1968 Conqueror of American Rock - Chapter 142



Only Noblemtl

142. LA Metal (8)

San Francisco is a port city located on San Francisco Bay and is called California’s second largest city.

Originally Mexican territory, this area is long and narrow and has many ports, so it is a place where people of various nationalities live together, including whites, Hispanics, blacks who settled after slavery was abolished, and Asians who immigrated in the 19th century.

The United States is a country built entirely on capitalism, so the social security system for low-income people was weak. Therefore, if you do not continue to work even after you become old, you may face various social problems or economic difficulties.

Helen, who was at an age where she could watch her grandchildren’s talents and make snacks, returned home today after finishing her hard work at the laundry. Her steps felt heavy as a thousand pounds.

“mom.”

“grandma.”

Her daughter was standing in front of the house with her two children, with several large suitcases beside her. She could tell intuitively that her daughter was not here for good.

“Let’s go in and talk.”

It was an old apartment building, but it was a precious home to Helen. She welcomed her daughter and grandchildren, whom she hadn’t seen in a long time.

Helen isn’t a great cook, but she made clam chowder using fresh clams and potatoes, a local specialty.

“Grandma’s clam chowder is the best!”

The two siblings were old enough to know why they had come to their grandmother’s house, but they didn’t show it at all for their mother’s sake.

“Grandma, can we live here with you for a little while?”

The house wasn’t big, but it was enough for a family of four to live together. No, Helen, who had been living alone, was happy.

A night when the children are asleep.

“I’m sorry, Mom. I’ll really have to take care of you for a while.”

“I’m glad you came, but what happened?”

When we couldn’t afford to pay rent because of our second child’s medical bills, my husband suggested we move to the Tenderloin. But the Tenderloin was the slum with the highest crime rate in San Francisco. No matter how poor I was, I couldn’t take my children to such a scary place.

So her husband got on a high-paying deep-sea fishing boat. Fortunately, her second child recovered with the advance payment, and she returned to her parents’ house with the children. She was confident that she would do anything as long as her children were healthy.

“Mom, I heard there are a lot of jobs around the port. I’ll start looking for work tomorrow. I’ll work, so you can get some rest.”

“Jessie, is there any news about your brother······.”

“I used to get calls every once in a while when I was forgetting, but now I don’t have your number······.”

As Helen sighed, Jesse turned on the TV to lighten the mood that had become heavy because of him. He knew that his mother enjoyed watching talk shows and dramas at night.

When a depressing drama came on TV, she quickly changed the channel.

– Korea’s first music broadcasting station, KMTV, has finally opened! I’m Jack White, the host of today’s music talk show, ‘The Tonight Tonight Show’!

When a familiar name came on TV, her eyes were fixed on the TV.

“Jesse, you just said Jack White, right? Did I mishear that?”

Helen walked over to the TV screen.

The middle-aged man with the mischievous grin and furrowed eyebrows, even though he was older and a bit fatter, was definitely his son, Jack.

* * *

“Hahaha, James, that guy is really something. He just blurts out lines without a script.”

“I told you, you have divine hosting skills, haha. You are the best among the musicians busking on Waikiki Beach.”

Michael would often come to the studio to watch Jack record his shows.

Jack has already performed on the street countless times. Some people have thrown cans at him, some have given him huge tips, some have cried while listening to his songs, and some have collapsed in laughter.

He had a talent for making people laugh when he was young, so he was in charge of the comments in the band even though he was a guitarist. Now, he met a teacher in Hawaii and learned how to move people. Now, all he needed was a stage where he could fully display his talent.

KMTV’s signals are currently available in California. As the channel grows, it will be able to broadcast to a wider area. Then, one day, Jack’s mother will be able to see her son on TV.

I sincerely hope that day will come soon so that Jack can let go of his burden and enjoy the prime of his middle age.

– This is the first ever music video in Korea! It’s like watching a movie! Let’s watch Sparkling Ripple’s ‘Road Movie’, which is currently rushing towards the number one spot on the Billboard Hot 100 chart!

The response to our music video was explosive. We were flooded with interview requests from all kinds of music weekly magazines, and Annie and Angela were even approached by Hollywood to become acting stars.

“Cut, thank you for your hard work!”

After finishing recording, Jack walked towards me with a big smile.

“James, this wasn’t Hawaii, this was paradise on earth. I was just shaking my butt off on the beach and they were giving me a ridiculous amount of money to do it in front of a camera, hahaha!”

As expected, the term ‘financial therapy’ is a word that applies in any era.

“Jack, do you know where your mother lives?”

“Well······ The last time I spoke to my sister was a few years ago, and I heard she lived in San Francisco. I called her to brag about coming to LA and appearing on a show, but the number didn’t work······.”

“If you’re in San Francisco, you can get KMTV.”

“Will you recognize me? I’m so old and fat.”

Jack didn’t have an ordinary face. He was a high school student when he ran away, so you would recognize him.

“But even if you recognize me, you might not want to see me······. I just want to know if you’re doing well and if there’s anything wrong, even if you don’t want to see me.”

Jack was not only hosting a music introduction corner, but also a talk show. It was a program where he invited various musicians to talk. Our Sparkling Ripple appeared as a guest on the first appearance, and Bao’s story was introduced on the second broadcast, which became a huge topic of conversation.

“Jack, I have to go and meet the PD. See you next time!”

* * *

‘James is going to be the MC for a day? That’s not a request, it’s a great welcome. There’s a big fuss in other states right now. They’re asking for KMTV to expand their coverage. It’s all thanks to the Sparkling Ripple music video, hahaha.’

I’m thinking of having Jack as a guest on a talk show, so that he can naturally come up for discussion. There weren’t many programs on the network yet, and since it was a local station, they would rebroadcast the same program several times. If you live in San Francisco, you’ll definitely be able to see this show.

But if Jack and I were to talk, the mood could easily get dark. So I decided to have Annie and Angela, who had shown amazing performances on pirate radio and are currently in great demand in Hollywood, appear as assistant MCs for the talk show.

“James, we’re going to start recording soon.”

The assistant director announced the start of recording.

“all right.”

To create a buzz from the start, we decided to open today instead of the house band. It was the official first live performance of the new song ‘Road Movie’.

We went on stage in the clothes we wore when we filmed the music video. It was a historic day that marked the beginning of real LA metal.

Annie’s microphone was made up of several colorful mufflers, and it danced as she held the mic stand and shook it back and forth. We shook our heads in boastfulness to the powerful metal-toned riffs, which had their noise innovatively reduced with the help of EGO.

– Hey, a bookworm.

(Hey, nerd.)

– Isn’t the class boring?

(Aren’t you bored with class?)

– Come on, get out of the cage!

(Come out of that cage!)

Annie approached Angela, who was neatly dressed in her school uniform and playing the keyboard, put her hand on her shoulder and sang. The way she was shaking her legs would have made even Elvis Presley cry.

– Hold my hand!

(Take my hand!)

– Don’t be scary.

(There’s nothing to be afraid of.)

– Let’s go crazy together!

(Let’s go crazy together!)

The audience stood up and headbanged along.

– No one should tell us!

(No one can tell us!)

– You can’t do it.

(“You can’t do it.”)

– Our lives are a road movie!

(Our life is a road movie!)

“Cut, very good!”

I changed into a suit and went back to the set.

“Ready go!”

Wow!

The cheers and applause from the audience inside the studio were louder than usual.

“Hello, viewers of the ‘Tonight Tonight Show’. Surprised, huh? I’m James Choi, your daily MC. Today, we have a special guest. But before that, let me introduce you to our two beautiful assistant MCs who will be helping us talk today. Please give them a round of applause!”

Annie and Angela, dressed in their new clothes, walked onto the set, waved to the audience, and sat down on the sofa.

“Now, you must be curious about today’s guest. Today’s guest! Come out!”

Jack came running out with a powerful performance, accompanied by short, intense music from Jake and his brothers, who were the house band for the day.

* * *

– Everyone, today’s guest is none other than the star of the ‘Tonight Tonight Show’, Jack White!

“Mom, my brother is the guest today, hahaha.”

Jessie was really excited today, even inviting the kids over and sitting in front of the TV.

“Guys, that guy is your uncle.”

The kids had heard that they had an uncle, but they only heard that he lived abroad. It was surprising that the person they saw on TV was their uncle.

Helen didn’t really like music, but she became an avid viewer of KMTV. Her son, who had run away from home and destroyed her guitar, was on TV hosting a music show. She was happy to see her son’s face on the screen like this.

Jack confessed that he was originally a musician, showing off his dazzling guitar and singing skills.

– I left home because I wanted to do music. It’s already been more than 20 years.

Jack began telling his life story, giving and receiving compliments from the MCs.

– There were times when I thought about dying. But I didn’t have the courage to do so. So I sold my guitar and went to Hawaii with the money I earned. I wanted to go to Hawaii, the paradise on earth, before I died.

The audience laughed and cried at all the interesting stories, including the story of meeting the Master, the story of performing at Waikiki Beach, the story of meeting Sparkling Ripple and becoming an MC, and the story of recording the Master’s album.

– But I even lost contact with my younger sister······.

– Since you might still be watching this broadcast, please say something to your family.

-······.

Jack on the screen was speechless and buried his face in his hands. Two assistant MCs next to him patted his back.

– Everyone, let’s listen to a song and then continue the broadcast.

“Jack······My good son Jack······.”

Helen put her hand on the TV screen and caressed the sobbing son.