“I'm always amazed at how music can transcend all our differences: language, culture, politics. And tonight we're not Republicans or Democrats. We're not from red states or blue states, we're from the United States, right. And even though I might complain about certain things, I've come to look at the glass as half full. Maybe just in moments but it's there, you know, in the unconditional love of a pet, that look in their eyes. They love you every time you walk into the room. The uncapturable scent of a gardenia. I know you want me to sing that song. It's in a baby's smile. And it's important for me to find those moments everyday and be grateful for them. The playwright, William Saroyan said it much better than I ever could, in 1939 when this country was facing, actually the world was facing one of its' bleakest periods, he wrote these words as a forward to his very famous play ....”