Page 55 of Hittin' the Right Note
LUKE—2015
They freshened up a bit, showering briefly and throwing on the clothes they’d been wearing before the mucking. Fortunately the inspiration was still sparking in Luke’s head and, if anything, the slight delay had made him even more excited to be collaborating with Mikey.
However, any illusions Luke had about whether things with Mikey were going to be easy when it came to their collaboration were dashed when they actually sat down to grapple with the actual nuts and bolts of writing a song. He’d thought, given the tenor of their conversations and given their session in the truck on the way here, things might have changed when it came to Mikey's perspective on tradition versus the new, but that was clearly not the case.
As they worked through these new lyrics, it quickly became clear they had very different understandings of what a country song might sound like. Luke, of course, wanted to tell a simple song–using just a pair of guitars, perhaps a fiddle, and some drums–but Mikey started going on about how it could be a whole production, which meant it wasn’t long before Luke’s original idea was getting drowned out in his supposed collaborator’s vision.
How come things were so easy on the way here?He thought.Why is it so difficult now?
He suspected it was because their earlier session had been less formal, and their egos had less of a chance to get in the way. Now they were in the weeds, though, things were different, and he didn’t like it.
“Look,” Mikey said finally. “I know I said we should lean into heritage and tradition, but don’t I get to have some say about how the actual new songs are going to sound? It doesn’t seem fair you get to have it all your own way, even if you are the expert on what country music sounds like.”
Luke wanted to disagree, but it was true, he wasn’t very good at compromising, certainly not when it came to music. He’d often thought that was part of the reason the rest of the industry hadn’t really done much to help him when he got outed and left everything behind. Why bother sticking your neck out for someone who’d repeatedly shown he was the opposite of a team player?
Luke took a deep breath to try to get his temper under control. The two of them were on good terms, and he wasn’t going to set things on fire by letting his mouth get the better of him.
“Okay,” he said. “I can see why you’d think that way, but I’m tellin’ you, as someone who’s lived here my whole life, there are still a lot of people here who remember the old days and would welcome a chance to experience them again. If we lean too much into the modern stuff, we’re going to lose the crowd and squander this opportunity to show them how tradition doesn’t have to mean anti-gay.” He was aware his old habit of dropping the “g” at the end of his words was creeping back more and more, but he didn’t mind.
“Take the WWVA. That was one of the most prominent music venues in the country music world for a long time. It’s beena while since it’s been a real player, obviously, and the same thing’s true of Jamboree in the Hills. And, I mean, sure, both of those institutions were probably really conservative, and they’d probably turn their nose up at a couple of queer boys getting up on the stage, but that’s just why we need to do it. We need to show these folks being queer–or gay or pan or bi, or whatever–is as much a part of the fabric of West Virginia as anything else. I think we owe it to ourselves, and to those who came before and those who’ll come after, to do this.” He paused. “We owe it to Dolly.”
He threw the last bit in as a joke, but it was true. Theydidowe it to Dolly, and to Loretta, and to all of the other female pioneers of country music.
These were things he’d been thinking for a long time, but it wasn’t until he actually said them and confronted just how much he disagreed with Mikey, that he realized this was what he believed. To his surprise, Mikey actually looked like he agreed with him, or at the very least he didn’t disagree with him.
“Okay, maybe you’re right,” Mikey said. “But I still think there’s a way we can bring in some of the contemporary sound I’m used to without losing what you like so much. Can you grant me that much?”
Luke wasn’t sure he could but, as Mikey started to sketch out what the song would look like in more detail–and as Luke just sat there and actuallylistenedwith an open mind rather than rushing to dismiss it all out of hand–he started to see the ways in which it might actually work. It wouldn’t be exactly like he’d envisioned it, but it would be pretty close. In fact, as Mikey began singing it, using his magnificent tenor voice to bring a new kind of life to Luke’s words, he found himself imagining what it would actually sound like and, more importantly, what it wouldfeellike to be singing it in front of a whole gathered audience at NACA.
When Mikey had managed to get through most of the song, Luke had to admit it sounded a lot better than his original version.
Damn it,he thought.Is there anything Mikey Smiles can’t make better simply by being involved?
Mikey stopped singing. To Luke’s surprise, he had a pleading on his face, clearly seeking his approval.
“How did it sound?” he asked.
He was tempted to tell Mikey it still wasn’t at all what he wanted and they should go back to what he’d originally proposed. However, it was brilliant, and he could admit it, if just to himself.
Eventually, he sort of settled on a middle road.
“It’s good,” he said. “It’s not quite what I imagined, but it’s still pretty good. I hate to admit it, let alone to you, but you’ve still got the same gift you had all those years ago.”
Mikey preened at the little bit of a compliment, and Luke was reminded with a pang of how much he’d been the same a decade ago. He’d never really asked Mikey too much about his relationship with his parents, but he got the feeling they were very hard to please, which was why he was so desperate for approval.
“I’m glad you think so,” Mikey said. “It’s been a while since I’ve flexed my musical muscles, you know?”
“Yeah, I know the feeling,” Luke said dryly.
“Ugh. I’m sorry. I just keep putting my foot in my mouth,” Mikey said. “I really am sorry.”
Luke just waved his hand. “Don’t worry about it. Let’s just work on the music some more, yeah?”
They settled in to do just that, but they were now sittingveryclose together on the couch, and the warmth coming off Mikey was starting to be very distracting. Luke tried–oh, how he tried–to keep his mind on the creative process, but it was impossible.The more they got into what made the song work, and the more he heard Mikey’s sweet voice, the more he knew it was going to be impossible to keep this up.
Mikey, unsurprisingly, made the first move.
“You know,” he said, draping his arm around Luke’s shoulders, “I can practically feel you vibrating next to me. If you wanna kiss again, all you have to do is say the word.”
