Chapter 1

Jasmine stopped outside of her boss’ office and took a deep breath before she entered.  She had only been working for Island Records for a few weeks and was a little worried as to what her boss needed to talk to her about.  

The move from Nashville had been a long and complicated one and she was still not unpacked in her apartment. She had been working for a record company in Nashville, and was doing well, getting her name known and acts had begun asking for her specifically. She had been working with mainly country acts and, although she gave her very best to her clients, it wasn’t really her scene. What she really wanted to do was to produce rock bands, heavy guitars, pounding drums and some glass shattering vocals.

One Friday afternoon she was having a well earned break between recordings. She had grabbed a coffee and a copy of the trade paper, and gone to enjoy the last of the sunshine of the day. She casually flicked through the pages, not really paying any attention to what she was reading, and watched the city go about its business at the end of another busy day. Just as she was thinking of going back into the building her attention was drawn to an advertisement in the jobs section of the paper. It read;

An exciting, once in a lifetime opportunity has arisen at Island Records. We are looking for a recording engineer with at least 3 years’ experience to come join our team in New York City. You will be working with the best people and bands in the industry and will be initially responsible for our rock bands. 

Jasmine’s eyes widened. It was exactly what she had been looking for, but could she really pack up and leave everything she knew behind, and move to a very large, strange city where she knew no one?

The answer, after a lot of deliberation and daydreaming had been yes, and she sent in her application, not really expecting to get any further. A week later, however, an envelope was waiting for her on the mat when she came home from work; It invited her for an interview the following Monday. She had hurriedly booked a plane ticket and found a cheap hotel to stay in overnight, and had spent the next two days fretting over what to wear, she was desperate for the job and wanted to give herself the best possible chance.

The interview itself had been painless, just a chat about her experiences and her musical interests, and then a tour of the studios and a practical activity that was designed to show off what she could do. She had arrived back in Nashville happy with her performance, but not convinced it was enough to capture her dream job. She waited patiently to hear something but when, by Friday, she had heard nothing, she assumed she had not been successful and chalked it up to experience.

She was in the middle of recording a track for an up and coming country group on Monday when her cell phone buzzed in her pocket. She called through to the booth and told the girls to take a breather, then answered the still buzzing phone.

“Hello, Jasmine Moore speaking.”

“Hi Jasmine, it’s Pete Armstrong from Island Records here. We met at your interview last week.”

“Uh, hi. What can I do for you?”

“Well Miss Moore, I think it’s more like what I can do for you. I’m so sorry that it took us so long to get back to you, you know how hectic things can be, but we’d like to offer you the position. You really impressed us and your knowledge of the music industry is remarkable. We think that with your interest in rock music and your experience with country, you will be a great addition to our team.”

Jasmine had switched off as soon as she heard the word sorry. Her heart sank and she was about to thank him for calling to let her know, when she tuned back in and heard ‘addition to our team’,

“Could you repeat that last part please?” she asked,

“We think that with your interest in rock music and your experience with country, you will be a great addition to our team.”

Jasmine very nearly dropped the phone at hearing his words but somehow managed to contain the growing euphoria inside her long enough to find out that all the details were in the mail and that she should be receiving them in a day or two. She thanked Mr. Armstrong, and he welcomed her to Island, and then rang off.

That night she partied until the small hours with her friends and had been full with so much nervous energy that she had hardly needed any alcohol to get her in the party mood.

A month later and Jasmine had packed up her belongings, handed the keys to her apartment back to her landlord, and had made the solo road trip from Tennessee to New Jersey, where the company had found her a small but still nice apartment in Woodbridge. She had smiled when she found out where she was to be living, knowing that it had once been home to rock royalty. “Not a bad place to start” she thought, “It served Richie Sambora well, look where he is now.”

Jasmine walked the short distance to Pete Armstrong’s office, wondering what he wanted to talk to her about, and hoping she hadn’t messed up so soon into her new job. She knocked softly on the door and pushed it open when the voice inside beckoned her in.

“Hello Jasmine, take a seat. I won’t keep you long but there is something we need to discuss.”  

As Jasmine shifted in her seat she nodded her head nervously as he continued;

“Don’t look so worried Jasmine, you’re not in any trouble. In fact it’s the complete opposite. It seems that people are starting to realize the excellent work you are putting in and they want you to work with them. It appears your reputation precedes you.  This is going to be your first major job for us and I have the faith that you will do really well and learn a lot from this group.  Right now they are setting up in studio 1 and they would like it if you were to start today. They’re only here for a few weeks while their own studio goes through a refit and then you’ll be required to work from there. They are working on a major new record and could use a couple extra hands. They already have a very accomplished recording and sound team but want a fresh pair of ears on the team. Will you do it?”

Jasmine released a breath of relief as she realized she wasn’t in any trouble. She thought about what had been said, her curiosity spiked by the description given by Pete. She was both apprehensive about working with a major group, but also elated that she had been trusted with the responsibility so early into her career at Island. She took a breath and said, 

“Of course, you know I am up for anything.  I just hope I can live up to their, and your, expectations.”

“I’m sure you will. They’re very experienced at what they do, and have high standards, but they are also one of the best teams you could learn from. Take everything in Jasmine, you will learn a lot from them, both about the industry and the job you already do so well.”

Jasmine got up from her seat and headed for her door when a thought crossed her mind. She turned back towards her boss and asked,

 “I guess I should know who they are, shouldn’t I?”

Pete chuckled, 

“You’ll find out soon enough. Have a good day Jasmine, pop your head in before you leave for the day and we’ll talk more.”

Jasmine walked out of her boss' office, unaware of how much her life was about to change, with a huge grin on her face and a spring in her step. She pulled herself taller and started to make her way to the main studio with a happy swagger.  As she approached she heard a familiar sound coming from within it, guitars, drums and a set of keys being played with vigor. Her heart rate began to quicken as she ran through all the major groups she could think of that used those instruments. She refused to let herself think that it was Bon Jovi but hoped that it would be someone she was already a fan of. A second dream come true in 6 months would have been a real boost to an already growing realization that she had made the right choice to move north. She stopped right outside the door to the studio, took a deep breath and reached for the handle. 

Just then she heard footsteps coming towards her and before she could turn around to see who it was she heard a very familiar, deep velvety voice say, 

"Hey darlin' are you Jasmine?"