1968 Conqueror of American Rock - Chapter 177



Only Noblemtl

177. Again, Summer of ’69 (1)

Kevin and Stella had a formal wedding at the military community center in the Yongsan base of the 8th US Army. The two went on a honeymoon to Europe, and I returned to LA with the members.

It was a tough schedule, but I felt happy. I laid down on my bed in my room for the first time in a long time. I didn’t even eat and just kept sleeping.

“Hey, James. You’re not even married, so why are you so upset? When are you going to teach me how to swim?”

Annie called out to him, poking him, but he pretended not to hear her.

“Annie, James must be really tired. Let’s go together.”

Angela whispered softly to Annie.

“You can’t swim either. Jake can’t swim either.”

“But how hard must it have been for you to sleep for so long? Let’s just leave you to sleep and go.”

As expected from Angela. Please take the lynx out.

“This kid seems to be pretending to sleep······. Hmm, I guess I’ll have to learn something from Hyunsang oppa today.”

Oops!

When Angela took Annie out, she suddenly felt refreshed and her energy lifted.

I lay still in bed and collected my thoughts.

Touring was great and filming music videos was fun, but I missed Woodstock. After that, I went to the Pilton Festival and did a street festival on the Sunset Strip, but it felt different.

August 1969, there was a unique temperature, humidity, and smell. I missed the hot air of that time that I can’t describe in words.

This is a feeling of nostalgia not only for me but also for everyone who was at Bethel at that time.

In my previous life, I only saw the 1969 Woodstock Festival through photos and videos. Seeing it on video and experiencing it in person were worlds apart. No, it was even more so.

I wonder if I can do it this year······.

* * *

New York Metropolis Entertainment.

By joining hands with John Scher, the Woodstock operation was incorporated into a division of Metropolis.

They recently launched EMTV (East Music Television), a music-specialized broadcasting station. It started out as a small channel, but it has grown with the full support of musicians in the Northeast region, including New York.

Michael Lang and John Shea continued to expand their influence by traveling back and forth to England and signing big bands such as Pink Floyd and Iron Maiden.

But the spirit of Woodstock still lived in Michael Lang’s heart. He also took great pride in having planned it himself.

“Michael, what are you thinking so deeply about?”

John Shea brought out two glasses of whiskey with ice and handed me one.

“I just suddenly remembered the old days.”

Michael took a sip of whiskey, feeling a strange sense of emptiness.

“Everything is going well these days. Our broadcasting station is also getting favorable reviews from all sorts of weekly magazines. They say we’re definitely popular in the eastern region, haha.”

“······.”

Michael was a natural-born rascal. He wanted to have a big party and use the money to travel around and meet people. But he got impatient every time James started something. He felt his heart burn every time he saw him growing at a frightening rate.

The song ‘I’d Do Anything For You’, which he recently wrote as a wedding present for his brother, is currently breaking all records on the Billboard charts. Moreover, the music video is receiving rave reviews from film critics.

‘Damn, I’m just suited to being a gangster······. If I have to go back to that life······.’

Michael chugged the rest of his whiskey and put his glass down with a thud.

“John, this won’t work with a small festival.”

“What do you mean by that all of a sudden?”

John had momentarily forgotten the day he and Michael had decided to create the biggest festival on Earth.

“We need something new. A completely new form of music, a new band, that will make the hearts of hundreds of thousands of people beat······.”

Michael shook his glass of ice and renewed his resolve.

‘I will definitely find it.’

* * *

Seeing that it was quiet outside, it seemed like everyone had gone out to learn how to swim from Hyunsang. I took a shower first and went out to the terrace on the second floor.

The May sun in California was stronger than in Korea during the summer. I dried my hair with a towel. It felt good to have the warm sun pressing down on me.

Tiring ringing ringing.

I brought my phone towards the terrace because I wanted to keep getting some sun.

“Yes, this is James Choi.”

-Hello, this is Michael Ibis.

“Mr. Ibis. It’s been a long time. Are you doing well?”

-There’s something… something. The music video you shot recently has caused quite a stir in England. Especially the director’s cut.

“Has that already been broadcast in England?”

-Yes, that too on BBC Top of the Pops.

I asked director Robert Smith to make an extended cut of the film that included the making of ‘I’d Do Anything For You’ and interviews with Mr. Gerard.

Mr. Gerard and his two sons cleared up their misunderstandings and reconciled. They also promised to keep their father’s name no matter what happened. However, I wanted to put Mr. Gerard’s mind at ease in a more certain way.

It wasn’t because I didn’t trust my two sons. I was grateful that they allowed me to film in their beautiful castle and treated us, who were the age of their grandchildren, as if we were their friends. And I wanted to share the story of this couple, who was like a fairy tale, with the world.

If the world sees the beautiful castle in the background of the music video and is moved by Mr. Gerard’s story, they will never be able to do anything about the castle.

– My wife and I can’t even count how many times we cried while watching Mr. Gerard’s interview. Edgar Allan Poe’s poetry collection is also selling like hotcakes in bookstores right now. Because of this song, there’s a real ‘Annabel Lee’ craze in England right now.

“It’s actually my favorite poem, it makes me feel good, haha.”

-Oh, James. I almost forgot the real reason I called you. I was wondering if you could come to the second festival this year.

That’s right. The Pilton Festival was first held in September last year, but I believe it has been held in early summer since the following year.

“When are you thinking about it?”

– I think June is a better time to hold a festival here in Somerset than September. And this time, David Bowie is showing interest. It’s all thanks to James’ help last year, haha.

The Pyramid Stage, which later became the symbol of the Glastonbury Festival, was David Bowie’s idea. We couldn’t miss out on the historic first Pyramid Stage.

“Yes, I will go.”

-Wow, thank you! See you next month. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions.

As expected, my blood boiled just by hearing the word festival.

* * *

“The second Pilton Festival?”

“huh.”

The three London Smog guys suddenly opened their eyes wide.

“Why? Don’t you want to go to England?”

“No, that’s not possible. But we made a promise to ourselves······.”

As the boys left for America, they each made their own pledges: Jacques said he would not return until he had bought his parents a house, Thomas said he wanted to fix his sister’s eyesight, and Joseph said he wanted to become famous and support an orphanage.

After coming to the US, they worked hard performing, writing songs, and releasing albums. However, London Smog’s debut album was not very popular in the US.

It was natural. The music of London Smog was close to Britpop and alternative rock, which had been freezing the heavy metal market since the 90s.

“Don’t you know how much London Smog’s first album sold in England? I’ll go to England this time and show you how much you earned.”

The first album is currently receiving a hot response only in the UK, but it will definitely be a success in the US in the future.

“I am not unaware of the promises each of you have made. When you go to England this time, you will return having fulfilled the promises you made to yourselves.”

“Yes······? Is that possible?”

Thomas looked incredulous. Perhaps when he went to England, he would meet his sister who had regained her normal eyesight. Now, all he had to do was find a house where the three families could live together in London.

“Guys, just believe what Brother James tells us. Even if you think it’s not true, just believe it.”

As Jacqui spoke firmly, his friends nodded.

“You will be staying in England for a while after the Pilton Festival.”

“······?”

“The London Smog UK tour dates have been set.”

* * *

In the 1970s, the disco craze began to blow in New York clubs. Many DJs held dance parties in black ghettos. DJs would play a break beat in the middle of a record, and black people would stop and start dancing to the beat that would repeat again. This form of dancing later came to be called ‘break dance.’

This practice of playing music in the middle of a song and repeating it, or of playing short utterances, began to become popular among DJs. The utterances played quickly in an instant began to be transformed into various rhythms to increase excitement, and this became the prototype of rap.

Michael Lang was exposed to a variety of music while touring New York’s clubs and Harlem.

‘The world’s greatest Michael Lang can’t be a James copycat forever. He’s going to find new music. If it doesn’t exist, he’s going to create it.’

The Sunset Strip street festival brought in a decent amount of money, but the North Line led by James Choi got the lion’s share of the media spotlight. Plus, its huge Christmas parade with military bands made national news.

Due to this, the large-scale project and special single album ‘Share Your Heart’ rose to number one on the Billboard charts in an instant.

‘We need something new. We need to create groundbreaking music that has never been heard before.’

He noticed the unique DJing and rapping of black people and thought it would be great if their music was combined with intense rock music.

But would those black people be able to compromise with white people’s music? Or, conversely, would white people be able to understand black people’s music? My mind was in turmoil.

Those black people who were DJing, rapping, and dancing couldn’t be considered musicians. This is a place where gunshots and police sirens are heard after dark. According to what I heard from the police, they are gangs and they often clash with each other.

‘Wow, if only there were white people who could make music like that······.’

Then a boy wearing a gray hoodie and a hood pulled down low approached and spoke.

“Sir, it’s going to get dark soon. You’d better get out of here quickly. I know a shortcut. Come here.”

He was clearly dressed like a black man, but judging by his mouth and chin under the shadows, he was a white boy. Thanks to this, Michael was able to leave Harlem before the sun went down.

“It’ll be okay from here on out. And sir, you could get into real trouble if you go around Harlem dressed like that. This is not a place for white people to walk around like that.”

“Thank you, kid. He’s a record producer and concert promoter. He came here because he thought, what if he could combine that kind of DJing and black music with white rock music?”

“Huh, do you think that’s possible? You’d better give up such dangerous thoughts early on.”

In the first place, releasing something great into the world is always fraught with risk.

“But why were you wandering around there dressed like a black person?”

The boy took off his hood. His eyes were unusual.

“I like their music too. They don’t let me in just because I’m white, so I’ll improve my skills someday and get recognized by black people.”

Michael liked the boy’s fierce expression. He took a business card out of his pocket and handed it to the boy.

“My name is Michael Lang, the planner for Metropolis.”

“I am MLK.”

“Is that your name?”

“It’s a rap name. It’s an acronym of Martin Luther King.”