Chapter 120

The following evening was:

6^th stop
Oakland, California
Oakland Raiders
RingCentral Colloseum 56,057
(Expandable to 63,132)
Embassy Suites by Hilton

We got there an hour early, as usual, and got the usual help to set us up on the fifty-yard line, on a stage only four feet above the field itself, with no dressing rooms in sight. No problem, I didn’t think everyone would be as helpful as the first five places had been.

Dad was pissed, but I told him not to worry. We’re professional, so I just told everyone, we would have a night of all different kinds of music. Whatever they had on would be fine.

We had on our mics, and I spoke to Stuart, “I’m blowing things up completely tonight. No Broadway at all, just Pop, Big Band, Country, Rock & Roll and maybe some Gospel. Listen closely and try to keep up.”

“Life is like a roller coaster,” he said in response. “Can you at least tell me what’s first tonight?”

“I’m playing and singing alone, ‘How Great Thou Art.’”

“Wow!”

I sent the orchestra out to tune up; I gave my wife a kiss and went out to a great big sound of noise. Instead of saying anything, I sat down to the piano and began playing and singing...

O Lord, my God!
When I in awesome wonder
Consider all the worlds
Thy hands have made.

I see the stars,
I hear the rolling thunder,
Thy power throughout
the universe displayed.

When Christ shall come
with shouts of acclamation
And take me home,
what joy shall fill my heart!

Then sings my soul,
my Savior God, to Thee;
How great Thou art,
how great Thou art!

(This was my belt)

Then sings my soul,
My Savior God, to Thee:
How great Thou art,
how great Thou art!
Then sings my soul,
My Savior God, to Thee:

How great Thou art,
how great Thou art!

From at the piano, when the wonderful applause dropped in intensity, I spoke, “Good evening to all of you from all of us. To hear our Broadway Music, you will have to buy it. Tonight, however ... we will be featuring many talented people both playing instruments and singing their hearts out for you. I can only hope you may respond in kind. Next up are my two favorite singers in the whole wide world, my wife Jennifer and my sister Isabel. Come on out, girls.”

They did to howls, hoots, and applause.

My playing brought in the orchestra...

PRINCESS
I’ve known about you
for a while now
when he leaves me,
he wears a smile now
As soon as he’s away from me
in your arms is
where he wants to be

But you’re the one
he rushes home to
You’re the one he
gave his name to
I never see his face
in the early morning light
You have his mornings,
his daytime
And sometimes...
I have his nights

PRINCESS (JENN)
But does he love you
(Does he love you)
Like he loves me?
(Like he loves me?)
Does he think of you
(Does he think of you)
When he’s holding me?

All the way to the end, these girls really sang with a lot of emotion. Stuart had a blue spot on Izzy and a pink spot on Jennifer.

This crowd sounded like they might like anything we might play, but their love for my girls and our music told me, this might be the way to go for a while.

“James, Peter, Richard, and Johnny ... come on out.”

Everybody knew what this would be...

(Johnny was singing the high parts)

Big girls don’t cry
Big girls don’t cry
Big girls don’t cry-yi-yi
(they don’t cry)
Big girls don’t cry
(who said they don’t cry?)
My girl said goodbye-yi-yi
(my oh my)
My girl didn’t cry
(I wonder why)
(Silly boy) told my girl
we had to break up
(Silly boy) hoped that
she would call my bluff
(Silly boy) then she said
to my surprise
“Big girls don’t cry”
Big girls don’t cry-yi-yi
(they don’t cry)
Big girls don’t cry
(who said they don’t cry?)

Big girls don’t cry
Big girls don’t cry
Big girls don’t cry
Big girls don’t cry
Big girls don’t cry

The second we ended cold, the sounds of approval came back ... big, loud and screaming. My mind was reeling trying to figure out what song might go next ... but it came through every time.

“Have any of you ever heard a person yodel before?” I asked the crowd.

Scattered people were yelling “Yeah.”

“Well, this is your lucky day, we have a yodeler, Sharon ... come on out.”

“Come on out, they’re harmless.”

With a big smile on her face, she walked into the yellow spotlight Stuart had for her.

I never told her I got this sheet music and handed it out to about six people in the orchestra, including Genny Schraeder, my best fiddle player I had...

I was born in Oklahoma
in the rolling Osage hills
And I rode my pinto pony
at full gallop for my thrills

And a song of joy and gladness
bubbled upwards from my heart
And burst forth in merry music:
that’s how yodeling got its start

(PETER, JAMES and JOHN joined in as her boy backup singers)

They call her Jessie,
the Yodelin’ Cowgirl

My yodelin’ swept the country,
an epidemic that all caught us
And now everybody knows me
as the Epiglottis Goddess!{br}

(The BOYS)
They call her Jessie,
the Yodelin’ Cowgirl

Yes, she’s Jessie,
the Yodelin’ Cowgirl

SHARON
I ride along and yodel a song
From dawn to dusk to dawn
‘Cause she’s Jessie,
the Yodelin’ Cowgirl

Jason was playing the mouth organ, with Genny playing her fiddle, as our rising star was yodeling again!

The crowd burst into loud sounds of appreciation for this talented eighteen-year-old. If her mother and sister could only hear her right now.

I waited for things to quiet down, and I called out Sam Choate.

“Howdy,” he said to them.

Different forms of it came back to him, as I started “Courtesy...”

American Girls and American Guys
We will always stand up and salute
We will always recognize
When we see Old Glory Flying
There’s a lot of men dead
So we can sleep in peace at night
When we lay down our head

My daddy served in the army
Where he lost his right eye
But he flew a flag out in our yard
Until the day that he died
He wanted my mother,
my brother, my sister and me
To grow up and live happy
In the land of the free.

Just like every time before, the crowd was singing with him, and he knew how to sell a song like nobody ... only Charles knew how. I will be using him really soon.

The applause for Sam and the song lasted nearly five minutes long. Oakland may have some strange people living there, but we had great people here with us tonight.

“For a change of pace how about the sexiest girl alive comes out on this stage and sings you boys a song directly to you all?”

That had fathers, brothers and granddads all standing up, as I said, “Will my wife please come on out?”

Taking wonderfully long steps jiggling a great deal, Jennifer Guthrie-Thomas appeared center stage, in a tight red dress, waiting for a musical cue. I was letting her enjoy this all she wanted ... I was up goading the crowd to keep cheering for her, then I sat down and started to play Whitney Houston’s beautiful ‘other’ song...

A few stolen moments
is all that we share
You have got your family
and they need you there

Though I have tried to resist
being last on your list
But no other man’s gonna do
So I’m saving all
my love for you
It’s not very easy
living all alone
My friends try and tell me
find a man of my own
But each time I try
I just break down and cry
‘Cause I’d rather
be home feeling blue
So I’m saving all
my love for you
You used to tell me
we’d run away together
Love gives you
the right to be free
You said be patient
just wait a little longer
But that’s just
an old fantasy
I have got to get ready
just a few minutes more
Gonna get that old feeling
when you walk through that door
‘Cause tonight is the night
for feeling alright
We will be making love
the whole night through
So I’m saving all my love for you
Yes I’m saving all my love
Yes I’m saving all my love for you
No other woman
is gonna love you more
‘Cause tonight is the night
that I’m feeling alright
We will be making love
the whole night through
So I’m saving all my love
Yeah I’m saving all my lovin’
Yes I’m saving
all my love for you

For you... !

While the male dominated applause started, I walked over to her and gave her a really great kiss. I felt a change of spotlight color on us to see a heart-shaped light on us, “That’s my girl, her name is Jennifer.”

I slapped her on the butt, and she giggled and left. I turned and walked to the orchestra and said, “Brubeck” and they played, the classic “Take Five,” with Stella Van Kirk getting the solo this time on the saxophone. It rotates around, I mandated that.

After that, we played nine additional pieces of music before I called our ‘Intermission’ to the crowd. Our lights went down and we had fresh hot food of all kinds on a table for everyone to partake of. There was a note from Dad, “This is their apology, eat up!”

After we ate, and I told Stuart just how good the hot dogs were, he said, “We got some up here too, Boss. Good stuff.”

“You’re doing a great job keeping up with me,” I asserted.

“I do and I do for you, and all I get is food,” he said very melodramatically.

“You have two girls, work it out.”

“Everybody up here with me is guys, apparently ... no girls allowed. Five minutes, Mr. Thomas.”

“Thank you five,” I said showing everyone my hand to see.

****

We got going again in our second half, but I still stayed away from the Broadway stuff. I know that’s usually our bread and butter, but, if only one night, my brain gets to engage a little more than usual.

I had Peter sing, “Ice, Ice Baby.” Sofia, Maria and Joan sang s medley of The Supremes’ music, which included “Stop, In the Name of Love,” “Where Did Our Love Go?” and “Come See About Me,” with each girl taking turns leading the music.

Jennie Robinson sang “Goldfinger,” Clarice singing “Moonraker” and Liz Marvel singing our rock version of “Where Do I Begin?” all of them getting big rounds of applause.

I jumped back in by singing, “The Candy Man” and “Luck Be A Lady,” getting girls to rush the stage. I flashed my wedding ring at them, saying, “Sorry, only one girl has my heart.” That caused most of them to swoon. Really?

We all went on, having Princess and Jennifer leading the youngers girls through a rousing rendition of “Smokey The Bear.”

I ended the evening back at the piano...

So many nights,
I’d sit by my window,
Waiting for someone
to sing me her song.
So many dreams,
I kept deep inside me,
Alone in the dark,
but now you’ve come along.