My Dear Fellow Jazz Lovers,

Preserving the tradition of Chicago-style jazz is an endeavor that is very dear to my heart. Now I would like to share with you two other projects which I encourage you to join me in beating the drums.

Murphy Productions has contracted to market the two jazz CDs recorded by The Royal Chicagoans. John Murphy, the company president, is an extraordinarily engaging and skilled young man whose career in marketing was interrupted for many years by what many would consider an unfortunate circumstance. He lives daily with a very progressive form of Multiple Sclerosis (MS) -- a disease that another 350,000 Americans suffer from and for which, at this time, there is no known cure.

With so many descriptive words in our language, it amazes me that we continue to use the term "disabled" when describing people of great ability, such as John. I can assure you from my own observation that new computer and telecommunication technologies enable John to perform all the functions necessary to his job. We all agree that it is an individual's desire for achievement that is the greatest predictor of his success. Yet today in our great country approximately 7 million disabled adults between the ages of 18 and 65 are not working.

My dream for John is that I will see him walk again. To that end, I am pledging 100% of the profit from the sale of each CD to The National Multiple Sclerosis Society and an international research effort known as The Myelin Project. This project is an international coalition of people whose loved ones suffer from demylineating illnesses such as MS. Their mission is to seek a cure to these illnesses in the near future so that the health of those they hold dear can be restored.

Thanks to all of you who have taken the time to visit my Web Site.

Smile, enjoy the music, and keep dancing.