The Story Behind “Before You Go”
With performances in more than forty states, and many thousands of CDs sold, Dr. Sam Bierstock had been taking on managed care and it’s impact on healthcare in the United States with such riotous tunes as “You Picked A Fine Time To Leave Me Blue Shield”, “You’re One Hip Mama (’Cause They Won’t Pay For Two)”, and many others.
One evening, after retrieving his car from a parking lot, he handed his ticket to the elderly man in the collection booth. Retrieving his change, Dr. Sam wished the attendant a good evening. He was somewhat startled when he received an unexpected reply. “I took two bullets for this country,” the attendant responded, “and look what I am doing now!”
The time that it took to drive ten or fifteen feet from the toll booth was enough for him to digest what had just happened. With no one behind him, Dr. Sam backed up. “Sir”, he said, “I have had a wonderful life in this country, and I want to thank you sincerely for what you did to preserve our way of life in this country.” Saying nothing in response, the man began to cry.
Dr. Sam was haunted by what had just occurred. As a ’’Baby Boomer“ his early years of life were within a decade of the end of the Second World War. His step-father had been wounded in Italy, and other family members had served in the armed forces. Distant relatives had perished in the holocaust. What would have happened, he thought, if we had lost World War Two to Hitler and his Nazi henchmen? He realized that not only would our entire way of life and system of freedom been destroyed, his parents and grandparent would have been killed, he would never have been born and his children would not exist. The same fate would have been met by virtually all other members of minorities, many religious groups, and the disabled. The personal freedoms that we take so much for granted would have disappeared. “How”, he thought, “do you thank someone enough for the existence of your children, and for all of the freedoms and opportunities that we all take so much for granted?”
The next morning, Dr. Sam wrote the lyrics to “Before You Go”. The lyrics came easily to him since they came so much from the heart. He then collaborated with his band’s keyboard player John Melnick for the creation of the music. The final result is this moving tribute.
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