The special moments of the DIMU party

Life’s special moments are sometimes few and far between. But when they happen and one is able to share them with family and friends, they become even more special. I was lucky. I got an entire evening of special moments at the launch party June 12 for my new book, “Dancing in My Underwear: The Soundtrack of My Life,” (Soundtrack.EduPublisher.com). Despite the rainy weather, we had a big crowd, sold a lot of books and got a wonderful performance from Philadelphia singer-songwriter Dan May (there’s a chapter about him in the book) and his band mate, the ridiculously talented guitarist and singer Tom Hampton. I got to sit on stage with the band (what a unique perspective that is for a show), telling stories from the book and leading into the songs. The set list included: “Never My Love” by The Association; “China Grove” by the Doobie Brothers; “An Old Fashioned Love Song” by Three Dog Night; “Sister Golden Hair” by America; two Dan May tunes, “That One Song” and “Paradise”; “That’s Why They Call it The Blues” by Elton John; and the big finish, “Surfer Girl” by the Beach Boys. The even bigger finish was song No. 9 and the final one of the evening, “Dancing in My Underwear,” an original Dan May song that he wrote for the occasion. I heard it for the first time with everyone else that night. Wow. What else can one say when someone as talented as Dan writes a song about my book? What a wonderful gift to receive from a friend. The whole evening was a personal highlight-reel. But “Surfer Girl” was a little more special for me. There is a chapter in the book that details why (in fact, the book has a heavy Beach Boys influence with five different chapters), but the nickel version is that I associate that song with the birth of my oldest daughter, Kiley. She was a preemie, weighing only a little more than 2 lbs. at birth. There was a question of whether she would survive. I turned to Beach Boys music to help me get through that difficult time and all turned out right. She is healthy and happy. When Dan and Tom broke into “Surfer Girl” after my lead-in story, I got up and moved to the side of the stage where I met Kiley. I had not given her a heads up before the show that “Surfer Girl” was going to be performed, but she must have sensed it because she didn’t hesitate to join me on stage for a father-daughter dance. The picture you see here is me wiping away tears from Kiley’s face as we get near the end of the song. It couldn’t have been any more special. I got so lucky, and there are a lot of people to thank. The Blonde Accountant put together a wonderful event and has shown so much love and support for this book project. I am truly blessed to be her husband; my daughters, Kiley (along with husband Mat) and Lexi have always been the lights of my life and I’m glad I got a chance to share it all with them; my mom was here from Illinois and I’m so thankful she got to see everything; my stepchildren, Kaitie and Kevin, were a tremendous help during the party and handled themselves like the fine young adults that they are becoming; my in-laws, Walt and Anne, drove back from their vacation at the shore so they could be part of it; Dan May and Tom Hampton are two of the most talented musicians and nicest guys and they really stepped up by allowing me to share the stage with them and add the soundtrack to my words; the folks at the Ambler Theater were tremendous; and my editor, Frank Quattrone, who always had faith in the book project, has been a stalwart supporter from the first chapter. To each and every one of you who came out, I can’t thank you enough. I hope you enjoy the book.