“This coming weekend,” Jake said. “Starting on the Friday commute hours.”
“Absolutely,” Doolittle said.
“We just need to make some phone calls,” Crow said.
“Okay then,” Jake said. “I guess that’s that then.”
“There is one other subject we would like to talk about,” Crow said. “If it’s okay?”
“That depends on what you want to talk about,” Jake said.
“We have come to the understanding that you have been working in your studio rather hard this last month,” Crow said.
Jake wondered who had told them that. Certainly, none of the band members had. But then the National suits always seemed to be able to pick up information by one means or another. “I have been,” he said carefully. “What of it?”
“We were just wondering what you’re working on,” Crow said. “Is it a new Brainwash CD? Because if it is, it’s never too early to start talking about a deal. We would certainly be interested in coming to a deal on a Brainwash tour.”
“There is a lot of money to be made from that group,” Doolittle said. “Even though their last CD did not sell as well, that first CD put them on the public’s radar in an impressive way.”
“Brainwash,” Jake said, as if pondering the subject. “The band you rejected out of hand without even listening to their demo when I first brought them to your attention. So, I went ahead and signed them myself and produced their first CD. And that CD has now sold, as of the last quarterly report, more than five million copies.”
“Exactly!” Crow said excitedly. “That’s what makes this so lucrative. They are still getting frequent airplay for most of the tunes from that first CD. They play the tunes from Brainwash more than they do for Brainwash II!”
This was true information. Though Brainwash II was not a failure or a money-loser, only three of the tunes from it had charted and it had only sold a million and half copies at this point. Enough to make a nice profit for everyone involved, but not nearly as much as Jake had hoped for and a mere pittance compared to their first CD. And again, he blamed himself for this. He had not been as involved as he should have been in the production of the CD. The Nerdlys had done their best, but it took Jake’s input to make things shine.
“Well, sorry to burst your bubbles,” Jake said, “but we’re not working on new Brainwash just yet.”
“You’re not?” asked Crow. “Why the hell not?”
Jake thought about telling him it was none of his goddamn business, but then decided that the truth was not really confidential information. “They can only record over the summer,” he told them. “They’re teachers. They have to work during the rest of the year.”
Crow and Doolittle were appalled by this. “They’re still working as teachers?” he asked. “What in the world for? Aren’t they earning sufficient royalty money to quit those jobs?”
“Of course they are,” Jake said. “KVA gave them a great first-time contract that actually guaranteed they would make money as long as they sold a hundred thousand or so—unlike what other labels do, you know. They’re rolling in the dough—as least from the perspective of middle-class school teachers who live in Rhode Island. And Stephanie Zool—she’s the lead guitarist...”
“The lesbian, right?” Crow asked.
“Right,” Jake said slowly. “Anyway, she quit the teaching gig and is doing fine. The others though ... they just can’t seem to bring themselves to do it. Maybe if Brainwash II would’ve sold a little better, they might have, but they don’t consider themselves financially secure enough to make the leap just yet.”
“That’s ludicrous,” Doolittle opined.
Jake shrugged. “It’s their decision. I plan to bring them back out for the summer and see what we can come up with then.”
“Then what are you working on?” Crow asked. “Another solo CD?”
Again, though Jake’s instinct was to keep as much information as possible out of the hands of these suits, a little reflection made him realize that telling the truth might actually help his cause later on. “That’s right,” he told them. “A solo CD for me, and we’re also working on the next V-tach CD at the same time.”
“V-tach, huh?” Crow said. “There’s another group that did quite well under your label, Jake.”
“We tried to sign them back when we heard how well they were doing in the club scene,” Doolittle said. “We contacted Pauline about them, in fact. And then a month later, you signed them instead.”
“That is correct,” Jake said. “Pauline saw their potential, as did I when I gave them a good listen. And we gave them a fair contract, unlike what you would have signed them to. They are all making pretty good money now as well. And they, unlike Brainwash, have all quit their day jobs.”
“Don’t you think it was a bit unethical for Pauline to not report our offer to them before you signed them?” asked Doolittle.
Jake laughed. “You are lecturing me about ethics? Seriously? That’s like having Slick Willie lecture someone on the virtues of marital fidelity.”
“That is uncalled for,” Doolittle said with a pout.
“Not really,” Jake said.
“In any case,” Crow said, “we are not ready to consider a touring agreement for V-tach just yet. We’ll have to see how their next CD goes first. They do not have quite enough of a catalogue to justify one hundred dollar a ticket sales just yet.”
“I wasn’t ready to consider a touring agreement either,” Jake said.
“Then we’re on the same page,” Doolittle said. “Let’s talk about you now, Jake.”
“Talk about what?” he asked.
“A touring agreement for you once your next CD is released,” he said.
“I’m not ready to talk touring yet,” Jake said. “We’re still in the beginning stages of the process. And right about the time that my CD will be ready for release, it will be time for Brainwash to come into the studio.”
“So?” Crow said. “You don’t have to be there to supervise Brainwash, do you?”
“Actually, I do,” Jake said. “I’m the producer.”
“We can lend you one of our producers,” Doolittle told him. “We’ll give you the best we have.”
“Uh ... no thanks,” Jake said. “I prefer to do it myself.”
“There is a strong market for you if you went out on tour, Jake,” Crow said. “Very strong. Especially if you perform Intemperance material as part of the set.”
“I will perform no Intemperance material as part of a solo set,” Jake said firmly.
“But we own the rights,” Crow said. “We wouldn’t charge you for it. It would be part of the deal.”
“Not going to happen,” Jake said.
“All right, all right,” Doolittle said. “Thought we’d give it a shot. But there is still considerable money to be make from a solo tour. After your next release, you’ll have four CDs worth of material.”
“I’m aware of how many CDs I have put out,” Jake said.
“That is enough for a two- and a half-hour set, like what we have Celia on,” Crow said. “We won’t be able to charge quite as much as Celia does if you’re not doing Intemperance material, but we could easily charge what Matt is charging. A hundred dollars a ticket for the cheap seats. You’ll sell out the venues, Jake. Have no doubt about that.”
“I don’t have any doubt about that,” Jake said. “I’m also not going to commit to anything right here and right now. So, this discussion is actually kind of pointless.”
“Just think it over, Jake,” Crow told him. “Nobody is asking you to sign anything right now. We just want you to think it over.”