Chapter 23

After the meal, the other girls left us, and Alicia went off with Josie to explain why she was sorry. Brad went off to have a drink or two in the bar which left me and Ali with Tony.

“Edie, Josie was devastated once she had watched that DVD. She told me a lot about her time with the Pixies, and her time living with you and your family at the farm. I saw that the papers have said that her brother is the father of little Ali, so Josie is really your sister-in-law.”

“We were like sisters before she left, and it was a huge letdown when I got home to find her gone. Has she shown you our “Sisters Forever” pendant?”

He nodded.

“That was the original for the one we all wear now. If you knew her before she saw the Swan, you would have known what a sex-mad girl she was then. I was disappointed when she left with Dave, especially as we went from a seven-piece band to a five-piece band just days out from a big show. Look, I was never sure what I would feel when I met her again, but I am happy for the two of you.”

I gave him a card from Allan’s office.

“I’m all over the place until we get this tour finished. We will be back in the studio around the end of September. If you have any free time then, call Allan. He will arrange transport for you. You can stay in the stable.”

When Josie came back, she was in tears again, and holding her mother close.

“Thank you so much for welcoming me so easily. You have no idea how long it took me to go to reception and ask for you, Edie. I feel as if a huge weight has lifted from my shoulders.”

She looked at little Ali who was asleep in my arms. “It was a real honor to meet my niece and hope to see her grow into a superstar.”

We hugged and whispered. “I love you” into each other’s ears at the same time. We laughed, air kissed, and exchanged phone numbers.

Tony gave me a hug. “Thank you, Edie, you’re the best.”

Josie and her mother had a long hug which threatened to be tearful again and then Alicia hugged her son-in-law, and told him he was welcome in Detroit, anytime.

They walked away, arm in arm.

Alicia and I stood together and watched them go. She then gave me a hug.

“Go and find my husband in the bar, I’ll put Ali down in our room. I know that you may not get much sleep tonight having met Josie again. This has been one hell of a day.”

She took Ali from me and headed toward the elevators.

I stood for a while and recovered my thoughts. I realized that Josie and I still had the mutual attraction, but that now, with her married and me living with Jordan, it could only be as sisters again.

I went and found Brad in the bar, and he told me that meeting his daughter again was something he’d dreamed of, ever since she disappeared. He’d thought there may have been a lot of recriminations and harsh words, not the outpouring of love that happened.

I told him that his wife had gone to their room and was going to keep Ali with her during the night.

“You have no idea how much she loves Ali.”

“That little bundle of fun has been her link to Josie,” he said. “Did you tell Josie not to let on that she’s the mother?”

I nodded, we both had a drink, and he went off to bed.

Next morning, at breakfast, I asked Pet to give the box office a call and to ask if there were another couple of seats available and, if there was, add them to the Prentice booking.

She did her thing and reported that two extras had been added.

“What’s the plan, Edie?”

I told her that Tony must have parents and, if they were here in Los Angeles, it may be nice for them to meet his in-laws. I then texted Josie to say there were two extra seats for Tony’s family, if he had any.

About ten minutes later she rang me to tell me that it was very generous, and that his folks would be delighted to come.

I told her that her parents and Ali would be in the same row, and to follow them after the show. I also said that we had a sound check at the hall this afternoon if she wanted to pop in.

That morning we had a photo shoot. Our sponsors were very good and didn’t mind us having a joint session, so we were taken to a beach where we posed wearing bikinis and wraps. We had six different teams of photographers and each one had one of us to work with for their own products. With make-up girls and dressers, it amounted to quite a crowd. Then they took the band photos. One was very hard to get right as it involved a photographer up a step ladder in the sea, with us out there as a group looking up and smiling while trying not to get our hair wet.

That one ended up on the cover of the “Hot Tub” CD. Thankfully, not the DVD, which turned out to be the more popular seller.

We went back to the hotel for lunch, and then went to the hall to do a sound check, where we found Josie and Tony outside. When we were up on stage we did a few numbers from the show, one of the slow ones, one from the middle and one from the last part.

Then Pet asked Josie if she remembered any of the old songs. She came up and we did one of the early duets together with me on the electric piano. It brought tears to my eyes remembering when we used to do it on stage. Her time in Los Angeles had not been kind to her voice, and she knew it.

“Thank you, girls,” she said afterward. “That was fun but not something I could do for a living now.”

She and Tony came back to the hotel with us, and we sat around the pool for the rest of the afternoon. Josie commented that having Abigail out front was a real eye opener for her, because it had turned the Sisters into something even more special.

She also told Joyce that her guitar playing was great and Joyce said it was because she had been learning different styles, and it altered her pop playing slightly.

We got a bit more of her story during the afternoon. Her voice had been roughened by singing with the Ramrods doing more rock numbers in smoky hotels. She said that when her income stopped, she had contacted Allan to ask why, only to learn why the tap was turned off. She said that she was very careful with her savings, and still had a bit, but had to deny Dave a lot of things he had asked her to buy, like cars and flash jewelery.

Tony, when I got to talk to him, was very interested in how we worked as a band. He told me that of all the bands he had worked with live, we had the most basic equipment he had ever seen. We didn’t even have a mixer out in the middle of the audience, and he was staggered that we just had a guy, today, standing out in the hall; on his phone to another who set the mix from a small unit in the wings. “Where’s the strobe lights; where’s the fireworks?”

I smiled and told him that we let the music do the talking and that our audience was not into all the flash-bang of a stadium crowd. I wondered if he might think we were old fashioned when he saw us perform.

During the afternoon Josie played in the paddling pool with her “niece” and her mother. It was lovely to see them together and laughing.

Brad and Tony got together for a while over a beer or two and it all seemed idyllic.

I, on the other hand, was thinking ahead so pulled out my phone and rang Allan. I told him who was with us now, and he wasn’t surprised. I told him about Tony and asked him if we could hire out the Stable Studio now as it was a genuine recording studio.

He saw through me in an instant. “You’re thinking of offering him a job, aren’t you?”

I had to admit that it crossed my mind to have a permanent producer, but we would need him to have regular work.

He chuckled. “I suppose that the thought hasn’t crossed your mind that Josie might make a good farm manager?”

That one made me stop and think because that thought had stayed away, maybe because I was scared at her coming back into my life.

“Allan, I’ll take your advice on board, but nothing will happen before Mom and Dad move down to Florida.”

He laughed. “They put Jordan in charge and are down there now, looking for a place to live. With what you’re going to pay them for the farm, they’ll be able to live there earlier than they expected.”

I told him that I was prepared to give them a lump sum over the top to cover whatever they bought so that the farm money could fund their new lifestyle. He said that I was very generous but could well afford it these days.

He asked how the photo shoot went. I told him we all got wet.

He chuckled at that. “The guys in Cleveland were very happy with the show. It exceeded all their expectations and we’ve arranged to split the costs of making the DVD, and then split the profits. They think it will be a big seller and so do I, being something so very different. I’ve been in touch with a distribution company in France where I sent the CD. They are very interested in distributing the DVD in Europe. It’s all in the early stages, so don’t talk to the girls about it yet.”

After we finished our talk, I called the farm and spoke to Jordan. I told him about Josie, and that she had been changed by the Swan. I told him that she was going along with Ali as her niece, and that her husband was a nice guy.

I also mentioned that he was going to get another nephew or niece himself.

“That baby will be a half-sibling to Ali. Even if they aren’t told, it will be interesting to see how they interact.”

I proposed that he come to Los Angeles sometime and meet them. I said I would get the address before I left, but I expected that his mother already had it.

He had to go and visit a neighbouring farm and stick his arm up the butt of a cow, so I told him to have fun and that I loved him. We made kissy noises before we hung up.

We had an enjoyable dinner that evening. Josie now more relaxed with us and Tony felt like part of the Sanders family.

Josie had a lot of questions about my new life as a concert soloist and the new people I was mixing with.

I told her that it was a lot of hard work to juggle all the balls I had in the air.

When she asked about my parents and my life with Jordan, I held nothing back, including that the folks may be living in Florida somewhere next year. I told her that Jordan and I were planning on marrying by then and that we would be co-owners of the farm.

She asked about Ali.

“Jordan is happy to adopt her if you give your consent.”

She nodded. “Send me the papers when you’re ready. I’ll set up an address for you, so Tony never finds out.”

The next day we relaxed, then hit the salon, and a light buffet before heading for the hall. Our dressers got us ready for the show and we went to the stage.

Applause greeted us as the curtains opened. I started with a new tweak, a longish piano intro with Abigail joining me to sing, and then the rest coming in for the central section and the end. I looked out and saw my future in-laws with Ali standing on her grandmother’s lap, dancing to our sound.

Alongside her Josie looked as if she could cry.

I hoped they were tears of joy. Tony and his parents watched and listened intently. About halfway through the set I saw Alicia say something to Josie, hand her my child, and then got up to sneak out of the hall.

When she came back, she waited a while before she took Ali back and I silently thanked her while we played. Our last third of the show included the hits and favorites, and the crowd sang along with a lot of them.

Ali and Josie were singing together, and Ali had a big smile on her face. At the end, the crowd yelled for more. We had a quick huddle before the curtains opened again.

Abigail went out front. “Thank you for being such a good crowd tonight. Los Angeles is one of our biggest fan bases. A few weeks ago, we played something completely different in Cleveland. We were asked to put on a show in a jazz club to commemorate the anniversary of Django Reinhardt playing in that city. Go look him up on the internet. He was a French Romani guitar player and his sound, for the day, was distinctive. There will be a CD of these songs available but wait until you see the live show on DVD, it will be awesome.”

With that I started with the long piano intro of the opening song of the live show, and we simply grooved for another twenty minutes, the audience went silent but politely applauded our individual solos until we played the last notes and bowed, at which time the place erupted with a roar, and a lot of them were on their feet, yelling.

I looked down and saw Josie with her mouth open, and Tony and his parents with big grins. Ali was doing a little jig and I could see by her mouth movements she was shouting “Groovy!”

As we left the stage, Abigail laughed. “That went well.”

The stage manager took me aside and asked. “Do you know the people sitting in the band seats?”

I said that it was my daughter, her grandparents, and the younger couple was Josie, one of the original Pixies, and Tony Prentice, her husband with his parents.

“Look, I don’t know if you know this, but his father is Martyn Prentice, one of the best producers around some years back. You would have still been getting into your teens when he was at the height of his fame. He had a spectacular flop, mainly due to the artists themselves, and decided to step away. This is the first time I’ve seen him at a show in more than five years. I’d heard that he would never go to a pop show again.”

I thanked him for his information and said that I would keep it in mind if he came backstage with the others.

Back in the dressing room we changed out of our outfits and, when we were back into normal dresses, Pet opened the door, and we welcomed our visitors.

I picked up Ali, who told me that the last bit was “Totes Groovy” and then welcomed the Prentices. Martyn and Maureen had smiles on their faces, always a good sign.

Maureen gave me and Ali a hug and told me that she had thoroughly enjoyed her evening. It had been different to what she had expected when her son had told her that they had tickets to a pop concert.

Martyn was standing next to her and added. “I’ve been reading so much about you girls, and it was a welcome chance to hear you for myself. If I hadn’t seen your piano playing tonight, I would have discounted the reports on your concert as hype. I can now see that it’s all quite possible.”

I asked. “Josie hasn’t given you the DVD, then?”

Maureen admitted that it had been passed to her but that they hadn’t watched it yet.

I advised them to watch it because it also had Pet, our violinist, playing with the orchestra as well.

Martyn asked about the encore. “I loved jazz when I was younger and that was smooth. You had the crowd in the palm of your hand. I’ve never been to a pop show when no-one whistled or shouted for such a long time.”

I told him about the show in Cleveland and that what we played tonight was a jam session, which had got away from us after the first couple of verses of the song.

Tony and Josie joined us, and she told me that there was no way she would have improved to keep up with us the way we now played.

I advised her that we’ve all progressed together because of the mix of things we’ve been involved with. She might have surprised herself if she hadn’t come to Los Angeles.

Tony turned to his father and told him what we had at home with the studio.

His father mused. “There are so many things you can do with that set-up that the manufacturers don’t advertise. You can turn ordinary into great but with how you girls play I would say that great becomes world class.”

I laughed. “Then you’d better come to the farm and show us what we’re missing.”

He shook me. “Thank you for the invitation, is there room for the four of us?”

I was looking at Josie out of the corner of my eye.

“There is. Since Josie came here, we’ve converted two of the chicken sheds into hydroponic production but the third one is now a two-story Veterinarian Clinic. There’s a two-bedroom apartment over the top. There’s also the stable but that has just a couple of single beds in it now.”

He asked. “When are you back there?”

I had a think. “Pet and I are doing a double violin concert in Boston at the end of August. We have a final three weeks of touring and then Joyce and I are doing the Rodrigo with Boston sometime later. Sometime in late September and October would be good, depending on the Boston date.”

I gave him one of Allans’ cards and told him to double check because Allan knew more about where we’ll be.

They all came with us to a restaurant for an after-show snack. We all were hungry after the shows, and it helped us wind down. Alicia and Brad left early with a very sleepy and wiped-out Ali.

One by one I mingled with those who had come along, seeing the stage manager having a laugh with Martyn, and Maureen looking on with a smile on her face.

I stood next to her. “I hear that you two haven’t been out much lately?”

She moved away from her husband, and we sat to one side.

“Edie,” she said. “Martyn was well respected at one time, but he produced a couple of albums for a band who thought that they knew it all. They wanted a different sound and took their masters to someone else to produce the way they wanted. Unfortunately, Martyn’s name somehow stayed on the cover notes and the two albums were widely, and correctly, given a big thumbs down. Martyn was castigated by the press who didn’t bother to find out the truth. He’s been a recluse since then. Tonight, seeing him so animated has been wonderful.”

I told her that if they came back to the next two shows, to sit with him and watch the DVD of my piano concert through to the credits beforehand, and to make sure that Tony or Josie was with them when they did.

The press report on Friday morning couldn’t figure out what was in front of their nose. It gave us a split review, one for the actual show and one for the encore. The first they called “smooth girl pop from an established outfit.” The other they said was radical and shouldn’t have worked in front of a pop crowd but was a miracle that did work, and work well.

Allan was obviously monitoring the press as we moved around, and he rang me to ask what it was that we did. I told him that we spent nearly half an hour, in a jam session, having fun with French jazz of the thirties. He laughed and told me that I could tell the girls we would be touring Europe next year, dates to be finalized.

I put my phone down and sat with a stunned look on my face. Joyce looked at me. “Is there anything wrong, Edie, you look shocked. I hope everything is all right at home?”

“Everything’s good. That was Allan. He’s been talking to a distributor in Paris for our Hot Tub album and DVD. He just told me that we have a tour of Europe being arranged but the dates are yet to be finalized.”

She laughed. “You’re pulling my leg?”

“No, Joyce, we’ll be playing jazz in seedy nightclubs across France, and eating snails with a bad wine chaser.”

She whooped which brought the others around. I told them what I had told Joyce and there was a lot of hugging and smiling. I picked up Ali and told her she may see the Eiffel Tower, and the scamp said “Tres Bon, Maman”. I’ll have to ask my mother where she picks up snippets of French. Her knowing that the Eiffel Tower was in France wasn’t a problem as we had several picture books of a teddy bear that travels widely.

I had a rummage around in my luggage and found the two CDs that we had recorded before the Cleveland show. I would give them to Martyn tonight if he came along, to see just how serious he was when he said he would come and produce for us.

That afternoon was strange, to say the least. I was out by the pool and a waiter came up to me. “Excuse me, Miss Grosse, but there are some people at reception who want to talk to you. They say they have some sort of award they want to give you and Miss Flower.”

I asked him to send them to the bar with the drinks on me and I would join them in a few minutes. He went off and I went to find Pet as she was swimming laps. I stopped her at one end and told her to get out and get dry. “There’s some people in the bar who have something for the two of us.”

About ten minutes later we walked into the bar. We had to stop and take in what was waiting for us. It was a group of six “girls” in fabulous pale outfits, just white, off-white, or pale pink. All well made up and all with a white feather brooch pinned to the left breast of their tops.

They saw us and squealed a bit and then, as we got closer, one of them stepped forward.

“Thank you for seeing us, it’s such an honor. We’ll all be at the show tonight along with a lot more of our club. The six of us are pleased to give you something that we all put in for, as a thank you for what you did for us.”

I smiled. “Well thank you, but just what is it that we did for you?”

Marianne Gregory © 2023