Angelo Babbaro has been a retirement planner for over twenty years. Most of his clients have lived through a world war and a depression. They have seen smoke from the steel mills rise and they have watched them disappear. Time spent talking about the glory days of Youngstown, is time well spent to Babbaro. "Sometimes, I think I was born too late! The Stetsons, the overcoats, the thriving city, the work ethic, the respect, the music!" Yes, the music. Babbaro was born in Youngstown, Ohio in 1965. It was a generation before the likes of Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Perry Como, and Tony Bennett jumped off the train at the B&O Station and jumped onto the stages of Y-town hotspots like the State Theatre, the Palace and the Park Theatre. In fact, Youngstown is credited for finding both Como and Martin (The Jungle Inn).

Sometimes, it's just in your blood. You can't question it. At age twenty-five or so, having just graduated from Youngstown State University, his first boss gave him a choice. "You can either work here in the office or you can hit the road." Being a young guy with lots of energy and a new wife to support, Babbaro figured, "No way can I sit in the office all day and wait for things to come to me. Uh ah-- I'm gonna go out and get it!" Babbaro found himself driving alone, for hours each day, traveling from one client to another. In popped the Frank Sinatra cassettes, snap went the fingers, tap went the toes. And he sang. As loud as he wanted to. Soon he started to listen and to study. Until he knew every breath, every swallow that Frank took in between lines. How much air he took in and how much voice he let out. It became a challenge of the senses and he was on his way to mastering it. One day he got a little cocky and played with the volume as he sang along-- bringing Frank in and taking him out-- testing himself. He was right with his new pal. Babbaro would play co-pilot to Sinatra for 20 years, until one day he went out on a limb and got out of his car.

Gary Rhamy has been a sound engineer for over thirty years and produced over 500 albums. When he got the call from Angelo at Peppermint Studios, he didn't think much about it. They scheduled a session and that was that. A week later, Babbaro came in and sang Sinatra's, Just in Time. What did he think? "Well, what the hell took you so long-- is what I thought!" It was fresh air and familiar sounds blowing back into the iconic studio that has groomed such singers as Maureen McGovern, Sergeo Mendes, and pop groups as Left End and Blue Ash. Peppermint is also the residence of 5 Grammy Award winning albums, all engineered by Rhamy.

In the upcoming months, Babbaro spent as much time as he could, recording Sinatra's Capital years.

Capital, he felt, had the energy and the pop that he could relate to. The later years, which he refers to as the Hat years, well, he'd have to grow into them. One year later his old adage of taking it to them rather than waiting for a knock at the door put Babbaro in very unfamiliar territory-- the spotlight.

It was Valentine's Day 2007 at the historic Stambaugh Auditorium in Youngstown Ohio and Babbaro gave the most romantic gift of all-- he sang his heart out. And, if you don't know already, Youngstown is a tough crowd. Sinatra has said himself, if you can play Youngstown, you can play anywhere. Babbaro was a natural. First he brought them back to a simpler, snappier time and then he brought them to their feet.

Today, Angelo is gearing up for a life on the road and under the lights. Trips to Philadelphia, New York and Chicago have paved the way to a future in music. He may have taken the long road, but ask him and he'll tell you the best story his Grandpa ever told him. It was about a guy named "Steady Eddie". Everyone would pass him up on the highway, but at the end of the trip, who would they bump into? Steady Eddie. He may not go anywhere fast, but he gets to where he's going.

We think it's fair to say that Angelo Babbaro is certainly on his way.