn’t exactly the end of us providing the entertainment.

“We haven’t seen the Stable Sisters yet,” Allan called out and those who had been at the Sunday recording started calling, “Stable Sisters.”

I was embarrassed to be picked out in front of the other Pixies, who were now leaving the stage, followed by the band. I went to a microphone. “Surely you can’t be serious; most of our stuff is a bit sad. It’s only the ones that we did on Sunday that are straight ballads.”

The producer of the show challenged us, “We want to hear whatever you can play. There are people here who want to dance.”

I sat at the baby grand and Josie picked up a guitar from where the band member had left it and came over and stood beside the piano. She whispered, “Let’s play four – two from the show and two they’ve never heard before.”

She then started with the intro from one of the show numbers. Most of the couples in the room ventured out on the dance floor and slowly moved along with the tune. We then did one of the sadder songs, but it seemed to feel better than it did when we recorded it.

Maybe the two of us weren’t so sad now.

We stretched them out, and finished off with another sad one and then another one from the show. It was when we stood together and took a bow that I realized that we were in the same color that we had worn in the show. This, I realized, was the first time anyone other than those at the Sunday recording, my folks and Allan, had heard our music and I wondered why we had been asked to finish off the jam session.

It had been a bit of fun to brighten us up when we were feeling down. It was never meant to be serious until being thrown into the deep end on Sunday.

We left the stage enveloped in hugs from a lot of people who all told us that we really tugged at their heart strings. Allan told us that we two had that something extra that made for great live performances. He had heard it on the CD. “I think what you guys did today, even as a surprise performance, is going to give you something to keep you occupied for a while.” One of the guys that everyone had been very careful around, stood up, then went up onto the stage and up to a microphone.

He told us his name and that he was the A&R manager of one of the biggest record companies in the country and that he had come along today to see what all the fuss was about. He said that, in the space of a couple of weeks, a group called “The Pixies” had shot into everyone’s world and today he had seen why.

He went on to tell us that yesterday he had seen an unfinished production of the New Year Show and last night had watched the Christmas show. He then said that he was here, today, to offer us a Christmas present. He told us that he was going to get his company to offer us all contracts to record a double album of ‘Seasonal Party Music’ with everyone who had been on the two shows taking part.

He finished to a lot of cheering and clapping. I could see the other stars smiling. I knew that a Christmas album was timeless and would be bringing income for years to come.

He then waited for the noise to subside. “I’ve listened to a digital file of the album that the Pixies have recorded, and I want to get them on contract so that my company can distribute their album nationally.”

I sat stunned. We only finished the thing a week or so before and now he wanted us to go national! The rest of the Pixies had big smiles and their families started clapping. He waited until the noise died down again and I expected him to wish us all a Merry Christmas and step down.

“Today, I think I saw an act which has something to make it an international sensation. I saw a twenty-minute segment of the New Year’s Show and could hardly believe that it had been performed in one take with just a few minutes notice. Today, I don’t think that the Stable Sisters expected us to ask them to play. Let’s face it, they’re Pixies. I don’t want to take anything away from the other Pixies. But these two girls have something that only comes along once in a while. If they can translate that into the Pixie repertoire, then it will be magnificent. However, I’m prepared to offer them a recording contract on their own. Thank you for your time and I will let you get on with the party.”

With that he left the stage, shook hands with some of the others, and gave Allan a man-hug. He then came over to Josie and me, as we both stood motionless, totally shocked.

“I hope to see you two in my office sometime next month, Allan will arrange it. I have a copy of that CD you recorded, and I can’t believe that you did it in a home-built studio. Happy New Year to you both and congratulations, you’re both going to be stars soon.”

He, and a few of his retinue, left us standing, still unable to take it in. The other Pixies came over and gave us hugs.

“I suppose you two will sign the contracts and be megastars soon; just as we were getting going,” Janet said, with some bitterness.

“What on earth are you talking about, Janet?” Josie countered. “You know that we’re Pixies and will remain Pixies until the natural winding down of the band. The band finally breaking up is inevitable, but I don’t think it’s any time soon.”

Donna looked shocked, “You mean you would pass up a chance at fame and fortune for us?”

I shook my head. “Donna -- all you girls -- we don’t have to be apart from the Pixies to do well. We can work like before. Josie and I can open the show alone and then the rest of the Pixies join us. We end up the band we are now, or at least the evolution of it. I can see Pet with us on violin and then Emily on keyboard. All we need to do is to choose, or write, some songs that fit the instruments we’re playing.”

Pet smiled broadly. “Look, it’s been pretty easy to write new songs for us. We have such a versatile line-up. I can write some ballads in a blues style that Edie and Josie can start out with. Then we can add others as we go. I think it’s a great idea and the Stable Sisters can have a parallel life on record. It would be good to open up with a few chart toppers and it will bring more fans to our shows. So, what if the billboards say The Pixies featuring The Stable Sisters. At least we’ll be up in lights.”

We agreed to think about it next year and the group broke up again. Josie’s mother was standing by us as it played out and she whispered quietly to me. “That’s just what I was saying before. The Josie of old would have grabbed at that fame and fortune and ran away laughing. She’s now a much more caring girl.”

She turned to my mother and asked, “Can I come out and see where my girl has discovered this new outlook on life?”

Mom said it was all right and gave her our address and phone number, which was written in a notebook. Harry came over as well, telling us that he was a little sad that the Christmas show didn’t happen at his dance hall -- with paying customers. He was glad that everything went the way it did. I told him to talk to Allan as we may be able to put a few shows on his stage next year. We would have more time to make them good. We all talked more before we sat for dinner.

Afterwards, as we were preparing to leave, the manager of the Dude came over and told us that the Saturday evening between Christmas and New Year was a closed event for some high rollers in town. He told us that we didn’t have to play but he would be happy if we did. He wanted us to keep the act to as many quieter songs as we could, until the guests had enough liquor in them to want to rave.

Donna looked at us. “Can we do something to say “thank you” to the Dude on Saturday? It’ll be our final night of residency.”

We all said we wanted to try to make some changes and what better sounding board than a captive audience.

Hell! We had all day Thursday and Friday and most of Saturday to pull a rabbit out of a hat.

Emily said it best. “We can do it, girls. We’re the Pixies!”

That, I think, was the moment the world tipped yet again. We’ll move forward, stronger and way more experienced than when the girls first graced my home-made studio. It was still the festive season, and the New Year show would be broadcast next week so there would be something for the scribes to talk about.

Allan wished us a Happy New Year and then said that we should keep it as a quiet time because we don’t want to be seen as Magic Pixies, in two places at the same time. He then said he would see us before that, anyway, as he was going to take part in the Saturday dinner with a big bunch of local businessmen from the city, with their families.

On the way home my mother told us that the whole day had been the best Christmas present anyone could have given her.

My father was quiet for a while. “Do you realize what you girls gave up by not going solo?”

“I think we do, Mister Grosse,” Josie said. “We’ll give up being forced to jump to people’s orders who think they know better than us. We’ll give up just being the two of us, alone in hotel rooms while others make money from our talent. By not going solo we won’t give up the love and friendship that we have with the other girls and, yes, we may find the odd time when we’re being ordered and feel alone, but we’ll do it as a group of six and I’ll lay a bet that Donna will walk all over anyone who tries to mess with us.”

We were all tired, happy, and full of food when we got home so we just hugged and kissed goodnight.

I went out to the stable and my own bed. After undressing, cleansing, and putting on my nightie, I got into bed, determined to have some thoughts about the events of the day but fell asleep directly.

Bowing to the cold of the following day, I dressed in jeans, boots, old flannel shirt, and a thick sweater after I had showered. The other girls started turning up not long after we had finished breakfast, along with Josie’s family.

Her younger brother, Jordan, had been a little shy at yesterday’s celebration, but was slowly thawing out. He was fascinated by our chicken set-up. He wanted to be a vet, so he and his father went off to look at our operation with my dad.

Mom got busy in the kitchen and Josie took her mother out to the stable. Once everyone had arrived, we went into the studio to do a bit of hard work.

We quickly decided on the full Pixie section with quieter numbers at the beginning and then some more rowdy ones at the end. To do a two-hour show you need about twenty songs, and we already had a suitable list of fourteen, so it just left us to find six or so to complete the set.

Josie and I could do the three that we had done on Sunday and Pet said that she would write us two, both with her on violin and Emily on keyboard, and have them ready for us to work on the next day. We did a few of our favorites to let Josie’s mother see how we worked in the studio, putting her phone in the bracket so that she had a record of us to look at.

After that, we all went up to the house for lunch Mom had put together and sat around.

Josie’s father came over to the two of us. “Edie, your father tells me that you and Josie were planning to put in some hydroponic sheds and branching out.”

Josie admitted that we were thinking about it.

“I’ve a couple of pals who run a small chain of grocery stores. I’ll have a word with them to find out what they find difficult to source. Perhaps you’ll allow me to partner you in the project, seeing that my business is building houses and industrial buildings.”

“Dad, you really are the best,” Josie said sweetly. “I’m so sorry I went off the rails for a while. Maybe I was just rebelling, but I’m grounded now. If we do well with the songs this year, I’ll put my share into the project, just as long as Edie and her family allow it.” She then gave him a big hug and a kiss on the cheek.

Another one, I thought, that may be a few years late, but not, thankfully, too late.

Marianne Gregory © 2022