This album is me playing the hymns I grew up hearing every Sunday. I can still remember Dad playing the piano and Granny singing in the choir, and the way that whole experience became a part of me after a while. These arrangements are the way I heard my dad play them, or at least as close as I can get. No two people’s styles can be exactly the same… my style has been influenced by jazz, as well as piano players like Elton John and Billy Joel…so no matter how I try, I can never completely duplicate my dad’s style. Perhaps it could be said that my playing of these songs is “a poor attempt to imitate the man… I’m just a living legacy to the leader of the band.” I wanted this album to be one that both my grandmothers could listen to, but it didn’t work out that way. As I was finishing it, I found out that Grandmama was in the hospital, and that this time it did not look like she was going to get better. She was gone before she could hear it… she passed away in November of 2005… but I did have most of it done, and it was played at her funeral. My other grandmother, “Granny,” has always loved the song “When They Ring Those Golden Bells,” so I put it on at the end. That particular arrangement was one that Dad always played, and it was one of the few things he played using sheet music. I tracked down the sheet music and tried to play it note for note, but with his style. I also remember that Grandad used to love “Amazing Grace,” and he would sit in the rocking chair beside the piano and listen to me play it over and over again, so I have it on the album as well. I guess the reason I share these memories is that I know many people have similar memories when they hear these songs… songs like these connect us to our past in a very special way. I hope that this album can be both a tribute to my family and to all the other families out there who have memories that involve these songs. The pictures on the cd were taken at Granny & Grandad's house one Easter when I was a child.