Page 20 of Hittin' the Right Note
“I’m glad you’re finally comfortable with who you are,” he said. “I remember it was a bit of an issue for you when you were in high school.”
Mikey was so taken aback by this bit of grace on Luke’s part he couldn’t think of anything to say. Fortunately, he was saved from having to say anything by the arrival of their food–a hamburger and fries for Luke, and a salad for Mikey–and so he let the subject drop.
Finally, though, he knew he had to bring up the ostensible reason they were here.
“Do you wanna talk about what the concert should look like? It sure seems like Brenda expects the two of us to take the lead.”
“And does it bother you, Mr. Bigshot?” Luke said, an edge to his voice. “Do you think it’s beneath you to actually have to do the nuts and bolts of planning a concert?”
So much for the grace period,he thought.
It seemed their little moment of understanding was over, and Luke was back to taking each and every thing he said, no matter how seemingly innocuous, and turning it into an insult.
Just take a few deep breaths and keep calm.
That, however, proved to be much easier said than done.
“You know,” Luke said, taking a big bite of his hamburger, “I’m not even really sure why you bothered coming back at all. You said yourself you’d rather just give some money to the Center and call it a day. So, what gives? Why are you really here?”
Mikey didn’t know what to say. He supposed he could just be honest and tell Luke the truth, but he knew it was too early for such a thing. No, if he wanted to get on Luke’s good side he had to be more subtle.
So he lied.
“Do you want to know the truth? I’m here because it looks good. I have a new book out, in case you didn’t know, and I wantto make sure it gets as much good publicity as possible. I’m sure to someone like you it probably seems cynical but,” and here he shrugged, “sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do.”
He half expected Luke to get up right then and storm out but, to his surprise, he actually looked at him with something close to respect.
“Okay, at least we’re being honest with each other,” Luke said. “For my part, I’m doing this because I think it’ll help me get back into the music world. It probably won’t work, but it’s at least worth a try.”
“Great!” Mikey said with forced cheer.
“So,” Luke said, “here’s what I was thinkin’. We could do some of our greatest hits–maybe, say, half a dozen from each of us–and we could add in two or three new songs. Maybe do a couple of covers of, like, Hank Williams or even Brad Paisley, since he’s super local. We could even do some Vince Gill for you, since he suits your higher range. I think we should really lean into the traditional angle. Go for the real thick country vibe. That’s always been NACA’s strength, and it’s what the people around here are gonna be looking for.”
Luke was speaking so quickly, and with such passion, Mikey couldn’t get a word in edgewise.
“Well,” he said, when Luke took a breath, “I think you’re right about the greatest hits. I actually wrote a couple of songs for the Heartthrobs, so we could definitely do those, and I’d like to do some of your songs, too. You had some good stuff, Luke.”
Luke preened, which made Mikey hopeful he wouldn’t balk at what he was about to say.
“But, I don’t think we should just do country songs, and I definitely don’t think we should lean so hard into the traditional angle. I did some research on musical trends here in the Ohio Valley–or, well, my assistant did–and there’s been a shift here to some more contemporary pop music. I think we should leaninto it, maybe write some songs with a Justin Bieber or Charlie Puth vibe, or maybe solo Justin Timberlake. We need to make sure we’re reaching the younger crowd, especially if we want the concert to be more than a flash in the pan. So, we need to do what’s popularright now,not what was popular ten or twenty years ago.”
Luke wasn’t having any of it.
“That’s bullshit, and you know it.”
This was predictable Luke Carter behavior. His brows were drawn down, and his mouth was set in the firm line Mikey knew too well. It was just the kind of expression he got when he was certain he was right and wasn’t going to let anyone tell him otherwise.
Fortunately for Mikey, he knew exactly how to get around Luke’s stubbornness. Or, at least, he had.
“Trust me, Luke. I know what I’m talking about. We need to really emphasize love songs and stuff with good rhythms. Don’t get me wrong. We can do the stuff that made us famous, but we can’t let ourselves be chained to the past. We have to change, and so does West Virginia.”
Mikey could tell at once he’d taken exactly the wrong tack. Luke was even more stubborn than he’d been dreading, and nothing Mikey was saying was getting through.
Let’s try a compromise.
“Okay, look. Maybe we write, say, two or three songs. One can be a traditional one like you’re talking about–you know, guitars and talking about trucks and all of the country stuff you liked when you were young and which you probablystilllike–and then a more current one, something a little pop and a little adult contemporary. And then one we both work on. Then we do some of our greatest hits. And then we do some covers. It’s a good compromise, I think. Don’t you?”
For a split second he almost thought Luke was going to go along with it. He had a gleam in his eye, and his face had softened a little. Then, just as suddenly, the hard look was back.
