“Alright, guys,” Chris Sabec huddled up the Hanson family, “this is it.”
Today, they were recording the last song. They had decided that they would record probably the most sentimental song that they had ever written besides, “With You In Your Dreams.” It was called, “A Song To Sing.” This song was about being lonely and just looking for a shoulder to cry on, or someone to rely on when you thought that there was nowhere else to turn. Even though it was the most sad, it probably hit the closest to home for all the Hanson brothers.
“I can’t believe we actually did it,” Zac seemed in somewhat awe of this accomplishment.
“Me neither,” Tay agreed.
“Same,” Ike chimed in.
“We need you to go first, Tay,” Chris ordered the sixteen-year-old. “The first verse. We are recording this song in exact order.”
“Gotcha,” Tay began into the recording room without command.
Almost mechanically, Tay put on the earphones, and stood in front of the mic, telling everyone, “It’s on your count.”
That meant that when they counted off, Tay would be more than ready to deliver his performance. Tay was always the first to be ready when it came to recording their music.
“One, and…two, and…three,” Chris gave the signal for Tay to go.
“Goodbye…four-leaf clovers. Hello…gone awry. Don’t cry…the fight ain’t over. Unless, you let it pass you by. I’m lookin’ for a song to sing. I’m lookin’ for a friend…to borrow. I’m lookin’ for my radio…so I might find a heart to follow. I’ve never been just longin’…for your lovin’. I’ve never been just wearin’ down to…nothin’. I’ve never been just lookin’ for a…reason…so maybe you’d be thinkin’ of me. So, maybe you’d be thinkin’ of…me,” the words flowed from Taylor’s parted lips like magic that had been waiting to be released. He could have never sang that piece more perfectly.
As the music stopped, you could hear the clapping and whistling of Taylor’s management and family, “That was perfect, Tay! Perfect!”
Taylor carefully released the earphones from his head and set them down, “Thanks, guys…”
He seemed kind of shy about his more than perfect performance on “A Song To Sing.” He was glad that the others liked it, though. Poor Tay blushed as his family and management raved about how the song was coming along.
“Ike,” called Chris, “we need you up for the back-up vocals for the chorus. Zac, we’ll add you in a second.”
“Okay,” Zac nodded, as Ike headed into the recording room.
“Almost done…,” Ike muttered to himself, as he stuck the earphones on his head. “Just a couple more hours, and then, it is finally over…” ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Tay, I think we should do that last part one more time,” argued Zac, Taylor’s little brother.
“Actually, so do I,” he agreed, “I think think I was a little off on that last note.”
Talking into the mic, Ike asked Mark, “Hey, can we do the very last part over? Tay’s a little off.”
“Sure,” Mark Hudson, their co-producer was ready for anything on their last day of recording, “Just tell me when you’re gonna go.”
For the last time, Tay put on his earphones as his walked out of the recording room, Taylor sighed, “I’m ready.”
It seemed almost magical when the music started, and Tay began to sing the ending chorus for the final time, “I’m lookin’ for a friend…to borrow. I’m lookin’ for my radio…so I might find a heart to follow. I’ve never been just longin’…for your lovin’. I’ve never been just wearin’ down to…nothin’. I’ve never been just lookin’ for a…reason…so maybe you’d be thinkin’ of me… you’d be thinkin’ of…me…”
Taylor pulled away from the microphone, extremely slow, and a hush came over the studio. They knew that they had done it. It was finally over. The CD was finally finished, and all that was left was the mixing, which would be taking place in three weeks in Miami. The Hanson family couldn’t wait.
He walked into the part of the studio that held his family, “What do you think? Are we done, guys?”
“We’re done, Tay,” Mark informed Taylor.
Suddenly, everyone burst into excitement, and started hugging each other and screaming. The boys could hardly believe that they were actually doing this.
Taylor hugged Zac, “We did it! It’s over! We can go home!”
“Well, not quite yet,” Zac pointed out, “But we’re almost there!”
“I know,” Ike joined the conversation, “I can’t wait to go home, back in Tulsa, and be able to sleep in my own bed!”
That was definitely one of the things that the Hanson brothers missed the most…their own beds. Sure, L.A. was their “home away from home”. But nothing could compare to the comfort of their Tulsa home.
“We are gonna start packing next week, guys,” Mr. Hanson reminded everyone. “Don’t forget.”
“We won’t,” everyone replied in unison.
They had loved working on the CD, it was an experience they would never forget, but they knew when it was time to go home. It was definitely time to go home, now. They had left so many things, so many people, so many memories behind in Tulsa.
“Well, guys,” Mark started to say, “it was a pleasure working with you, again. I know we’ll meet again, someday. Now, go home and get some rest. You really need it.”
“Thank you so much, Mark,” Mrs. Hanson said.
“Yeah, thanks, Mark,” Ike jumped in.
“Thanks, Mark,” smiled Taylor. “Give us a call before we leave for Miami.” ,p> “Yeah, call us!” enthusiastically, Zac added.
“Will do,” Mr. Hudson promised the Hanson family, “Now go home and sleep!”
As the Hanson family gathered their things, it was like their lives had changed. They all felt really refreshed for some reason. The outcome of the CD depended on the sales and how the fans perceived the new sound. But, like the three brothers always said, “You can’t expect fame, only hope for it.” There was going to be a lot of “hoping” going on around the release time of the CD. Maybe their wish would come true. Who knew?
Main Page
Chapter 25- Patches
Chapter 27- Packing Away the Memories
Tulsa's Long Road Home
I Thought I Could Trust You
