Ferry had gone to Alcoholics Anonymous meetings during his drinking years. He credits AA's 12 Steps for helping him face his problem and stay sober for long stretches of time. After 1970, when he took his last drink, it was instead a series of more positive, personal revelations and growth experiences that made the crucial difference in his recovery. He has formalized his evolution from despair to hope into a new alcohol therapy program he calls the Eight Steps to Sobriety and a Better You. Ferry, a natural maverick, says his largely unknown and untested program can be used by anyone anytime in any way.
Individuals can use it privately.
Or people can form a group and meet at their convenience. He certainly knows that music. Ferry, a fragile man with a raspy voice, was born poor in 1927 with an emotionally abusive father whom he could never please. His low self-esteem sank even further because of a medical condition that caused him to wet the bed until he was 14. It was a life tailor-made for substance abuse.