Matt Wessel Music

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Before I made the drive down to Gurnee for the 11th Annual Concert for Life, yesterday, I spent some time alone in my condo. Katie had to run a few errands and I think – being the ever-perceptive wife that she is – she could sense that I was in need of some time alone.

I sat at the piano to do some last minute rehearsing and then I moved to my stack of papers that would accompany me at the St. Paul’s piano to review what I was going to say during the show. And as I read the excerpt from Kevin Oldham’s “Caring Bridge” site that I planned on reading before God’s Chosen One, I found myself crying. (Kevin is a Warren graduate who lost his battle with pancreatic cancer on Friday.)

The past couple of years, the pre-CFL hours have been pretty emotional for me. Each year adds another layer to this incredible story. I find myself thinking about the people, the stories, the music, the memories – everything. I’ve been playing at the CFL since I was 19 – for 11 years. At times it’s actually hard for me to remember life before this concert was a part of it. It’s hard not to be moved to tears when I think of the impact it has had on my life. I am so grateful to God for putting FBLA and I together back in 2001 and for giving me such an amazing opportunity to use my musical gifts to bring so much comfort and happiness to so many people. It’s hard to fully explain, but I know there’s a higher power at work and it’s very humbling. And, of course, I think of my dad and what he would think of me. I only wish he could have seen one of these concerts.

By now you’ve likely heard that the concert was once again a huge success. The count as of Monday night was $41,750 – and we’re still waiting to hear how much was raised at local restaurants that agreed to donate some of their sales to the CFL. The total includes over $1,000 from Warren’s annual “Pink Game” and about $9,700 from the 2nd Annual Carry On Campaign (by the way, I'll write a separate COC journal later this week). That means the show itself raised over $30,000! That gives us $280,000+ for the Gurnee CFLs since 2001 and $320,000+ in total! WOW!

(Before you read any further, take a moment to reflect on what I just said. We raised $40,000+!! And $30,000 of thse was in three hours! I don't want us to ever get so used to the total that it no longer stuns us. That is an incredible amount of money to raise in just one day!!)

An army of FBLA students once again showed why they call themselves “future business leaders.” (There were 60 raffles and over 70 silent auction items this year!) The group included an awesome collection of chair-people (who, might I add, were very well dressed!). And Chris Mason and her team of FBLA advisors did another masterful job working with the students and motivating them over the several months of planning. Larry – our sound guy – and his team (Brian and Al) had the “stage” ready to go in record time. I think it was 3:20 when we were all set to go, giving me an unprecedented 40 minutes to roam around in absolute nervousness as I waited for the show to begin.

The show itself was amazing. I know I’m biased, but I really thought it was amazing. If you missed it, you can view the playlist here. It included three new songs (It’s Time, Eileen’s Song and Would It Be Okay?). We also did one of Mike’s new songs (our bass player) and – get this – a cover! That’s right. We had the St. Paul choir sing on “Let It Be” (by Paul McCartney). Chris, our drummer, took the lead on vocals and did a great job. And I think we surprised everybody (whether it was a good or bad surprise) with our “Glee-like” arrangement of “Falling In Love” to end the first half. That’s right. Six of us stood at the front of the stage and sang an a cappella version of the song (well, we had guitar for the second half, but the vocals carried it). It was a ton of fun and I think people enjoyed it.

“Eileen’s Song” was particularly moving, as it was a song I wrote for Katie’s grandmother who passed away in January. Eileen’s sisters were in the crowd, which was definitely on my mind as we played the song. When we played “It’s Time,” I have to admit I got chills when the cello came in for the first time. And since the song spans such a massive vocal range, it takes a lot of energy to sing it. I think it was my favorite song of the entire show.

After “It’s Time” and before “God’s Chosen One,” Dr. David Everly – a cancer researcher who has received ACS funding – spoke to the crowd about his work and the importance of fundraising concerts like the CFL. It was awesome to hear a real story of how the CFL money is spent and I’m grateful to David for making the trip to St. Paul’s.

After David spoke, I introduced “God’s Chosen One” by talking about Kevin (who I mentioned earlier had lost his battle with cancer on Friday) and Amanda Au. Kevin was a young father of two whom, one year prior to his passing, didn’t know he had cancer. The same is true for Amanda, who was a freshman at Warren when she lost her fight with Leukemia in October of 2010. She was diagnosed in February of that year. I always say that the one thing cancer does is give you time to say good-bye. But the reality is that it’s never enough time. I read passages from each of their “Caring Bridge” sites and encourage everyone to do the same (Kevin’s site | Amanda’s site). Kevin’s journal, which was kept by his wife, Katie, has some really powerful entries from the past several days. I was moved to tears several times while reading them, including on stage yesterday.

For not having played since the last CFL (which was 364 days prior to this year’s show), I thought the musicians sounded AWESOME. We never had a full rehearsal – only four mini rehearsals (one with the choir, one with Chris, Chad, Mike, Aleksa (she's new to the team - a cellist) and I, one with Beth, Amy, Emily, Phil and Chad, and one with Molly and Kelly). It’s a testament to how talented my fellow musicians and singers are in that they never had a full rehearsal and were able to just go up there and put on a two-hour concert. I’m so, so, so blessed to have such wonderful friends that help me put this show on every year.

(And again, I’m so, so, so blessed to have Larry and his team to do the sound. The first CFL was full of instrumentals and one-voice songs. The set-up was incredibly simplistic. Now we’re recording on 24 tracks with 18 microphones and several hundreds of feet of cables. It’s amazing how much they set up in such a short amount of time.)

To the 1,000-or-so people who were at the concert, I want to express my heartfelt gratitude for not only coming out to support FBLA, my music and the ACS, but for supporting their fellow community members, several of whom are fighting cancer and most of whom have experienced the deadly disease in one form or another. At the end of the day, it has been their commitment to the cause that has made all of this possible. And I also need to thank St. Paul's for opening their doors for us every spring since 2001. It has proved to be the perfect venue. (And thanks to Fr. Ray for the photos!)

Thanks to my mom and sister for all of their advance work – they put so much of their own time and energy into the concert. Thanks to my brother, Ben, and St. Paul’s Mary Penich for selling their books at the show and giving a portion of their sales to the CFL total. Thanks to Carolyn for the help with set-up, Kathy for the awesome post-show party and Ruth for organizing and prepping the choir. Thanks to Charlynn Hansen and the American Cancer Society team who have embraced the CFL like their own.

And of course, a big, big thank you to Katie for all of her support over the past few weeks. The show does take a lot of prep work and I spent many a night in our second bedroom at the piano, many times while she did laundry, cleaned or did some other domestic thing that I should probably have been helping her with. But she understands how much this concert means to me and she never said anything but “you’ll do great.” (Katie also gives me permission to pick on her during the concert, which is always good for a laugh or two!)

I said earlier in this journal that I wished my dad could have seen one of these concerts. Well, when I came home from work this afternoon (I had a half day), Katie had surprised me with flowers, candy and – best of all – beer! She was acting weird and kept saying she didn’t know where it came from, and was encouraging me to read the card. I was a little confused, but then read this:

Hi Matt!

Great concert last night! All of my new friends watched your
performance and I was so proud to say, “That’s my son!”
There were many times throughout the show I was brought to
tears – I love watching you shine. I told everyone up here that
I knew the second you were born (and stuck out your blue little
foot!) that you were special. But, of course, they all already
knew that. : )

I’ll never be able to fully explain what a joy it was raising you
and I am thankful for every second on earth where you called
me “Dad.” Keep doing exactly what you’re doing and making me
so proud. I had a PBR last night to celebrate yet another
successful concert.

I love you, Matt.

Love, Dad

P.S. Eileen is doing really well up here – she loved your song –
that was the nicest thing anyone has ever done for her.

P.P.S. Thank you for playing “In This Moment.”

Well, by the time I got through it, I was a blubbering idiot. I thought it was the sweetest thing I’d ever read or seen. The candy was a bunch of stuff that my dad used to love. And the PBR was a nod to my dad’s appreciation for a workingman’s brew. It was perfect. And now I’m crying again. Haha. Time to stop the journal.

Yesterday was a fun day. It always is. And to think I was going to stop this after 10 shows …

I hope to see you all next year!

matt's journal >>
MARCH 14, 2011