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Earlier this summer Green Shoe Studio launched it's singer-songwriter contest

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It's a contest that someone can upload a video on to Youtube and send us the link

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We felt it was a good way that we could really tie into the local community

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and really get a feel for the music that's going on around here

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But we didn't quite expect an entry like Fred's.

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" A Letter From Fred"

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How did I meet Lorraine?

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She was a car hop at the A&W root beer stand

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She brought the trays to the car and that

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That was in 1938

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We dated for two years than we married

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June 26 have been our 73rd anniversary

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She gave me 75 years of her life

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Well, she was...

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just prettiest girl ever saw

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She was real timid like and

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I just fell inlove with her right there

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What made Fred's entry so special to us

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Was, for number one, it's an online singer-songwriter contest people are supposed to upload their videos

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but instead of a video, we've received a very large manila envelope

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titled Green Shoes Studio Singer Songwriter Contest

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Well I was excited to see what it was and opened it up

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and behold it was a letter from a 96 years old man who said "I've written a song for my wife"

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He said on the, you know, in the letter that he was not a musician

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and that he was not actually a very good singer, in fact, on the actual envelope itself

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it says

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"PS - I don't sing, I would scare people, ahah"

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So its a letter from this 96 years old man, he sounds like a sweet guy

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But as I'm reading through the letter

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I begin to realize that his wife just passed away

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A month earlier and so

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Having known that I started reading through the song and he titled it "Sweet Lorraine"

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And listening to the lyrics and passion behind the lyrics ant the letter he sent us

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It was just so heartwarming

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Well,

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After she passed away

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I was just sitting in the front room one evening all by myself

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And it just come right to me almost

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and I just kept humming it and singing it and that

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and that's how I came to write it, just seemed like it just fit her

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Green Shoe Studio decided to take Fred's lyrics

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and bring them to life

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We decided to put it to professional music

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professionally record it.

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We wanted to have a professional singer sing on the song.

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You know, our mission here at Green Shoe Studio is to change our community one dream at a time

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and what a better way to do it?

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Well, I saw Jacob's add in the paper

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About the contest he was going to put on

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So I just thought "Oh shoot, I'll just

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write a letter and send it all in, you know, never thinking that I'd get

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an answer or something but then he

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called one day and I was surprised

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We decided we were going to do this just by reading a letter without even meeting Fred.

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So I called him one day and said "Fred, we were touched by your story

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Now, it didn't meet the criteria of our singer-songwriter contest but we're going to do something even better for you

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So we're going to record your song, we're going to have professionals do this

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We're going to have a professional take so that, you know

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It's not just the lyrics anymore, it's bringing it to life

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and he goes "ah, it's just so great, but you know, how much is that going to cos?"

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"Now I don't have any money"

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And I said "Fred, you misunderstand me, we are going to do all this for free"

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And he began to cry on the phone and said "why would you do this for me?"

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And I said to Fred "it's not we're doing this for you, we're doing this together

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because music means so much to so many people and your song has touched us

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and we feel this is the best way to do this

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(singing "Sweet Lorraine")

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I Probably spent more time with his song than I have with other peoples songs

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To be honest, I was a little nervous taking it to him

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I've been a singer and a songwriter for years

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But, this was about the first time in probably ten years I've actually been nervous

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giving someone a song

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we've taken the time because it meant so much to him it meant so much to me

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I hope you like it

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and like I said it's not done yet, but I will let you hear it, okay?

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Tell me when you're ready

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Yeah, okay

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Oh, sweet Lorraine I wish we could do all the good times over again

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Oh, sweet Lorraine life only goes around[br]Once but never again

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Oh, sweet Lorraine I wish we could do[br]All the good times over again

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The good times, the good times[br]The good times, all over again[br]

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The good times, the good times[br]The good times, all over again[br]

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But the memories always linger on[br]Oh, sweet Lorraine no, I don't wanna move on

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Oh, the memories always linger on[br]My sweet Lorraine[br]That's why I wrote you this song[br]

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Oh, sweet Lorraine I wish we could do all[br]The good times over again

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Oh, sweet Lorraine[br]Life only goes around [br]Once but never again

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Oh, sweet Lorraine I wish we could do[br]All the good times over again

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The good times, the good times[br]All the good times, all over again

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It's wonderful!

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Just wonderful, Jacob

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I'm glad you like it.

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I0m so glad you like it!

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Wonderful.

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They were a wonderful 75 years, I just often think, kind of unreal

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Like a dream or something but, it was real, that's all I can say, real

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Yeah..

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I really, really miss her, just don't seem right, like a dream

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Yeah, yeap...