| Trio |
From the East we are kings and we follow the sound
Of the music that plays in our heads.
Where it leads, gifts we'll bring over water and ground
To the place where the music has led. |
| Trio |
A young boy we are seeking
Who'll change the course of the land.
This young lad with his music
Will form the best Rock and Roll band |
| Ike |
I am Ike, what I like is the sound of the drums
And the horns keep me marching along.
I bring praise, holidays, people cheer as I come
And the music keeps me going strong. |
| Trio |
A young boy we are seeking
Who'll change the course of the land.
This young lad with his music
Will form the best Rock and Roll band |
| Bert |
I am Bert, I'm not hurt by the ultimate power
That is housed in this small baby's brain.
He's so smart from the start, that within the past hour
He's invented plutonium rain. |
| Trio |
A young boy we are seeking
Who'll change the course of the land.
This young lad with his music
Will form the best Rock and Roll band |
| Chuck |
Chuck's my name, I have reigned for the last fifty years
But it looks like I'll have to step down
Music's changed, rearranged, but I'm shedding no tears.
A new king has been born in this town. |
| Trio |
A young boy we are seeking
Who'll change the course of the land.
This young lad with his music
Will form the best Rock and Roll band |
The trio now hums a couple of verses and gradually fades out. Mr. Mall goes over and greets each of them enthusiastically.
| Father | Welcome, welcome! What brings you to our small town? |
| Ike | We came in answer to the call of the child. |
| Father | He's not talking now. Could be a loss for words. |
| Ike | There were no words, just that strange music in my head. |
| Chuck | Yes, unlike anything I've ever written. |
| Ike & Bert | Yes, unlike anything Ives' ever written. |
| Chuck | I've been called ahead of my time, but so is this boy. |
| Doctor | That's not so. Mrs. Mall carried him for a full nine months. |
| Chuck | coldly That's not what I meant. Let's see now.... Oh, yes, the music. The intertwining melodies and the strong bass line give it a character all its own. |
| Bert | What intrigues me is the mathematical complexity of the rhythm. And the harmonic frequencies function on the mind in a most unusual way. |
| Father | Could you put that in words that I could understand? |
| Bert | I liked it. That's why I came. |
| Mother | But what has all this got to do with our little baby? |
| Ike | We feel that this drawing power of his brought us here for a special purpose. |
| Chuck | That's right. We have great hopes for this young lad. Perhaps a diplomat, or a humanitarian. He is special indeed. |
| Ike | One of these days, we will all be gone, but your son will be here to see that the world stays in shape. |
| Father | What are you going to do with him? You're not going to take him away from us, are you? |
| Bert | No, no, that's not what we had in mind. We came now to offer gifts of goodwill. (proudly) I have been called the smartest living man, but that was as of yesterday. Today we have a new genius in our midst: this boy. Therefore, I bring as my gift an honorary doctorate from the local university. Since I didn't receive my Ph.D. until I was a young man, this should surely be an honor. |
| Chuck | As my gift, I've brought a selection from my music library which has never been published or performed. Perhaps in the quest for a perfect musical form, he can find direction in my work. But be careful, let him do nothing with it for at least ten years. (to baby) One day you'll hear the bells from the steeples, and rock will shout from the mountains! |
| Ike | I bring to you this day two gifts, although I appear to have none. This morning I sent to the United States Printing Office the plans for a new commemorative stamp to be issued next month in honor of today. |
At this point, I is exuberant, apparently understanding all that has gone on, and lets out a little laugh.