Strike Up the Band Page #3

Did you know he was a very short man?

Oh, Willie.

Hey, Booper, who are you waving at?

Annie, you ought to strike oil any minute.

Thank you very kindly,

ladies and gentlemen.

And now, we'd like to do our special

number for you. It's called the "La Conga."

Oh, yeah, and the vocal

will be done by Miss Mary Holden.

In Havana

Every Cubana

Shakes her bandana to

The La Conga

It's a new dance

Something new to dance

Wait until you dance to

The La Conga

Wait till you hear the beat

Of the bonga

Just get that beat

And you'll get the conga

It delights you

And it excites you

And it invites you to

Do the La Conga

In Buenos Aires

In London and Paris

They tango

In old vienna

Their favorite has long been a waltz

In Guayaquil

In Madrid and Seville

They fandango

But in Havana

All the natives go

One, two, three, boom

One, two, three, boom

One, two, three, boom

One, two, three, boom

In Hava-vana

Every Cubana

Shakes her bandana to

Gotta shake around

Watch how to do

- The La Conga

- One, two, three, boom

One, two and three, boom

It's a new dance

Something new to dance

Wait until you dance to

- The La Conga

- One, two, three, boom

One, two and three, boom

- Wait till you hear the beat

- The La Conga

- Of the bonga

- Conga

Just get the beat

And you'll get the Conga

Conga

It delights you

And it excites you

- As it invites you

- To do the La Conga

Conga

Conga

Now you know

The La Conga

- one.

- Two.

- Three.

- Boom.

Yahoo! Come on!

Come on, do La Conga,

Come on, do La Conga

And now you know

The La Conga

Conga

Boom

- Say, wasn't that a swell dance last night?

- It certainly was.

You should have heard

what Mr. Judd said.

He said, "We are very proud of the

Riverwood High School's achievements."

- Oh, he's a swell guy.

- Well, did you ever think he wasn't?

Well, I always kind of thought

he was a little on the old fashioned side.

Jimmy, careful.

You've been nearly dropping that thing

since you were 6 years old.

Listen, Mom,

I've come much closer to it than that.

- Mom?

- Yes, dear?

When do mothers stop thinking about

their sons as being a little boy?

I guess never, Jimmy.

That's the fun of being a mother.

Mom, someday

whenever you want anything...

...all you're gonna have to do is just ask.

No worries, no landlords, no store.

I'm never gonna stop...

...until you have 10 days of happiness

for every one of those tough ones.

You know, Jimmy,

parents live through their children.

When you're happy, I'm happy.

When you're successful,

then I'll be a success.

Well, I guess then

I just gotta be a great man.

I always thought you would be.

But remember, a great man

is only the reflection of a great boy.

In a larger mirror.

Mom.

You're worried about me, aren't you?

Look, you don't have to worry about me.

Because a lot of times a guy

does things that people can't understand.

Things crawl around inside of him

that nobody in the world can understand.

What is it, Jimmy?

Mom, you and dad,

you wanted me to be a doctor.

And after we lost him,

you wanted it even more so.

I know what you've done,

what you've had to give up...

...to try and help me to be one like Dad.

That's why it makes it

so tough for me to tell you...

...that I can't.

I'm so sorry I could almost bawl inside.

But it's just not there.

Why, Dad loved medicine.

He loved every little part about it.

That's why he was such a fine doctor.

And the way he loved medicine,

that's the way I love music.

When I'm sitting there at the drums,

I feel as though I'm in the right place.

I feel as though I belong there.

That's what I wanna do.

You want to be a drummer

in an orchestra?

Well, that's part of music, Mom.

It's rhythm and...

It's been beating around in my mind

ever since I can remember.

I'm sure you'd understand

if you'd thought about it as much...

If you only knew, Jimmy,

how much we've thought about it.

Why, since before you were born

it started.

Your father and I prayed you'd be a boy

just for that reason.

And when you came...

...I don't believe

I've ever seen a prouder man.

And to the very end

he'd clung to that ideal for you to heal.

And that's such a wonderful thing, Jimmy,

in a world that's sick and suffering.

I know, Mom.

I've thought a lot about that too.

But it's the same way in music.

When the music's happy,

it makes the people happy.

And when it's sad, they take things

out of their lives that made them sad...

...and lose them in music.

And then they feel better afterwards.

In a way, Mom...

...isn't that sort of like healing, too?

Isn't it?

All right, Mom.

I'll be a doctor.

And I'll be a good doctor.

Jimmy?

- Yes, Mom?

- I was wrong...

...when I said that a mother never stops

thinking of her son as a little boy.

Why, there's always that time

when a mother sees her son before her...

...with a mind of his own,

a will of his own...

...and a heart of his own.

And it's then that she realizes...

...whether she's made a success or a failure

of her son as a boy.

Just now I saw it.

And I knew that I was proud of my boy.

You could be a doctor, Jimmy.

A good doctor.

I know that now.

But if deep down inside of you...

...your ambition to make people happy

with your music...

...is as sincere and honest

as I think it is...

...why, that's all that matters.

I'm satisfied.

You're the most

wonderful mom that ever lived.

But remember, son,

the top of the ladder is very appealing...

...and for my sake

be careful how you climb that ladder.

Because that's very important, too.

I will, Mom. I will.

And when I get there, nothing they could

cook up would be too good for you.

- You know what, Mom?

- What, Jimmy?

I'm gonna make you a queen.

Wait a minute, you're eating too fast.

You're gonna get sick.

- Yes, you are, you darling.

- Hey, Mary!

Mary. Hey, Mary.

Give me a mountain,

I wanna crush it into a molehill.

- Who's been feeding you vitamins?

- I was worried about Mom.

We had a long talk

and everything's fixed, like that.

That's wonderful, Jimmy.

I got the greatest news

since the invention of the wheel.

- You have?

- I'm gonna give it to you straight.

I found this in the newspaper. It's been

burning a hole in my pocket. Listen.

"Paul Whiteman, number one band leader,

now on tour...

...through the cities of the country,

decided, due to great interest...

...among the youth of America

in modern music...

...to give auditions to high school

dance orchestras in various cities."

This is the important part.

"Mr. Whiteman's final selection will be

guest-starred on his radio program...

...on June 29th from Chicago."

- That is something.

- Just think what it mould mean...

...if our band made that program.

It'd put Riverwood High School

on the front page of every newspaper.

You bet it would.

Suppose we got to Chicago on the 28th

and we gave Mr. Whiteman the audition.

We could stay until the next day

and play on the radio program.

It would cost a fortune

Rate this script:0.0 / 0 votes