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September 18, 2007
What a concert we had this past weekend in Tarrytown, New York! It was great performing with old
friends Chris Montez (singing his great hits such as "Let's Dance" and "The More I See You") and
Jay Seigel (who took everyone back to 1961 with his mega-hit with the Tokens, "The Lion Sleeps
Tonight").
What a concert we had this past weekend in Tarrytown, New York! It was great performing with old
friends Chris Montez (singing his great hits such as "Let's Dance" and "The More I See You") and
Jay Seigel (who took everyone back to 1961 with his mega-hit with the Tokens, "The Lion Sleeps
Tonight").
| Backstage with the always crowd-pleasing Chris Montez |
The band was hot. The packed crowd was superb! I wish you could have been there. It was such a
supercharged place. Standing ovations! I had so much fun singing to such a great crowd.
If you have been to one of my concerts, you know that I truly enjoy mixing it up with the audience. I
often go out into the people to joke around and sing with them. I ended up singing "Just a Dream"
to a beautiful lady who sang right along with me, word for word. We had a good time...afterward I
was told that she had been a fan for many years and that she was also the mother of Jennifer
Lopez! What a nice surprise, and what a wonderful lady.
After the concert and hanging out with so many awesome people from throughout Atlantic and New
England region who came for the concert, I was getting ready to leave when a distinguished
gentleman walked up. I remember his eyes. They almost blazing with intensity. He shook my hand
with a firm grip and wouldn't let go.
I wondered what was going on, but as he began telling me his story, I realized how special those
moments with him would be.
His name is Dr. Richi Morris. He heads Integrated Medicine and Clinical Psychology in Scarsdale,
New York.
"You don't know how special tonight is," Dr. Morris told me. "I've been such a fan since I was a
teenager. I've seen so many of your shows back then and through the years. I just never had the
chance before, but I had to tell you personally tonight that you saved my life."
I still was slightly taken aback, not knowing where the story was going. He kept a firm grip on my
hand, then began saying, "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!"
When he started telling more of his story, I was overwhelmed.
"I served in Vietnam," he continued. "I was captured and spent more time than I want to remember
as a Prisoner of War."
Dr. Morris definitely had my attention!
"My captors did things to me that I can't even tell you about," he said. "They would torture me for
long periods of time. In order for me to keep my sanity, I had to go someplace else in my mind
besides the overwhelming pain. I had always loved `Just a Dream' since it first came out, so when
they would those those horrible things to me, I would go back in my memory and listen to you sing
the words to that song!"
By this time I was totally losing it!
"I would play the words over and over in my mind," he said with such passion. He still held my hand
in an iron grip. "it was the only thing that got me through the torture."
He paused for a moment. Even though I was so overwhelmed with emotion at what he had told me, I
remember him looking squarely in my eyes and saying, "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Jimmy,
you and your song literally saved my life."
I'll never, ever forget his eyes as he told me those words!
After he left, I could hardly wait to get on the phone and call my wife Roxanne to tell her what I had
just heard. I'm not sure I made much sense, since I was pretty zoned out after hearing that story.
I will be telling you more about Dr. Morris soon, I'm sure.
You know, sometimes I've been guilty of thinking that the "stuff" we do is important. We get so busy
doing things that seem crucial, but stories like this one make all the "stuff" rather puny by
comparison.
I can't tell you how humbled it makes me feel when people come up after concerts or send letters
and emails to tell me how one of my songs helped them through a bad spot in life, how special a
tune was when they fell in love or how something I said in a concert touched them and gave them
hope when they were in a hopeless situation. Those are such powerful moments for me to hear
and read such wonderful things.
Believe me, this one by Dr. Morris humbles me more than ever. His words will definitely go into the
golden memory bank, for sure!
Until I see you on the road...God bless,
supercharged place. Standing ovations! I had so much fun singing to such a great crowd.
If you have been to one of my concerts, you know that I truly enjoy mixing it up with the audience. I
often go out into the people to joke around and sing with them. I ended up singing "Just a Dream"
to a beautiful lady who sang right along with me, word for word. We had a good time...afterward I
was told that she had been a fan for many years and that she was also the mother of Jennifer
Lopez! What a nice surprise, and what a wonderful lady.
After the concert and hanging out with so many awesome people from throughout Atlantic and New
England region who came for the concert, I was getting ready to leave when a distinguished
gentleman walked up. I remember his eyes. They almost blazing with intensity. He shook my hand
with a firm grip and wouldn't let go.
I wondered what was going on, but as he began telling me his story, I realized how special those
moments with him would be.
His name is Dr. Richi Morris. He heads Integrated Medicine and Clinical Psychology in Scarsdale,
New York.
"You don't know how special tonight is," Dr. Morris told me. "I've been such a fan since I was a
teenager. I've seen so many of your shows back then and through the years. I just never had the
chance before, but I had to tell you personally tonight that you saved my life."
I still was slightly taken aback, not knowing where the story was going. He kept a firm grip on my
hand, then began saying, "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!"
When he started telling more of his story, I was overwhelmed.
"I served in Vietnam," he continued. "I was captured and spent more time than I want to remember
as a Prisoner of War."
Dr. Morris definitely had my attention!
"My captors did things to me that I can't even tell you about," he said. "They would torture me for
long periods of time. In order for me to keep my sanity, I had to go someplace else in my mind
besides the overwhelming pain. I had always loved `Just a Dream' since it first came out, so when
they would those those horrible things to me, I would go back in my memory and listen to you sing
the words to that song!"
By this time I was totally losing it!
"I would play the words over and over in my mind," he said with such passion. He still held my hand
in an iron grip. "it was the only thing that got me through the torture."
He paused for a moment. Even though I was so overwhelmed with emotion at what he had told me, I
remember him looking squarely in my eyes and saying, "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Jimmy,
you and your song literally saved my life."
I'll never, ever forget his eyes as he told me those words!
After he left, I could hardly wait to get on the phone and call my wife Roxanne to tell her what I had
just heard. I'm not sure I made much sense, since I was pretty zoned out after hearing that story.
I will be telling you more about Dr. Morris soon, I'm sure.
You know, sometimes I've been guilty of thinking that the "stuff" we do is important. We get so busy
doing things that seem crucial, but stories like this one make all the "stuff" rather puny by
comparison.
I can't tell you how humbled it makes me feel when people come up after concerts or send letters
and emails to tell me how one of my songs helped them through a bad spot in life, how special a
tune was when they fell in love or how something I said in a concert touched them and gave them
hope when they were in a hopeless situation. Those are such powerful moments for me to hear
and read such wonderful things.
Believe me, this one by Dr. Morris humbles me more than ever. His words will definitely go into the
golden memory bank, for sure!
Until I see you on the road...God bless,
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Tony D fromGoldenOldiesForever.com
