Earlier this summer Green Shoe Studio launched its singer-songwriter contest
It's a contest that someone can upload a video on to YouTube and send us the link.
we thought it was a good way that we could really tie into the local community
and really get a feel for the music that's going on around here.
But we didn't quite expect an entry like Fred's.
How did I meet Lorraine?
She was a car hop at the A & W root beer stand in this period.
And she brought the trays to the car and...
that was in... about 1938.
We dated for two years. Then we married.
June 26th have been our 73rd anniversary.
She gave me 75 years of her life.
Well, she was...
just the prettiest girl I ever saw.
She was real timid like and...
I just fell in love with her right there.
What made Fred's entry so special to us
was, for number one, it's an online singer-songwriter contest.
People are supposed to upload their videos
but instead of a video we received a very large manilla envelope
titled Green Shoe Studio Singer Songwriter contest.
Well, I was excited to see what it was and open it up and
lo and behold it was a letter from a 96-year-old man who said "I've written a song for my wife".
He said on the, you know, in the letter that he was not a musician
and that said he was not actually a very good singer.
In fact, on the actual envelope itself it says
"PS: I don't sing. I would scare people... haha".
So, it's a letter from this 96-year-old man, he sounds like a sweet guy.
But as I am reading through the letter,
I begin to realize that his wife has just passed away
a month earlier. And so
having known that I started reading through the song and he titled it "Sweet Lorraine"
and listening to the lyrics and the passion behind the lyrics
and the letter he sent us it was just so heartwarming.
Well,
after she passed away
I was just sitting in the front room one evening all by myself
and it just come right to me almost
and I just kept humming it and singing it and that
and that's how I come to write it. Just seemed like this just fit her.
Green Shoe Studio decided to take Fred's lyrics
and bring them to life. We decided to put it to professional music,
professionally record it. We wanted to have a professional singer sing on the song.
You know, our mission here at Green Shoe studio is to change our community one dream at a time.
and what a better way to do it?
Well, I saw Jacobs's ad in the paper
About the contest that he was going to put on
so I just thought, "Oh shoot, I'll just write a letter and send it all in".
And, you know, never thinking that I'd get an answer or something but then...
He called one day and I... I was surprised!
We decided we're going to do this just by reading a letter without even meeting Fred
So, I called him up one day and said
"Fred, we were touched by your story. Now it didn't meet the criteria of our
singer-songwriter contest but we are going to do something even better for you,
said we're gonna record your song. We're gonna
have professionals to do this, we're gonna have a professional take so that, you know,
it's not just lyrics anymore. It's bringing it to life
and he goes all that "It's just so great but, you know, how much is that going to cost?
I don't have money".
And I said "Fred you misunderstand me. We're going to do all this for free".
And he began to cry on the phone and say "why would you do this for me?"
And I said to Fred "It's not...
It's not that we're doing this for you. We're doing this together
because music means so much to so many people and
your song touched us and we feel like this is the best way to do this".
(singing) Oh, Sweet Lorraine, I wish we could do the good times all over again.
Oh, Sweet Lorraine, life only goes around once but never again.
Oh, Sweet Lorraine, I wish we could do the good times all over again.
The good times all over again.
But the memories will always linger on.
Oh, Sweet Lorraine, the memories will always linger on.
Very Cool!
I liked that.
I probably spent more time with his song
that I have with most other people's songs.
To be honest, I was a little nervous taking it to him.
I've been singer and songwriter for years but,
I must admit, this is the first time in probably 10 years I've actually been nervous
giving someone a song that we have taken
because it meant so much to him and meant so much to me.
I hope you like it.
And what I said, it's not done yet but I will let you hear it. Ok?
Tell me when you're ready.
Yeah, ok
Oh, Sweet Lorraine...
I wish we could do all the good times over again.
Oh, Sweet Lorraine...
life only goes around once but never again.
Oh, Sweet Lorraine...
I wish we could do all the good times over again...
The good times, the good times, the good times all over again...
But the memories always linger on,
Oh, Sweet Lorraine, that I don't want to move on
all the memories always linger on,
Oh, Sweet Lorraine, that's why I wrote you this song.
Oh, Sweet Lorraine...
I wish we could do all the good times over again.
Oh, Sweet Lorraine...
Life only goes around once but never again.
Oh, Sweet Lorraine...
I wish we could do all the good times over again.
The good times, the good times, all the good times, all over again...
Wonderful!
Good!
This is wonderful!
Good. I'm glad you like it. So glad you like it.
It's wonderful!
I was a wonderful seventy-five years.
I just often think that kinda unreal.
Dream or something but,
but it was real. That's all I can say... real
I really, really miss her. Just don't seem right.
Just like a dream...