I was playing with a disco band at a club in Connecticut and was excited to see some family that I hadn’t seen in years. Donning our disco” afro’s” and sunglasses....oh did I mention the very tacky outfit the leader wanted us to wear ?...  Well, we were ready to take “the walk of shame” and start our first set.  OK ... the drummer clicks the sticks ..1234  and we were off into “Disco Inferno”. I hate to admit it, but I actually like disco music. It’s all about the bass...!!!

 

I scanned the club quickly to see if I recognized any family members and to my joy I see several first cousins, an uncle, two of my sisters, and my younger brother, Eddie. No one was dancing,... but wait a minute, out of the corner of my sunglassed eye, I see my first cousin Nancy making her way for the dance floor. She hit the dance floor all by herself and was dancing up a storm just having a great time. To be quite honest, I was a little embarrassed for her, not at the fact that she was dancing, but because she was all by herself dancing with reckless abandon and freedom that I could never do. Sure, I can hide behind my bass guitar up there on the stage, but to dance solo...NEVER...!!  My sentiment quickly turned into admiration as I watched my cousin, and it really touched me. The joy she was having gave me joy. I went up to her after the set was over and gave her a big hug.

 

Nancy died a year later. She developed an aggressive form of cancer that took her down. She fought it till the end. She was an intelligent, loving, fiesty woman.( just like her Mom, my Aunt Isabelle),with a genuine soul. She loved God and people. I had the opportunity to visit with her during her last days on this earth, and it was one of the more touching times in my life.

 

About a week before she passed, I was awakened at four o’clock in the morning by some birds chirping away in my hometown of Middletown, Ct. It was one of those God moments where something was going on and you can’t really put your finger on it. Well, I got my stereo condenser microphones out, and recorded the birds at the height of their morning glory. I found out later from my Aunt that Nancy loved to listen and watch birds. I had a melody that I wrote the night before, so I went to work on this composition I call “Dancing with Angels”. It came together quickly, and I give all the glory to God who gave me inspiration to bless my dying cousin in her time of need. We got a chance for her to listen to her song before she passed.

 

Nancy no longer has to dance solo on the dance floor, she is “Dancing with Angels”. We love you and miss you Nancy.

 

If you press the arrow at the bottom left hand part of the picture  on the top, you can hear an edited version of “Dancing with Angels”.