Solo Star

by Cindy Jefferies

  “But I hate that,” protested Chloe. “It feels wrong.”

  “Well, I’ve been teaching you how to make a song as perfect as it can be, but you know yourself that no two performances are exactly the same. Everyone makes mistakes, and with enough practice you can learn to cover for each other.”

  “I suppose,” said Chloe. She bit her lip. “I’m so stupid.”

  “No, you’re not,” said Mr. Player. “You’re just used to your way of doing things and now you have four other people to consider.” He smiled at her. “You know, there are lots of artists who would never think of singing to a backing track. Yes, it’s very safe, but compared to a band it can be rather mechanical. It takes a lot of rehearsing together, but when you sing with musicians you trust, you can really let go and the whole performance will fly!” He smiled sympathetically at Chloe’s doubtful expression. “When’s your next rehearsal?” he asked.

  Chloe told him and he looked in his day planner. “I’ll come along again and see what I can do to help,” he offered. “You do realize you’re very young to be chosen as a Rising Star, don’t you?”

  “I guess so,” said Chloe again. It had been exciting to be named as a Rising Star, but since then she had spent every day wondering if she was capable of living up to the title.

  “The problem with this concert is that we try to shoehorn so many students in,” said Mr. Player. “Usually the singers are no problem, because we can easily have several performing the same song, taking a verse each. But your voice is so powerful and so different, we couldn’t do that with you, and at the same time we really had to let the older ones have the solo spots. If you feel you can’t cope with singing with the band, there would be no shame in bowing out this time.” He noticed her horrified expression. “You’ll be a Rising Star again in the future,” he reassured her. “I’m sure of it. This isn’t going to be your only chance.”

  Chloe shook her head fiercely. “But I want to do it this time,” she told him. “I can’t give up now!”

  “Even though rock isn’t really your thing, and even though you’re not happy being a member of a band?”

  Chloe looked stubbornly back at him. “It’s all singing,” she told him. “I should be able to do it.” She felt fierce and determined, but then the fight went out of her. What if she couldn’t make this treatment of the song really fly, or feel comfortable performing with others? She’d be letting the boys down and that would be terrible.

  “I’ll give it a few more days,” she told Mr. Player. “But I don’t want to ruin things for the band. If I can’t get it soon I ... I’ll have to give up.” She nearly burst into tears as she said it, but Chloe knew it was the right thing to say. She couldn’t ruin the boys’ big moment.

  “That’s very brave, Chloe,” acknowledged Mr. Player. “But I don’t think it will come to that. You know, I think if you could just relax with the band, you’d be fine.”

  “You might be right,” said Chloe miserably. “I’ll try.”

  “That’s the right attitude,” agreed Mr. Player. “Now listen. I’ve got a suggestion for you.”

  “What?” asked Chloe, sure it would be something else she would make a mess of.

  “Charlie Owen’s dad has given Judge Jim some backstage passes for his next gig,” Mr. Player told her. “It’s tomorrow night. And because you’re going to be singing one of his band’s songs at the Rising Stars Concert, we thought we’d offer them to you and your fellow band members. Maybe watching the band perform the song you’re covering might help you to see beyond our version of it. I’m sure you’ll like their performance, even though you’re not much of a rock fan. Have you ever seen any really big stars perform live?”

  Chloe shook her head. “No,” she admitted.

  “Well, now is your chance,” said Mr. Player. “And not only will you see them perform, with luck, you’ll be able to meet them as well. I think it’s an opportunity you should definitely take. It will be good for the band to spend some time together away from rehearsals, as well. It could be just the boost you need.”

  Chloe couldn’t help feeling a little excited about this, in spite of her worries about her own concert. Charlie Owen was in her grade, and his dad was in a mega-famous band. Maybe it would help to see them play live. At any rate, it couldn’t do any harm.

  “How many people are going from school?” she asked, wondering if Pop and Lolly would get a chance to go, too. It would be nice to be able to sit with friends.

  “I’m not sure how many passes we have,” said Mr. Player, “but I don’t suppose it is very many. Judge Jim is going to take the minibus, so there won’t be hordes of you. I think Charlie will go, though, and maybe there will be enough tickets for him to take a friend.”

  It was reassuring to know that Judge Jim was going to take them. Chloe liked him a lot. She was sure Danny would go, too. He would never pass up such an amazing opportunity. “All right,” she told Mr. Player. “I’ll go.”

  “Good.” He smiled. “I’m sure you won’t regret it. I’ll tell Judge Jim. Watch how the lead singer interacts with his fellow band members, but most of all just enjoy hanging out with your band as well as a famous one.”

  “I will,” Chloe promised.

  4. An Evening to Remember

  “It’s not fair,” said Tara the following night as Chloe got ready to go out with her fellow band members. “I’d love to meet my favorite bassist and see him play. The pass will be wasted on you.”

  “I hope not,” said Chloe, putting on her best pair of jeans and brushing her hair. “I’m sorry you can’t go, but Mr. Player thought it was a good idea for me to be there.”

  “Huh!” said Tara, still looking very disgruntled.

  Chloe piled into the minibus with all the boys. She wished Lolly had been able to go. As that wasn’t possible, Chloe would have liked to sit with Danny, but he was deep in conversation with Zil and so Chloe found herself sitting alone.

  So much for hanging out with her band. But it wasn’t too bad. Judge Jim played some cool music, and the ride wasn’t very long.

  Soon they were nearing the arena where the gig was going to take place. Chloe and the others waited impatiently while Judge Jim found a good spot to park and then they all climbed out of the minibus.

  “It’s huge!” Chloe breathed in awe as she stared at the building in front of them.

  “Dad’s played bigger venues than this,” Charlie told her. “Some of the other places are twice this size.”

  Chloe simply couldn’t imagine anything much bigger than this enormous building.

  “One day you’ll all have enough fans to fill a stadium like this,” said Judge Jim, feeling in his pocket for the backstage passes and handing them out. The passes were large plastic rectangles with the word BACKSTAGE printed in big, black letters. They were clipped onto long green cords, which everyone hung around their necks. Chloe put hers on, feeling very important. Danny glanced at Chloe and they exchanged grins. This was so exciting.

  Judge Jim took the students to a small side door and knocked. It opened a few inches and a face framed with long dreadlocks peered out. When its owner saw Jim, he opened the door wide and engulfed the teacher in a huge bear hug.

  “Good to see you, man!” the guy said, standing back and looking at Judge Jim with a broad grin on his face. “It’s been too long.” Then he caught sight of the students standing awkwardly outside. “Hi, Charlie,” he said, and smiled at the others. “Come on in, all of you. We’ve been expecting you.”

  “Dag is one of Dad’s roadies,” explained Charlie as they followed the man along a brightly lit corridor to the band’s dressing room.

  Chloe and the others filed shyly into the room. There wasn’t a lot of space. There were clothes and guitars, plates, bottles, and cans littered over every available surface. It was just as Chloe had always imagined backstage chaos to be.

  She recognized a big man who was waving at them as Abe, the lead singer. She also recognized Charlie’s father,
from when he’d picked up Charlie at the end of last semester. In fact, the band members were so well known that she recognized all of them immediately.

  Abe tossed some clothes off chairs into a heap so that a few of the students could sit down. Charlie was in his element, showing off to his friends about how close he was to these megastars. But he shouldn’t have bothered—Chloe was totally impressed anyway!

  Soon Judge Jim was chatting with the lead guitarist while Charlie and Danny were talking to Charlie’s dad about drums. Lenny, Jeff, and Stew, Charlie’s friend, were talking to the other musicians, but Chloe felt too shy to join in. She stared at a huge bowl of mangoes on the dressing table. Her initial excitement was draining away and she began to wonder if it would have been better if she hadn’t come.

  “Would you like one?”

  Chloe looked up to see Abe towering over her. He was smiling, but Chloe found him a bit scary. He was so big and so famous. She didn’t know what to say.

  “A mango,” Abe elaborated. “Would you like one? I always have one before I sing. Seems to lubricate my throat. Hang on.” He picked up several mangoes and gave them to a man who had been hanging out in the room. Chloe didn’t recognize him. “Can we get these done now?” Abe asked. The man nodded.

  “So what do you play?” he added to Chloe.

  “I don’t,” Chloe admitted. “I’m a singer, but I don’t usually—”

  Abe cut her off. “Me, too!” he said, as if she might not have realized. He waved his arm over to where Judge Jim was still deep in conversation. “Ol’ Jim and I gigged together until he decided to give it all up and teach,” he told her. “Then I took up with these guys a few years ago. You’ve got one cool teacher there,” he added admiringly. “What he does for young people is amazing!”

  “I know,” agreed Chloe.

  “John Owen was telling me about this concert thing you do on TV. His boy Charlie didn’t get chosen this time, but you kids did. That right?”

  Chloe explained all about the Rising Stars Concert. Abe seemed impressed when she told him they were going to be singing one of the band’s songs.

  “Wow. That’s really cool,” he said. “I hope it goes well for you. I’ve had some real fun with that song. You can do so much with it.”

  “Yes,” Chloe replied doubtfully. Abe was easy to talk to, and she felt the urge to confess her problems with singing in a band to him, in case he had any suggestions. But just then the man came back with drinks and the mangoes and the moment was lost.

  Soon it would be time for the concert to start, and after they’d had their drinks, Judge Jim shepherded the students from the room.

  “See you at the end,” called Charlie’s dad as they left.

  Chloe and the others had fantastic seats, almost in the front. When Chloe looked behind her, the arena seemed to stretch away forever. To the people in the very back of the vast stadium, the band would look like tiny dolls. But there were two huge screens showing the concert as well, so at least those people would be able to see something.

  The whole place erupted into deafening applause when the band finally came onstage. They swung right into a song, and the audience went berserk at the first couple of chords. Chloe was forced to put her hands over her ears for a few minutes until they’d calmed down a little.

  To begin with, Chloe was enjoying the atmosphere so much that she forgot she was supposed to be studying the band’s technique. But once she stopped gazing around at the lights, the backdrop, and the huge arena, she began to notice little communications between the band members. Sometimes it was just a slight nod from one to another that she would have missed if she’d been farther away. Then she realized that in one song someone had made a bad mistake. The lead guitarist turned to Abe and laughed. Abe grinned and sang the same line again and then the song went on as if nothing had happened. It was possible to make mistakes and still move on.

  Chloe and the others were soon lost in the fantastic performance. Chloe even forgot that she knew the performers because she was so totally caught up in the sights and sounds in front of her. It was much better than watching concerts on television. The energy coming off the stage was like a living thing, and it was feeding off the audience. She had never seen or felt anything like it before in her life. Chloe realized that Mr. Player had been right. When a singer and musicians really got it together, the performance did fly. If only she and the boys could do the same.

  After a few songs, Abe spoke to the audience. It gave the other band members a chance to grab a drink. Chloe could see Charlie’s dad wiping his hands and drumsticks with a towel before he reached for his water bottle. Then Abe mentioned his good friend Judge Jim and, to Chloe’s amazement, a spotlight snaked its way off the stage and shone briefly onto Judge Jim, who was sitting next to her. He raised his hand good-naturedly and the audience cheered. It was obvious that lots of them had heard of Judge Jim Henson.

  For a moment, some of the spotlight shone onto Chloe as well. The bright white light illuminated one half of her body while the other half stayed dark. Part of Chloe longed for the whole spotlight to fall on her. It made her want to perform. She would have loved to have gone up there onstage in front of such an amazing audience.

  Then she realized. This was what had been lacking in her rehearsals with the Rising Stars band. Only half of her had wanted to rehearse. The other half was still scared of being forced to sing in a way that didn’t come naturally. But it was no good performing halfheartedly. You had to throw yourself completely into it or not at all. Yes, she’d been working very hard on the song, but her lack of trust in the others had stopped her from relaxing into the music so that she could really feel it. And singing rock music could be exciting, she saw that, especially with the song the band was performing now. It was one she hadn’t heard before, but she could see herself up there onstage doing justice to this song! If only she could do that with the song they’d chosen.

  Chloe decided to be brave. She would really go for it. She had nothing to lose. She would make herself be a real member of the band, not a reluctant singer who didn’t fit in. So what if she made mistakes? The others did and didn’t beat themselves up about it. They just kept on going and did it better next time. She had to find the same confidence, and trust that everything would work out if they kept trying.

  I will succeed, she told herself. I will!

  5. Breakthrough

  Backstage after the performance, there was a mass of people all talking in loud, excited voices. Judge Jim got Chloe and the boys through the crush with difficulty and eventually they managed to reach the dressing room. Here, it was almost as chaotic as in the hallway. Judge Jim handed Charlie and his friend Stew over to Charlie’s dad. The boys were catching a ride in the band’s tour bus and going to Charlie’s home for the weekend.

  “You were fantastic!” said Chloe to Abe when she found herself near him.

  “Wasn’t I?” he said, with a twinkle in his eye. “Glad you enjoyed it,” he added more seriously. “I hope your concert goes well. I’ll try to catch it on TV if I can. Just relax and get into the groove. Yeah, Dag!” he yelled over her head. “I’m coming.”

  By the time the students were getting into their minibus, people were streaming out of the arena.

  The four remaining boys couldn’t stop chattering to one another, and Chloe almost sat back down where she had been on the journey there, but she didn’t want to be alone.

  Before she could lose her nerve, she joined the boys. It was tricky butting in when the boys were still excited about the concert. Apart from a friendly smile from Danny, the others were too involved with their conversation to acknowledge her.

  “And that riff on the last song was just phenomenal!” Zil was saying.

  “I think the drummer had the edge on you, Danny!” teased Jeff.

  Danny grinned. “Maybe just a little,” he agreed. “Hey, Chloe! What did you think of it?” he asked.

  Suddenly they were all waiting to hear what she had t
o say and Chloe wondered desperately if it had been a good idea to try to push her way in. In the end, she simply told them what she thought.

  “Well,” she said, “I enjoyed it much more than I thought I would. They are one cool band, especially Abe.”

  “Yes?” said Zil.

  “And I really liked that song near the end,” she continued shyly, encouraged that he seemed genuinely interested in what she had to say. “You know the one. ‘Summer Lightning,’ I think it was called.”

  “Oh, yeah! That’s a great song,” agreed Lenny.

  Danny started beating out the thumping intro and Jeff made the sound of the heavy bass. Grinning, Zil and Lenny came in on their imagined guitars, Lenny’s plaintive whine under Zil’s lead. If this was the real band, Abe would come in now with his howling lyrics.

  Relax and get into the groove, he’d told her, and for the first time she felt that maybe she could. It had been such a great night, and everyone was happy. If she was ever going to gel with the band, it was now.

  As she sang the first line, Zil and the others faltered with surprise. But Danny kept the beat going, slapping his hands on his jeans, the back of the seat, anywhere that was available.

  The others soon recovered, and by the time they got to the chorus they were in complete harmony. Zil abandoned his imaginary guitar lead to sing the two-line chorus with Chloe and then picked up where he’d left off.

  Chloe belted out the rest of the song, singing just the notes for which she couldn’t remember the lyrics. By the end she was out of breath, but one look at the boys’ faces told her that they were as pleased as she was. Danny bashed out the rhythm for another song and they were off again.

  By the time the minibus arrived back at Rockley Park, Chloe was happier than she had been for ages. She felt as if she’d made a huge breakthrough. Their enjoyment of the concert had united them all and their different ages, abilities, and musical preferences didn’t seem to matter so much now.