Some background on this song. It was inspired by a lovely elderly woman whose piano I tuned. A lung cancer patient, she has stopped chemo and now wants only to play an in tune piano, calling it "better than medicine." It was a very moving experience that made me pause long and hard and contemplate how the things we sometimes consider menial tasks can and do impact the lives of others. That, coupled with the fact that the whole situation brought back memories of my mom's struggle with lung cancer several years back, was the inspiration for this song and its title of "Stage 4."

Watching this customer of mine, oxygen canister in tow, sit at the piano and play and nod her approval, was more payment than I could ever ask for. Driving home with the experience fresh in my memory, this song came out of nowhere and it was all I could do to get home fast enough to record it. In this song I hoped to capture musically the valiant efforts of not only this woman, but to all who deal with and face this disease with the same courage as she does: each day putting one foot in front of the other in this journey we call life.

I thought this appointment would be like the thousands of tunings I've done up to this point, where I walk in, tune a piano, write an invoice and leave with a check. Instead, my customer and I gave each other something immeasurable. Just goes to show you how sometimes a miracle happens in the most common, everyday tasks. ----------------------------------------

If you or someone close to you has been impacted by cancer, it is my hope that this free song brings you comfort and peace.