The Guitar Player Ch. 06

Unfortunately, I had to sit and wait as I was performing third from the last that night. When I finished my two songs, I began walking off the stage, wondering if my limo was there to take me to the airport. However, I had only taken three steps when the crowd started chanting for more. I quickly got off stage, but the chanting didn't die down. This was embarrassing because Chris Collins was scheduled next, but the crowd wouldn't quiet down. They kept chanting for me to come back.

I was mortified because it wasn't fair to Chris. He was fairly new to country music, but he had had three number one hits in a row. I had worked with him before, and we got along great. Anyway, Chris stood off stage waiting for things to settle down, but they didn't. He looked at me and started to laugh. Finally, he walked over, grabbed my arm, and dragged me back onstage.

When the crowd saw the two of us, they went wild. The audience started jumping up and down in the aisles. After a few minutes of pandemonium, things began to quiet a little.

"How about Robbie and I sing together?" Chris screamed into the microphone. This set the crowd off again. All we could do was to start playing and hope that things settled down. It took about twenty seconds, but then the crowd quieted to listen. First, we sang one of Chris' hits, and then one of mine. We sang several songs and tried to get off the stage, but Sandy Younger strutted on before we could do so. She was known as the "Golden Voice of Country." I always felt that she should have been named the "Golden Body of Country." She was gorgeous.

As Sandy marched up to us, I thought Chris and I would just slide on out. But Sandy had another idea. She grabbed both of us.

"You two are having altogether too much fun," she accused us. "I want in."

This sent the crowd into another frenzy. And for the next hour and a half, the three of us continued to entertain. We alternated singing our own songs with singing together. Sometimes it was just two of us singing and sometimes all three. I was exhausted at the end and soaked with sweat. Chris was in a little better shape than me, but he was still drenched in sweat also. I don't know how she did it, but Sandy looked as fresh as she did when she first came out.

After the show, all the performers and support people gathered at the hotel, where we talked and drank for two hours. It was after midnight when I finally made it to the jet I had hired. I tried to sleep on the way home, but I was too keyed up.

I arrived home about seven am, the day before my forty-fifth birthday. I was dragging and spent the next ten hours catching up on my sleep. When I woke up and finally got dressed, everyone was out on the back patio. Dawn had fixed a BBQ dinner, and I was just in time.

"Glad you could make it, sweetheart," she said as she gave me a passionate kiss.

"Oh, gross, dad," Trey stuck out his tongue. "Get a room."

"We have a room," Dawn said with a smirk. "It's at the head of the stair on the right. We'll be making good use of it tonight."

"Oh God, mom," Trey shouted. "TMI, TMI, TMI!"

"What's too much information?" Cassandra asked as she stepped up next to her brother.

"Nothing for the baby of the family's ears," Trey smirked at his sister.

"Stop calling me a baby," Cassandra punched her brother's arm. "You're only a year older than me."

"Fifteen months," Trey corrected.

"Okay, you two just settle down," Dawn chided them.

I laughed and grabbed a plate, filling it with my spareribs, coleslaw, beans, and cornbread. I also grabbed a beer and found a seat on the far end of the patio. Our house was set up on a rise that overlooked our seventy-five acres. We had expanded the compound since we first bought it. Now we not only had a swimming pool and tennis courts but a basketball court as well. I had ATV trails added and a barn with three horses. We expanded our manmade lake to accommodate a powerboat and a sailboat tied up at the dock.

The only thing that Dawn didn't put up a fuss about was the swimming pool. She fought tooth and nail about the horses, but they were something that Allison desperately wanted. Ever since she was a little girl, Allison loved horses. I finally convinced Dawn to let me get one horse and hire a riding instructor. I told my wife that Allison would eventually get tired of taking care of the horse, and then we'd get rid of it. Obviously, Allison never got tired of horses, which is why we now have three. In fairness to Allison, she paid for the other two horses out of her royalties from her first hit song.

Dawn said the basketball court and the tennis court would probably not be used after the first few weeks. On that, Dawn finally admitted that she had been wrong. Trey and I would frequently go out to shoot hoops. And it wasn't unusual for me to come home and find a game of pickup B-ball going on with Trey and his friends. Sometimes, I would join in if the sides were uneven. I didn't kid myself; I couldn't keep up with these kids. However, I could set a mean pick though.

The tennis courts were a different matter altogether. Cassandra took to the game after a year of tennis instructions. She actually got good enough to make it onto the school team. But the biggest user of the tennis courts was Dawn. She loved to play with Cassandra and her friends. She even got me out there. And twice a year, we had a charity fundraising tennis championship. We'd have bleachers brought in, and Dawn would raise forty or fifty thousand dollars from the event. It seemed that everyone wanted to participate except me. Of course, early on, Dawn informed me that opting out was not an option. I'm convinced that I was included to be the comic relief.

All my kids learned to water ski on the lake, and Trey loved to sail. I can water ski after a fashion, but it isn't something I really care for. If the kids and Dawn want to do it, I'll go along. For me, I love the ATV trails we've created throughout our property. We also have access to the State Park's ATV trails behind our property.

Every Fourth of July, I would fly my old singing partners George and Simon down with their families. I would also fly George and Mabel down with Tyron and his family. They would stay with for a week, and it would be all fun and games. And each night ended with a cookout and singing. It was wonderful to have a loving family and such good friends.

The years rolled by, and I knew I was getting older because each tour became harder and harder. The night of my forty-fifth birthday, Dawn had rented out my favorite restaurant in Orlando. It was a closed party with about a hundred and fifty friends and relatives. Sometime during the evening, Allison handed me my guitar and said it was time to sing for our supper. We sang for about twenty minutes when I was surprised by what happened next.

Both Trey and Cassandra had been taking music lessons for years, but I had been so busy that I didn't realize how far they had progressed. I had heard both of them sing when Allison used to put on her music shows at home. They both had sweet voices back then but were shy and unsure when Allison pressed them into service.

When Allison called for a break, she instructed me to sit next to my wife in the front. Dawn just snuggled close to me. Quickly, I realized that she knew what was going on. As for me, I would have to wait and see. I didn't have to wait long as Trey and Cassandra joined their sister with their own guitars.

I expected Allison to take charge at that point. So, I was totally surprised when Trey took the mic, told a few funny stories about his sisters, and then launched into a guitar solo. Stunned is the only word that described my reaction. But as surprised as I was, I was blown away when Cassandra joined in, and the two of them took the room by storm. But that wasn't the biggest surprise that night.

When the cheering died down, Allison took back the mic and told me that the three of them had written a special song for me. Cassandra led off, and Trey soon joined her, with Allison finally blending her voice in. It was some of the sweetest music I had ever heard. When the words began to flow on out, tears streamed down my face. Later I learned that the name of the song was entitled, With the Love of My Father. My three children would record that song, which made it to number one on both the country and pop charts.

That night, I spooned together with Dawn after making love for quite some time. I told her how much I had enjoyed the birthday party, but I didn't think they would ever top that one. And that was true until my fiftieth birthday rolled around.

For weeks before the big five-o, I watched with great amusement as my kids and wife scurried around, working on whatever plans they were making. I would catch them from time to time with their heads together. When I would ask what they were doing, they would just giggle. I probably would have paid more attention, but I had other things on my mind. I was doing things that I didn't want my family to know anything about because they'd be furious with me if they knew.

On my fiftieth birthday, I discovered that they had planned a surprise brunch with about fifty guests. Anyone who didn't know my family well would have assumed that that was their big birthday surprise. However, after my afternoon nap, I was informed that I needed to be ready to go to dinner by six o'clock. My spider senses began to tingle. I figured they were planning another amazing birthday dinner, but I was wrong.

The limousine was a new touch. One of those stretch models, which allowed the whole family to sit comfortably with space to spare. The tinted windows made it hard to see out and impossible to see in. I thought that was a smart idea. Allison was such a big star that a quiet evening could quickly turn into a zoo if she was recognized. It would also probably be a zoo if they recognized me.

We had a great time as the limo cut back and forth through many side streets until we went through a gate to a small parking lot. I still didn't think anything of it until the car stopped.

"Why are we stopping?" I asked with a little concern in my voice as Allison started to get out of the limo. She told me to follow her if I wanted my present.

I wasn't surprised my daughter had hidden my present somewhere that I wouldn't find it. It was well known in our family that I was a present snooper, especially around Christmas time. So, I got out of the car and followed my daughter. Allison raced ahead, and the rest of us struggled to keep up.

It wasn't until we reached the stage that I realized that we'd come in the back entrance to the Mercury Center, the newest music venue in our area. I was impressed that Allison had chosen to hide my gift here because there was no chance that I'd ever find it.

The rest of the family was laughing and joking as we tried to keep up with my daughter. Finally, I spotted her in the center of the stage with a single overhead light illuminating her.

"Come out here, dad," she called to me. "Your present is right here."

Chuckling, I strode out to where Allison was standing. Suddenly, the lights in the auditorium flared on, and a roar erupted from the seats. Twenty plus thousand people were on their feet cheering. Then Allison's backup musicians scrambled onto the stage and began playing. Quickly, Allison had the entire audience singing happy birthday to me as a large cake with fifty candles burning was wheeled onto the stage.

As the crowd was still roaring at the end of my birthday song, Allison gave me a tight hug and kiss on the cheek. Cassandra and Trey were there seconds later with tight hugs. My parents each gave me a hug, as did aunt Clair. Then Dawn was in my arms, smothering me with a deep passionate kiss. This all brought more roars from the audience.

When things started to quiet down, the doors opened, and servers brought in dozens of large, pre-sliced birthday cakes and began passing them out. This brought even more cheers.

"When I was a little girl," Allison said over the bubbling crowd, "this wonderful man decided to sing with my mom in Central Park."

This brought the crowd onto their feet once again with another roar. Over the noise, Allison shouted, "I guess you heard that story. I'd like to start off tonight with the very first song my mom and dad ever sang together."

Then my family, with me, included, sang Amazing Grace. From there, we bounced all over the place. Sometimes, it was Allison singing her hits; Sometimes, it was me. Cassandra and Trey added their few hits plus songs made famous by other artists. Trey and I did the Dueling Banjos from the movie Deliverance. Even Dawn sang three songs by herself. I'll never get over what a beautiful voice she has.

The birthday concert went on for three and a half hours. Dawn and I ended the concert with Ture Love. The crowd was still yelling for more when we finally exited the stage. As we made our way back to the limo, I felt so guilty as I saw the beautiful glow on Dawn's face. I prayed that she would never find out about my secret life because it would crush her.

A little over three months after my birthday concert, I was finally able to put an end to the secret life I'd been living. Actually, it was by mutual agreement that our relationship ended. I then decided that I was going to be the best and most attentive husband in the world. I swore to myself that there would never be any more secrets between Dawn and me. However, that was a promise I didn't keep. Even though I knew it would devastate Dawn, I wasn't able to stop.

For almost four years, I had been able to keep my secrets. And there had been some really good times during those years. I had cut back on my concerts until I was only doing one or two a year. Still, each time a date for one of my concerts was announced, all the tickets were sold within fifteen minutes. Even though I had cut back, I continued to write and record songs. I now had twenty-eight platinum records, and twenty-one of them had been huge crossover hits on the pop charts. I had also written songs for all three of my kids. Allison had made four of them number one hits. Trey and Cassandra each had two top-five hits from the songs I had written.

All three of my kids had gotten married. Allison had married Alex's grandson, Daniel. Since Alex had been my manager all these years, Allison and Danny had basically grown up together. Danny was an excellent studio guitarist and had a pretty fair voice. He had been a backup singer for some of the biggest names in the industry, including my band. But Daniel wasn't truly interested in the entertainment side; he loved the business end. His grandfather had taught him everything about being an entertainment manager. Danny wanted to follow his grandfather and father into the business.

As I had learned over the years, many very talented and successful entertainers really didn't like performing. Fortunately for me, I had long ago realized that I had an easy rapport with an audience. As I've said many, many times, it's all about the music. I'm just a guitar player who sings a little. The music fills my soul, and if others get some joy out of it, so much the better. Trey was one of those people who didn't really enjoy performing. However, that wasn't the reason that he gave it up. The reason he gave up performing was named Jenny Tallow.

Jenny was a professor at the local university, and Trey and his band were giving a concert there. At that time, Jenny was the university's advisor to the student senate's entertainment committee. Apparently, there were numerous problems with the sound system that Jenny was frantically trying to resolve. However, after hours of wrangling with the union electricians, the sound system was still unusable. Trey watched Jenny's efforts with humor and sympathy. He had dealt with unions before and was certain that they would do little to solve the problems. Finally, Trey took out his cellphone and made a call. Forty-five minutes later, a portable sound system was delivered to the college's auditorium and set up.

As Trey told the story, the union electricians were super pissed that non-union workers had set up an alternate sound system. They threatened to file a grievance, but Jenny let them have it with both barrels. She told the union electricians that they could do whatever they wanted. However, they'd have to do it after they left the auditorium, or she'd have them arrested. All six of the workers left with their tails between their legs. Trey said he fell in love with Jenny that night but had to work on her for two months to get her to go out with him. One year after their first date, Trey and Jenny were married. About three months after they were married, Trey gave up performing. He didn't want to risk his marriage by being away from home so much. Instead, he took a job as a teacher at the same university where Jenny taught. Trey was hired to teach entertainment business. He was only supposed to teach two classes each week. But his course is so popular that the university convinced him to teach two additional classes, and the classes are always full.

Cassandra turned out to be our problem child. I guess she had always existed in the shadows of her two older siblings. Unlike Trey, Cassandra loved performing and was building a great career. She probably would never reach the heights that Allison had attained, but Cassandra was definitely an A-list entertainer.

As her career was starting to take off, Cassandra got a little wild. She got into the partying scene, drinking too much and doing drugs. Cassandra, thankfully, didn't become an addict. And after a "Sunday come to Jesus" confrontation with Dawn, she moderated her drinking considerably and stopped doing drugs altogether. Then things seemed to get better, but then they actually turned bad again.

Cassandra went back on the road, and her music career continued to rise. But then she met and hired Lance Talbot. I hated him the first time I met him. Lance was the epitome of everything bad about the music industry. He was a good-looking lead guitarist with tons of charm but no morals and shit for a voice. Cassandra fell deeply in love with him, and she married him in Vegas without telling anyone.

The marriage began to falter almost from the beginning. Lance cheated on my little girl almost from the first. I guess he thought that once he had married Cassandra, he could ride our family name to the top. And at first, I did try to help him with studio time, a voice coach, and even a few songs I wrote. But outside of being good-looking and an excellent guitarist, Lance was an empty shell. He finally ran off with the lead singer from an up-and-coming band. Cassandra was crushed. But even though Lance had run off, he left something behind for Cassandra. She was pregnant.

Within a few months of each other, it was discovered that all of my children were expecting. Cassandra gave birth first to a little girl who she named Lacy. Jenny and Trey had a little boy two months later, and they named him Jason. Allison and Danny followed a month after that with another little girl they name Angelina.

As much as I promised to put my secret life behind me, I couldn't. About sixteen months after Cassandra had Lacy, I started up again. However, this time, I knew Dawn was going to find out. So, I decided to come clean. Still, I wanted one last evening with my grandchildren. I was pretty sure that after I confessed everything to my wife, my time with them would be severely limited if they'd even let me see them at all.

The whole family had gathered at our house to celebrate Memorial Day. We had set up cribs in one of the guest rooms so that all three babies could sleep together. I took my guitar and a recorder up to their room. I told everyone that I was going to sing my three grandbabies to sleep. My family looked at me with loving smiles as I headed upstairs. I couldn't help but wonder how much they would hate me once I told everyone what I'd been doing. But that was tomorrow. Tonight was just for my grandchildren and me.