Taiwan Rock Band

Dante had first met Jade in Taiwan in 1981. He was playing keyboards for a soft rock band that was performing at her college. Jade followed the band members out of the auditorium after the concert. The group was headed towards a noodle shop for an interview with a reporter from the college paper. The band members tended to behave like spoiled rock stars. They ignored Jade as she followed behind the group trying to chat. Dante felt bad for her. She had bigger than average bosoms on her slender frame. Those are the things that caused him to remember her a year later when they met at a Christmas party.

Dante wasn’t much of a keyboard player. The band, a fairly popular group called The Travelers, was looking for a white member to spice up their image. The lead singer had approached Dante late one night at a night market and asked him if he could play any instruments.

The group had a weekly gig at Idea House, a club in a trendy part of Taipei. The pay was decent. Dante got paid for a few TV appearances and concerts around the island, as well.

Taipei in the 1980s was the kind of place that white people, even untalented, unattractive ones, could get work in movies and advertisements. Many of the locals tended to be a fauning and obsequious towards their foreign `guests’. As a result, whites who had the inclination could walk around the island feeling more special than their abilities and accomplishments warranted.