Mr. Tanner runs a dry cleaning shop in Dayton, Ohio, where he spends his
days greeting his customers with his beautiful baritone voice. His
friends and neighbors encourage him to sing professionally instead of
cleaning clothes. He eventually takes a chance and travels to New York
City to be heard by a concert agent and critics, only to find they
weren't hearing what he was feeling. The song Mr. Tanner was released in
1973 off Harry Chapin's Short Stories album. The song was inspired by
a mediocre review about a baritone singer in The New York Times. A
portion of the proceeds from the sale of this book will go to help
support WhyHunger, a charity championed by Harry Chapin himself.