My album was complete and was in the final mixing stages. I went to Dublin to be with my Mum and Dad as I do from time to time to give a bit of rest bite to my sisters. While I was down on this occasion my second oldest brother Donald was home from in the Middle East. I was delighted to see him as it had been years since we met. His son Eric died tragically two years ago from drug addiction and for the first time since his death my brother opened up about it and the pain that he and his family had endured during that whole experience was horrendous . His other son was on dialysis and he was struggling with the death of his brother.

It felt like that my brothers world had turned upside down. He broke down while we were having a pint together. We parted the next morning and tears where everywhere. I said goodbye to my mother and father and headed up the road to Derry as I have done over the years a thousand times at least.

When I got home I was going to go out for a pint but I decided to sit in instead. Coming up that road I thought about the sad experience that I had with my brother and also some of my close friends had lost loved ones tragically in similar circumstances. That night I took the guitar into my hand and I began to work on a melody lyric’s where flowing automatically and by 4am that Saturday morning the song Home in Paradise was 85 % together with lyrics and a strong melody. I played it for my son Ryan the next day and he said Dad that better than anything you have ever wrote before. Singing it I had brought him to tears. I knew at that stage that I had done my brother and friend some justice in helping to ease their pain with this song.