WEBVTT 00:00:02.131 --> 00:00:06.317 Earlier this summer Green Shoe Studio launched its singer-songwriter contest 00:00:06.317 --> 00:00:10.367 It's a contest that someone can upload a video on to YouTube and send us the link. 00:00:10.367 --> 00:00:14.704 we thought it was a good way that we could really tie into the local community 00:00:14.704 --> 00:00:17.924 and really get a feel for the music that's going on around here. 00:00:17.924 --> 00:00:21.574 But we didn't quite expect an entry like Fred's. 00:00:49.581 --> 00:00:51.162 How did I meet Lorraine? 00:00:51.162 --> 00:00:56.406 She was a car hop at the A & W root beer stand in this period. 00:00:56.406 --> 00:00:59.312 And she brought the trays to the car and... 00:00:59.312 --> 00:01:04.118 that was in... about 1938. 00:01:04.518 --> 00:01:08.310 We dated for two years. Then we married. 00:01:08.310 --> 00:01:11.858 June 26th have been our 73rd anniversary. 00:01:11.858 --> 00:01:15.293 She gave me 75 years of her life. 00:01:17.443 --> 00:01:18.695 Well, she was... 00:01:19.801 --> 00:01:22.934 just the prettiest girl I ever saw. 00:01:23.933 --> 00:01:27.102 She was real timid like and... 00:01:29.094 --> 00:01:32.978 I just fell in love with her right there. 00:01:35.858 --> 00:01:39.205 What made Fred's entry so special to us 00:01:39.621 --> 00:01:43.139 was, for number one, it's an online singer-songwriter contest. 00:01:43.139 --> 00:01:45.132 People are supposed to upload their videos 00:01:45.132 --> 00:01:48.964 but instead of a video we received a very large manilla envelope 00:01:48.964 --> 00:01:52.433 titled Green Shoe Studio Singer Songwriter contest. 00:01:52.955 --> 00:01:55.581 Well, I was excited to see what it was and open it up and 00:01:55.581 --> 00:02:00.767 lo and behold it was a letter from a 96-year-old man who said "I've written a song for my wife". 00:02:01.011 --> 00:02:04.405 He said on the, you know, in the letter that he was not a musician 00:02:04.405 --> 00:02:07.246 and that said he was not actually a very good singer. 00:02:07.246 --> 00:02:12.044 In fact, on the actual envelope itself it says 00:02:13.074 --> 00:02:17.118 "PS: I don't sing. I would scare people... haha". 00:02:17.118 --> 00:02:20.963 So, it's a letter from this 96-year-old man, he sounds like a sweet guy. 00:02:20.963 --> 00:02:23.892 But as I am reading through the letter, 00:02:24.353 --> 00:02:27.254 I begin to realize that his wife has just passed away 00:02:27.422 --> 00:02:30.735 a month earlier. And so 00:02:30.735 --> 00:02:35.593 having known that I started reading through the song and he titled it "Sweet Lorraine" 00:02:35.593 --> 00:02:39.394 and listening to the lyrics and the passion behind the lyrics 00:02:39.394 --> 00:02:43.767 and the letter he sent us it was just so heartwarming. 00:02:44.443 --> 00:02:45.373 Well, 00:02:47.342 --> 00:02:49.481 after she passed away 00:02:49.957 --> 00:02:53.206 I was just sitting in the front room one evening all by myself 00:02:53.206 --> 00:02:56.840 and it just come right to me almost 00:02:56.840 --> 00:02:59.612 and I just kept humming it and singing it and that 00:02:59.612 --> 00:03:03.020 and that's how I come to write it. Just seemed like this just fit her. 00:03:03.696 --> 00:03:06.370 Green Shoe Studio decided to take Fred's lyrics 00:03:06.370 --> 00:03:10.797 and bring them to life. We decided to put it to professional music, 00:03:10.797 --> 00:03:16.579 professionally record it. We wanted to have a professional singer sing on the song. 00:03:16.579 --> 00:03:21.210 You know, our mission here at Green Shoe studio is to change our community one dream at a time. 00:03:21.210 --> 00:03:23.032 and what a better way to do it? 00:03:23.032 --> 00:03:29.590 Well, I saw Jacobs's ad in the paper 00:03:29.590 --> 00:03:32.880 About the contest that he was going to put on 00:03:33.172 --> 00:03:38.790 so I just thought, "Oh shoot, I'll just write a letter and send it all in". 00:03:38.790 --> 00:03:44.861 And, you know, never thinking that I'd get an answer or something but then... 00:03:45.399 --> 00:03:48.455 He called one day and I... I was surprised! 00:03:48.732 --> 00:03:53.116 We decided we're going to do this just by reading a letter without even meeting Fred 00:03:53.141 --> 00:03:56.445 So, I called him up one day and said 00:03:56.445 --> 00:04:01.119 "Fred, we were touched by your story. Now it didn't meet the criteria of our 00:04:01.119 --> 00:04:04.645 singer-songwriter contest but we are going to do something even better for you, 00:04:04.645 --> 00:04:07.548 said we're gonna record your song. We're gonna 00:04:07.548 --> 00:04:11.687 have professionals to do this, we're gonna have a professional take so that, you know, 00:04:11.687 --> 00:04:14.734 it's not just lyrics anymore. It's bringing it to life 00:04:14.734 --> 00:04:18.445 and he goes all that "It's just so great but, you know, how much is that going to cost? 00:04:18.445 --> 00:04:19.686 I don't have money". NOTE Paragraph 00:04:19.686 --> 00:04:23.209 And I said "Fred you misunderstand me. We're going to do all this for free". 00:04:23.224 --> 00:04:26.764 And he began to cry on the phone and say "why would you do this for me?" 00:04:26.764 --> 00:04:30.455 And I said to Fred "It's not... 00:04:30.455 --> 00:04:33.757 It's not that we're doing this for you. We're doing this together 00:04:33.757 --> 00:04:37.253 because music means so much to so many people and 00:04:37.253 --> 00:04:42.975 your song touched us and we feel like this is the best way to do this". 00:04:43.174 --> 00:04:49.519 (singing) Oh, Sweet Lorraine, I wish we could do the good times all over again. 00:04:49.519 --> 00:04:55.536 Oh, Sweet Lorraine, life only goes around once but never again. 00:04:55.536 --> 00:05:01.839 Oh, Sweet Lorraine, I wish we could do the good times all over again. 00:05:01.839 --> 00:05:04.269 The good times all over again. 00:05:04.269 --> 00:05:08.026 But the memories will always linger on. 00:05:08.026 --> 00:05:14.203 Oh, Sweet Lorraine, the memories will always linger on. 00:05:15.017 --> 00:05:16.668 Very Cool! 00:05:16.668 --> 00:05:18.481 I liked that. 00:05:19.895 --> 00:05:23.178 I probably spent more time with his song 00:05:23.178 --> 00:05:25.813 that I have with most other people's songs. 00:05:26.042 --> 00:05:28.777 To be honest, I was a little nervous taking it to him. 00:05:28.777 --> 00:05:32.984 I've been singer and songwriter for years but, 00:05:32.984 --> 00:05:36.372 I must admit, this is the first time in probably 10 years I've actually been nervous 00:05:36.372 --> 00:05:38.866 giving someone a song that we have taken 00:05:38.866 --> 00:05:42.282 because it meant so much to him and meant so much to me. 00:05:44.081 --> 00:05:45.877 I hope you like it. 00:05:46.553 --> 00:05:51.053 And what I said, it's not done yet but I will let you hear it. Ok? 00:05:51.053 --> 00:05:52.214 Tell me when you're ready. 00:05:52.214 --> 00:05:53.722 Yeah, ok 00:06:03.982 --> 00:06:08.042 Oh, Sweet Lorraine... 00:06:08.304 --> 00:06:13.044 I wish we could do all the good times over again. 00:06:13.044 --> 00:06:16.305 Oh, Sweet Lorraine... 00:06:16.305 --> 00:06:21.584 life only goes around once but never again. 00:06:21.584 --> 00:06:24.755 Oh, Sweet Lorraine... 00:06:24.755 --> 00:06:29.987 I wish we could do all the good times over again... 00:06:29.987 --> 00:06:38.392 The good times, the good times, the good times all over again... 00:06:38.392 --> 00:06:49.481 The good times, the good times, the good times all over again... 00:06:49.481 --> 00:06:53.811 But the memories always linger on, 00:06:53.811 --> 00:06:57.773 Oh, Sweet Lorraine, that I don't want to move on 00:06:57.773 --> 00:07:01.942 all the memories always linger on, 00:07:01.942 --> 00:07:08.941 Oh, Sweet Lorraine, that's why I wrote you this song. 00:07:10.034 --> 00:07:14.110 Oh, Sweet Lorraine... 00:07:14.130 --> 00:07:19.018 I wish we could do all the good times over again. 00:07:19.018 --> 00:07:22.057 Oh, Sweet Lorraine... 00:07:22.319 --> 00:07:27.203 Life only goes around once but never again. 00:07:27.203 --> 00:07:30.421 Oh, Sweet Lorraine... 00:07:30.421 --> 00:07:35.878 I wish we could do all the good times over again. 00:07:35.878 --> 00:07:50.217 The good times, the good times, all the good times, all over again... 00:07:53.097 --> 00:07:54.501 Wonderful! 00:07:54.501 --> 00:07:54.909 Good! 00:07:54.909 --> 00:07:55.780 This is wonderful! 00:07:55.780 --> 00:07:59.457 Good. I'm glad you like it. So glad you like it. 00:07:59.457 --> 00:08:01.165 It's wonderful! 00:08:02.590 --> 00:08:05.970 I was a wonderful seventy-five years. 00:08:05.970 --> 00:08:10.705 I just often think that kinda unreal. 00:08:10.705 --> 00:08:13.646 Dream or something but, 00:08:14.152 --> 00:08:20.039 but it was real. That's all I can say... real 00:08:25.495 --> 00:08:28.805 I really, really miss her. Just don't seem right. 00:08:28.805 --> 00:08:31.130 Just like a dream...