The music man
Published on February 26th, 2003
STONEHAM, MA - A Stoneham native and his wife will traverse the world in a government sponsored concert tour performing for US soldiers deployed overseas.
Scheduled to depart next Friday for a tour in Italy, Patrick Mcabe and his wife Amy-Jayne will also travel to Spain, Jordan, Turkey and later to parts of the Middle East and Asia visiting military bases. The USO-like tour, sponsored by the Department of Defense, will last six weeks and feature the Amy-Jayne Band, with Amy-Jayne as the lead singer. Patrick Mcabe will act as the band?s manager and soundman.
The Medford residents once experienced the heart-wrenching pain soldiers and their families endure during military deployments. Mcabe, a Stoneham High graduate who later attended West Point, traveled to Kosovo in the Summer of 2000 as part of a peacekeeping force.
Then an Army Captain for the 101st Airborne?s 327th infantry regiment, Mcabe managed to deal with his separation from his wife. But for the 330 men and women who served under Mcabe, the situation wasn?t always the same.
"I wasn?t worried for a second, I knew she?d be fine and that certainly made my job a lot easier," said Mcabe. "But sometimes these soldiers come home after six months and find their families shattered. It was difficult for them to give so much and get so little?it became very frustrating as a commander," he explained.
Planning to visit some of the thousands of troops recently deployed around the world for a possible war with Iraq, the couple will leave behind their 13-month-old son for the morale boosting tour.
"Some people ask, ?how could you leave behind your son for this long??" said Amy-Jayne, who admitted the separation will prove very difficult. "But do you see how many children are left behind for a year? They don?t even know when their families are coming back. At least I have a return date," she retorted.
According to the couple, leaving their son behind for a few weeks is the least they can do for the US soldiers prepared to risk death for their country.
"These soldiers are in distant lands and we could do a lot more to raise their morale. The guys that come out to see the shows, they forget where they are for a couple of hours. And even if you do get to see a show, you still have to be ready to go in a moments notice," said Mcabe, who said its not uncommon for soldiers to work for six months straight with only a three-day break in-between.
This upcoming trip will mark the fifth time the band has participated in an Armed Forces Professional Entertainment Overseas tour. First traveling to Kosovo during Christmas 2000 where Patrick was stationed, the couple claims every tour receives an amazing reception from soldiers.
While the two will only receive a $150 per day living expense for their efforts, they claim the rewards far benefit the cash benefits.
"Basically you do tours because you want to, because you want to provide a quality service," said Mcabe. "We also get to retain artistic control of Amy-Jayne?s music?I love to say the greatest artist will never sign a record deal because the business always gets in the way of art."
Mcabe has great hopes for his wife?s future, foreseeing a successful music career. In fact, he gave up his military aspirations to aid Amy-Jayne in her quest.
"I believe in her and in her music. She probably had a better chance in the music business than I did getting a star as a general," explained Mcabe amidst a flurry of his wife?s protests.
To date, Amy-Jayne?s largest success has come from a song she co-wrote dedicated to military spouses left behind called "The Rock". Inspired by her husband?s overseas departure years before, the song praises military spouses for holding their families together.
"I wrote the song for the ladies in our battalion to help them get through the deployment but now its kind of an anthem for military families. People outside the military think, ?oh, you volunteered for this so suck it up?, but we didn?t marry the military. We married an individual," said Amy-Jayne, who hopes that the song will become the next "God Bless America".
"The Rock" and other samples of Amy-Jayne?s music can be accessed on her website at www.amyjayne.com.
Subscribe and get Home Delivery of The Independent
Save 36% off the newstand price — that's like 18 FREE issues!