Hanover
“This man can play anything,” Julia Labier says from her seat at the front of the room at the health and rehabilitation center.
“Oh, that’s not true,” Ford Daley replies, before beginning to strum Mary Had a Little Lamb on his guitar.
Labier and Daley have been performing together as the duo Daley With Julia for about a decade, and perform monthly at Hanover Terrace to the delight of residents and staff alike. Both play the guitar, with Daley occasionally playing harmonica.
Throughout the performance they joke with each other and the audience, beginning by acknowledging that they’re not married.
“That’s why we get along so well,” Daley told the listeners to laughter.
Their first song was Okie From Muskogee by Merle Haggard, “one of the greatest country songs of all time,” Daley said.
When the songs comes to the chorus, Labier takes a break from singing to say “sing along with us.” Some in the audience do. Others hum or tap their feet.
“The residents just love them,” said Martha Chesley, administrator at Hanover Terrace, who was a student of Daley’s when he taught science at Hanover High School. “We appreciate them very much.”
The residents coping with memory disorders remember some of the songs, Chesley said. The performances “really add to the quality of life for our residents.”
Daley and Labier perform at about half a dozen senior housing facilities and senior centers throughout the region.
“This keeps me going,” Labier, 76, of Lebanon, said. “It’s always been the greatest thing.”
Both of them stay active in the Upper Valley community at large.
Daley, 78, of Norwich, teaches courses through Osher@Dartmouth.
“He’s the best brother I ever had,” Labier said.
The duo’s comfortable back and forth engages the audience as they trade conversation between selections including Brown Eyed Girl, Oh My Darling Clementine, and Forever Young.
“We like it because it makes wishes for you,” Daley said about the Bob Dylan song.
“It’s a really nice song, it really is,” Labier replied.
The last song they play is May the Good Lord Bless and Keep You.
“We’re going to dedicate it to you,” Daley said.
Just like every song they play at Hanover Terrace.
Liz Sauchelli can be reached at esauchelli@vnews.com or 603-727-3221.
