Chapter 5

There was applause, and Willow glanced to Peter to see him smiling broadly.

“Now, to what we actually came to do. We are pleased to announce that the Summer Rose album, ‘Journey into Womanhood’, as well as the DVD, both achieved Gold Record status yesterday. Not only that, but, because we bundled the first album, ‘Coventry Carpentry’ in the initial sales, it has also achieved the Gold Record status as well. It’s been a rush, especially after I was told that the band is an eleven piece now, but we would like to hand out these Gold CDs, mounted with the details on a brass plaque. Please come forward. Willow.”

There was applause as Willow received three awards, followed by Gina and the five others. The four wind players got two each for the ‘Journey’ album. Xavier was busy taking pictures, while Dave and Frank filmed it. Then the CFO smiled.

“We have a few awards left. It’s very strange to be giving these out tonight. Normally, awards like this go to established professionals. Tonight, though, we have two awards for each of the three, highly skilled, schoolboys who recorded and filmed the album and DVD. Come forward, Xavier, Frank and David.”

Geoff grabbed Xavier’s camera and recorded his friends as they received the Gold CDs for the technical input to the album and DVD. They were all blushing but also glowing with pride as they were hugged by all the bands. All those who attended the school knew how deserved this was. After that, the theatre crew took over, to clean up and prepare for the opening night. Summer Rose went out to their people movers, with smiling security men. Sebastian commented that he knew that the album had been successful but hadn’t appreciated the band for what it was until tonight.

Willow sat in the vehicle, stunned as she looked at the three awards in her lap. So much, and so quickly. It was like a dream come true. Jacob leaned over and gave her a kiss.

“This is just the beginning, love. There’s more to come for us and the band. And I think it will be just the beginning for the other two bands as well. The next three nights will be amazing, just wait and see. I guess that pictures of us getting Gold records will be published. It doesn’t matter to me that it was all done tonight, it was good without a lot of pomp. Mum’s going to be shocked.”

“So is mine. I was joking when I promised Malcolm one for behind the bar, so I guess I’ll have to give him one on Saturday. I’ll give him the one for the DVD, because he can add a notice that it was filmed in the club. I have a copy with Mum’s original artwork to put up beside it.”

“School’s going to be pumped. I’ll donate one of mine for the Head to put on her wall.”

“Oh, yes. That’s going to get you a better grade?”

“Busted!”

Gina sat with hers, totally overcome with pride and appreciation. She put hers in her bag and turned to Willow.

“This has been the greatest moment of my life, friend. It would never have happened if we hadn’t met.”

“Nor for me, friend. Individually, we’re good, together we’re amazing, and with the rest of the band, we’re almost too brilliant to see without sunglasses.”

“Onward and upward?”

“You bet. Your mother’s going to be as shocked as ours.”

“You had better come in. I know it’s late, but I doubt that I’ll sleep tonight.”

At Jacob’s house, they went in, and he showed his parents his awards. All three were hugged by his mother and father. His father, ever practical, asked if this meant that the next statement might be bigger than the latest.

“Downloads and web activity will go down, but sales income will go up. It should equal out, but we’ll just have to wait and see.”

At Gina’s house, they were both hugged by Maisie, with Willow finding it hard to get away. But get away she did, for the trip around the corner to her home, where the lights were still on.

“See you in the morning, Miss. It’s been a real pleasure tonight.”

“Thanks Sebastian. You may have to guide me to the vehicle in the morning.”

She got out and the front door opened.

“You’re a bit late, darling. Did something happen.”

“You could say that, Mum.”

The door closed, but Sebastian didn’t leave, just sitting with the window open until he heard a shriek from inside. The two security men high-fived and he drove away.

Friday morning saw the three friends red-eyed from lack of sleep. Willow had put the ‘Carpenters’ Gold CD on her desk, to hang on the wall later. It was the album that was the launch vehicle. The award for the ‘Journey’ CD was destined for the china cabinet in the sitting room, with the one destined for the club in her mother’s car, on the way to show at her work.

True to his word, Jacob had the award for the first album in his bag. He didn’t feel that he had deserved it. Also, he considered that as it was part of a school concert, the school was the best place for it to be displayed.

All three were quiet on the way in, and when they arrived at school, they went through to see if they could have a word with the Head. She saw, immediately, the drawn faces of the three.

“Is anything wrong, children? You all look like you haven’t slept.”

Jacob took a step forward, in front of the girls.

“We all had bad nights, ma-am. I expect that the others in the band are the same as us. It was a long evening, made longer by record company leaders who wanted to give us things. I’ve brought this one in for you to hang with your diplomas.”

He pulled out the award and gave it to her.

‘This is the Gold Record for the original ‘Coventry Carpenters’ album, re-recorded after the show here in the school. We were also given awards for the second album and the DVD.”

“This is very generous, Jacob. Are you sure that you want to do this?”

“I’m sure. I have two for the band now. As a matter of interest, Xavier and his friends got similar awards for the sound and vision of the DVD.”

“This is amazing. I don’t know what to say. It will make my night out at the Belgrade on Saturday more meaningful. How many sales does it take to get one of these?”

“Half a million. It took a week. We are all finding it a bit overwhelming.”

“I bet. Look, get along to classes. I’ll put the word out to the teachers to go easy on you today, and make sure that you sleep in tomorrow if you can.”

The three friends went off to the first lesson and did find that they weren’t called out if their attention waned. Lunch was another party, with some of the others bringing in their Gold Records to show their friends. During lunch, a lot of phones pinged. When opened, the messages were photos from the rehearsal and the award ceremony. By the afternoon, the whole school knew about it.

The band were hustled out to their transport and driven home. Willow had a sleep on the way. When she was dropped off, she stripped down to her bra and panties and got into bed for a couple of hours sleep. Wendy woke her in time to have a shower, dress and eat a sandwich before the transport was at the door again.

She had her new outfit on, and Wendy had given her extra work on her make-up. Sebastian told her she looked good and then they went to pick up Gina, who was also looking a couple of years older. Jacob was very smart in his outfit. When they arrived at the theatre, there was quite a crowd outside. The vehicles went around the back and parked with others. The three went in to join a large, and very excited, group of band members. The more they met, the more the three bands were becoming friends.

G-Force were up first, and the others had quick looks through the curtains to see the audience. To Willow’s eye, it appeared to be a mix of about half and half adult and teenager. The stage manager got the extra bodies off the stage, the band made sure they were plugged in, and they waited for the compere. He came out in front of the curtains.

“Good evening, Coventry! Tonight, you will be hearing, for the first time in public, three local bands with stella futures. Together, they are creating a new Coventry Sound. First up, I give you G-Force and the lovely Zara!”

The curtains opened and the show was under way. Summer Rose left the wings and went back to the dressing rooms, where they could hear the show from a speaker.

Herb grinned.

“You do look fine, Jacob. Where did you get the fancy gear. Gina and Willow, I can understand, but you?”

“The three of us did a fashion shoot and were given these. The shop has offered to send us things to wear at the other shows if we wore them tonight. I like it.”

“Well, it will make you stand out.”

“I think that we’re working on a plan for them to outfit everyone in the band, but there wasn’t time to get you all measured. I expect that when we play the charity dinner dance, we’ll all look a million dollars.”

They relaxed and listened as Zara and the Gees got the audience going. They wished the Hikers good luck as they went up to get ready for their part. Racheal joined them to listen to the performance. There was tremendous applause for the Gees, and the compere came out again.

“Our second band has already had a world-wide internet hit with their debut single, ‘Love and Marriage’, which attracted over two and a half million views inside a month. They have been a true ‘garage band’ up to now. Please give a big welcome to another Coventry band, Rick Sacks and the Hikers!’

He left the stage as the curtains opened and Rick and the boys hit their stride with the second-best song on the album, a string of catchy new songs, and finished with the hit single. There was applause, and shouts for more, but had another new song for an encore, the best of the new bunch.

The curtain closed and the compere was back again.

“This is the end of the first half of the show. We’ll be back in twenty minutes. The new albums by G-Force and the Hikers will be in the shops soon. Albums by our next band are available in the foyer. If you like the show, don’t forget to watch it on Band Spot next week.”

Racheal turned to Jacob.

“We’ll be off. Last night and tonight has been tiring, and the band need a rest before the show tomorrow. Best of luck with your set.”

She went to join Rick and the Hikers as they secured their instruments. By the time Summer Rose were ready to be on stage, G-Force had left as well, but not before Garry gave Willow a hug and thanked her for everything.

Jacob picked up his guitar and turned to the others.

“Looks like we’re the last line, guys and gals. Let’s get up there and show the crowd what entertainment is all about.”

They made sure that they were all ready and waited for the compere. As the noise of the audience abated, he came on to some cheers.

“This is what we’ve been waiting for. This band released an album and a DVD just over a week ago. Last night, they were presented with Gold Records for half a million sales nationally. They have played regularly at small dances for some months. Please give a big welcome to Coventry’s latest chart busters – Summer Rose!”

They had talked about the list as they waited and opened with ‘Finding a Friend’. Then followed what they had played the night before. They had been playing this music for a while, and it showed in the presentation. Willow made a few descriptive announcements as they went along. They ended with ‘Her Day’ and ‘Only Just Begun’. The applause was tremendous, and many were standing. The curtains closed and the applause continued. When the curtains reopened, Jacob stepped up to his microphone and the theatre went quiet.

“Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, friends. We thank you for your appreciation of our music tonight. We will play an encore song. You’ve heard our sound tonight; it’s what we’ve done for a while. We do have another sound, and it encouraged our management to book us for a sixteen-show national tour this summer. We’ll be opening for Blastmasters.”

There were murmurs and laughter.

“I know. Sounds crazy. Before I joined Summer Rose, the band had worked on a cover of a concept album that had been released in nineteen seventy-seven. It was the end of the cold war period, and the album is about the advent of nuclear war wiping out humanity after the moderate and brainy leader dies, to be replaced by a bunch of power-hungry, land-grabbing dictators. It resonates with the world we now live in, and will be a future album, called ‘The Other Side of Summer Rose!”

He stepped back as the band ripped into several minutes of stadium rock. It was a full-on display of skills that had been absent for the rest of the set; wild guitar, manic keyboards, blasting wind. All eleven laid it on the line. The end went as planned, the canisters blasting on the final chord and the stage lights going out. When the audience got their vision back and the spots came on, the band was lined up across the stage, and bowing. The audience erupted with whistles, cheers and foot stamping.

They stepped back as the curtains closed, secured their instruments and left the theatre to go home and get a good night of restful sleep. In the vehicle heading towards Stoneleigh, Willow hugged Jacob and gave him a passionate kiss.

“I’m really proud of you, love. Today, you made the Head very happy, and you just gave a very adult and fitting introduction to ‘Sparks’. Will you do it Saturday and Sunday?”

“I will. Playing the album has made me think about the tightrope the world is on at the moment. It worries me, but our album may get discussion if the label treats it seriously.”

The three had a group hug as Jacob was dropped off, then Gina and Willow hugged and cheek kissed at Gina’s, before arriving at Willow’s home. The security men said ‘goodnight, see you tomorrow evening’ as Willow got out. Sebastian, for once, had nothing else that he could say. He had stood at the doors, with the rest of the security detail, and had witnessed one of the best shows he had ever seen. Tomorrow, he would see it again. He whispered “Love this job” as he drove back to the city.

Willow went inside, said a bleary goodnight to her parents, and went off to get ready for bed. She was asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow, and didn’t wake until after nine the next morning, in need of the bathroom. She showered and dressed before going downstairs, where she was hugged by her mother.

“You look better after some sleep, honey. Your father had to work today and took the CD award to show his office.”

“How did your work take it, Mum?”

“It was great. There were a lot of selfies taken with it and the boss took me and his daughter to lunch. They will be at the show tonight. I think that a lot of the faces you’ll see tonight are people you know, including us and Maisie. How was last night?”

“It was like living in a dream. The other bands were better than ever, and we stayed in the dressing rooms and talked. Herb has been writing songs in the rock vein but has been afraid to bring them to us, but we’ll be starting to move that way. We did one track off the Other Side as an encore and brought the house down. Jacob made a very adult introduction to it that you’ll see for yourselves tonight. I think that nobody left thinking that they didn’t get what they paid for.”

“What’s on the cards for today?”

“I need to go to the church to check tomorrow’s hymns, and then I have to see Malcolm in the club. Fancy a short stroll?”

“That would be nice. I’ll freshen up while you finish breakfast.”

A half an hour later, they walked, arm-in-arm, towards the church.

“Remember that morning when we heard the bells and came here, Mum. It seems so long ago.”

“Less than a year, darling. So much has happened. That morning started a journey, with all of us becoming integral in the village life. It’s changed the lives of more people than us.”

They went into the church to find Edie and her husband making sure that everything was good for the next day. Wendy stayed to speak to them, and Willow went up to the organ. She warmed up with some Bach, which had its usual effect of settling her. There were three hymns, which she heard the two women sing as she played. When she had shut down and went down to the others, Edie said that they were looking forward to the evening, as the Bishop had block booked seats.

“I hope that you all enjoy the show, Edie. Last night was good. The band is getting better every time we play, and the extra four wind players have brought an extra dimension. Eleven in the band will make it difficult with the logistics if we tour, but that’s what we are now.”

They walked over to the club. Malcolm was rearranging the bottles and restocking.

“Good morning, ladies. Lovely morning.”

“Good morning to you, Malcolm. You haven’t made room for the Gold Record yet.”

“I will when you give me one, young lady.”

“OK, how about this.”

She pulled the award out of her bag and put it on the bar.

“This is for the DVD, so I’ve added a raw copy of that here, with the original artwork on the cover, created by my dear, talented, mother.”

He looked at the items, reading the plaque.

“This is real. Not some joke?”

“Pinch yourself and check, Malcolm. We were given these on Thursday evening by the record bosses. There was one for the CD as well as for the first CD that was bundled in the first sales. Are you going to find room to display them?”

“You bet. They will be in pride of place by tonight. I’ll be at the Sunday show as Ashley will be filling in. It will be really special, considering that I watched the three bands on our stage. Sit down and have a drink, I’ll organise your lunches in a while. No doubt there’ll be some regulars in who will want to talk. What time are you going to the theatre tonight?”

“I’ll be picked up by our security detail about six, Mum and Dad will make their own way, picking up Maisie, I think.”

“And the Epstein’s, darling. We’re making a night of it, with a meal at the steakhouse on the way, so we’re leaving home about five.”

They sat and relaxed with their drinks and talked to the regulars as they came in. For Willow, it was a return to the real world and recharged her batteries for the evening. After the lunch, they walked home to find a box on the porch with a Francesca Fashions logo on. Picking it up, they went inside.

It contained two outfits, with a note pinned to each. One to wear Saturday, one for Sunday.

“I bet Gina and I co-ordinate.”

“There’s another note. It says that she enjoyed the show Friday night and wants the three of you as models for the summer and autumn ranges, including Brent and the two girls in the wind section. You had better go and try these on. Come down so I can take a picture of them and send to her.”

Willow went upstairs and put the first one on. It was certainly Saturday night in a nightclub, if you were there to find a man to take home. She came down to show Wendy.

“That makes you look like a model, the kind that appears in naughty films. However, as it will give you tremendous stage presence, whenever you stand up, it could work.”

Willow went and changed into the other outfit. It, too, was best described as sultry. The blouse was thin enough to show her bra, and the skirt, while a reasonable length, had a slit up one side to the thigh. After showing her mother, she changed into something comfortable and stretched out on her bed. She laid quiet, headphones on, working through the Moody Blues CDs. Last time they worked on them, they were looking for music that was more melodic than in your face. By the time she needed to get something to eat and change, she had some that were more rock and hadn’t been learned.

When she was picked up, nothing was said about her look, but both guys could hardly take their eyes off her as she went from the front door to the vehicle. At Gina’s home, she came out, trying to walk normally but restricted by her tight skirt. Jacob looked like a pimp.

Willow had Francesca’s phone number and called her.

“Madame, we’re on the way into the show and look like a pimp with his tarts. Can we come by your shop and get something else to wear. We’re thirteen years old, not twenty something and on the game.”

When she finished the conversation, she gave Sebastian the new address.

“Don’t break any road rules, we’re not on until after eight, but you’d better call the others to let them know we may be a bit late.”

When they arrived at the shop, Madame opened the door to let them in.

“I’m so sorry! I gave my assistant your sizes and told her to choose something that fitted rock stars. Come on in, we’ll get you something better.”

A half an hour later, they got back in the vehicle, with more normal, but still nice, outfits on, plus another for Sunday in a garment bag. As they left the shop, the Madame called out.

“Keep those and the other set we sent. You may need something sexy for a hot date.”

They arrived at the theatre while the G-Force were into their set. Brent gave Gina a hug and a kiss.

“I was getting worried. What happened?”

“You should have seen the outfits we were sent. It would have looked like a hooker’s convention. Willow phoned the supplier, and she opened up to give us a different look.”

“Did you get to keep the outfits?”

“Not the ones we were wearing, but we have another outfit that she sent for Sunday. If you’re a good boy, and it still fits, I’ll wear my original Sunday one for our first real date.”

The evening was better than Friday, with a noisy audience. The Gees and Hikers stayed for the second half, hearing The Other Side with eight hundred watts of amplification for the first time. Like the audience, the difference was something to shake your belief that Summer Rose was a soft-rock dance band. The bands, having their transport close by, were on the road before the audience, and the friends all walked into empty houses.

Willow spent her alone time stripping off and showering, then making a hot chocolate and sitting in the kitchen, quietly thinking about the time after Sunday night’s show. Would they be more popular, sell more merchandise, write more songs. More importantly, would the Other Side become the real band on stage, while maintaining the softer stuff for the dances.

Marianne Gregory © 2025