Those who carry on a family musical legacy...

Jeremy Bender

Jeremy Bender

Platinum Member
While watching a documentary about "The Grapes of Wrath" I watched clips of both Arlo Guthrie and old recordings of Woody Guthrie from the 1930's in it.
This got me to thinking about musical torchbearer's.

Who else carried down a musical legacy?
 
larryace

larryace

"Uncle Larry"
I started one with my son and stepsons.

I don't know where my drumming bug came from, I always homed in on the drums in music years before I was exposed to my cousins Ringo set in 1967. Which was a real inspirer.
 
J

jimb

Member
Mum and dad were totally unmusical, ha.. watching dad trying to hold a guitar was real painful......but my grandmother when she was young played the piano in Sunday school though I'm not at all religious, ....still its nice to think that maybe that's where my musical legacy might have come from....thanks Grandma! And my neice plays sax and my nephew plays guitar, in fact he's a talented musician...way better than my bro or myself.
 
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MrInsanePolack

MrInsanePolack

Platinum Member
Moms side: everyone plays the piano, all the way back to my great grandmother. I dont know past that.

My dad's side plays nothing.

My parents got divorced and both remarried.

My dad's second family plays nothing. His two daughters play drums and guitar.

My moms second family all play the piano. My stepfather also plays french horn and bugle. My half sister plays clarinet, my half brother plays whatever he wants. Yeah, he's that guy. My stepbrother plays nothing.

I have cousins that play music, and one is a music teacher in NY so he plays everything. He actually had to learn to play every instrument in an orchestra to get his degree. Or so he said.

So yes, tons of musicians before me. TV was not important in my house growing up. There was a radio/stereo in almost every room. At least one was always on. Some of my earliest memories were at the piano or in a record store. Music has always been there from the beginning.
 
johnwesley

johnwesley

Silver Member
My Dad played a Martin 000-16 as a lap guitar when he was 13 (1930) in a group called the junior Strollers. They "specialized" in Hawaiian music of all things. I have the guitar and it's appraised at right around $10,000!!! If you look at the other boys in the photo, they are all playing Martin guitars and appear to be the same model. I wonder how many besides my Dad's are still around? Dad is the boy sitting in the middle.

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Xstr8edgtnrdrmrX

Xstr8edgtnrdrmrX

Well-known member
my dad was a drummer around town in the 60's and 70's. He did the whole school band thing in MS and HS. Started teaching me to play at age 4 by sitting me in his lap behind the kit. He would work the pedals, and put the sticks in my hands and then put his hands over mine. The songs we would always play were Sing Sing Sing, and Take 5. I vividly rememeber thinking from that point, that I was going to bbe a drummer for life. I was hooked.

My mom's side of the family were/are all professional musicians. She has 4 brothers and 1 sister, and they all played. My Uncle Will played upright bass, and that was the other instrument that just floored me as a kid. I would watch him do walking bass lines and just loved the sound, look and feel. So he started teaching me bass at around age 10. Family reunions on mom's side ALWAYS ended up being huge jams. Everyones house had a piano, and many other musical instruments.

I was exposed to music from the womb, so I had no choice in the matter....thankfully!!
 
dmacc_2

dmacc_2

Well-known member
My Dad (my avatar) and his brother (among other family members) were avid musicians. Played gigs for many decades. Both have passed but both provided me with immense real world musical knowledge.

I have a cousin who is now out making a name for herself and has won many awards and has several endorsement deals. She's a hard, hard worker and her commitment is paying off.

My daughter seems to have latched onto music training. Only time will tell if it sticks.
 
NouveauCliche

NouveauCliche

Senior Member
Well - it was just posted: Nicholas Collins - son of Phil Collins.

He was playing his Gretsch kit - and Fred and Dinah and Lucas Gretsch all carry on the instrument legacy (though not technically musically).

Julian Lennon - Obviously John Lennon's kiddo
Dhani Harrison - George's kiddo
Zak Starkey - Ringo's boy
Norah Jones - Ravi Shankar's kiddo
Miley Cyrus - Carrying the most important country music torch of the best country artist of all time Billy Ray
Jacob Dylan - Bob's kiddo
Ziggy Marley - also Bob's kiddo
Wendy Wilson, Carnie Wilson - Brian Wilson's kiddos - in Wilson Phillips with:
Chynna Phillips - Daughter of John and Michelle Phillips of The Mamas & the Papas
Nancy Sinatra - Frank's kiddo
Hank Williams Jr
Liza Minelli - Judy Garland
Enrique Iglesias - Julio's kiddo and best actor in Once Upon a Time in Mexico
Justin Townes Earle - Steve Earle's Kiddo
Rufus Wainwright - personal fav and son of Loudon Wainright III


It actually seems like music in particular has a way of being a family business and a legacy that people can carry on.
 
johnwesley

johnwesley

Silver Member
GruntersDad said:
Opinion being what it is, I would dare say that Johnny Cash and Hank Williams were much bigger Country stars than Billy Ray Cyrus.
Click to expand...
Absolutely. Legacy is everything. Whether you're into the musical style of Hank or not you need to read the lyrics of the songs he wrote. What a friggin' wordsmith!!! Johnny....lots of guys tried to outdo his "stand up, tough guy on the outside" persona but NO one's come close. That of course breaks Billy Ray's "achey breaky heart". Oh....Long Live David Allan Coe. Another beautiful songwriter with a difficult to imitate renegade persona. Albeit idiosyncratic to say the least.
 
P

Push pull stroke

Platinum Member
NouveauCliche said:
Well - it was just posted: Nicholas Collins - son of Phil Collins.

He was playing his Gretsch kit - and Fred and Dinah and Lucas Gretsch all carry on the instrument legacy (though not technically musically).

Julian Lennon - Obviously John Lennon's kiddo
Dhani Harrison - George's kiddo
Zak Starkey - Ringo's boy
Norah Jones - Ravi Shankar's kiddo
Miley Cyrus - Carrying the most important country music torch of the best country artist of all time Billy Ray
Jacob Dylan - Bob's kiddo
Ziggy Marley - also Bob's kiddo
Wendy Wilson, Carnie Wilson - Brian Wilson's kiddos - in Wilson Phillips with:
Chynna Phillips - Daughter of John and Michelle Phillips of The Mamas & the Papas
Nancy Sinatra - Frank's kiddo
Hank Williams Jr
Liza Minelli - Judy Garland
Enrique Iglesias - Julio's kiddo and best actor in Once Upon a Time in Mexico
Justin Townes Earle - Steve Earle's Kiddo
Rufus Wainwright - personal fav and son of Loudon Wainright III


It actually seems like music in particular has a way of being a family business and a legacy that people can carry on.
Click to expand...
Musical ability is STRONGLY inheritable, it appears to be about 80% inherited, unlike some other artistic abilities like writing.
 
GruntersDad

GruntersDad

Administrator - Mayor
Staff member
Billy "one hit wonder" really has an audeince I'm sure but not like Hank, Hank Jr. or Johnny Cash, even Merle Haggard
 
NouveauCliche

NouveauCliche

Senior Member
GruntersDad said:
Opinion being what it is, I would dare say that Johnny Cash and Hank Williams were much bigger Country stars than Billy Ray Cyrus.
Click to expand...
Was that directed at me?

Of COURSE they are - Billy Ray was a jokey one hit wonder :) I guess now two hits with "Old Town Road" lol
 
P

Push pull stroke

Platinum Member
All my mom’s dad’s family play music (mostly bluegrass). My mom and her brother have won dozens of local karaoke contests. My cousin is the drummer in a Rush tribute band, and my great-uncle was the fiddle champion in Union Cross, NC back in 1971. He recorded with some big names including Ralph Stanley. Ironically, that’s my birth family, and I didn’t find any of this out until I was a music major and almost 19 years old. But that’s clearly where I got my musical talent from.
 
Auspicious

Auspicious

Well-known member
My grand father on my mother's side, played the guitar a bit, all the 4 children play the guitar today. One of them is a professional musician singer and guitar player, the others do it for hobby. Mostly rock, Beatles, Jimmy Hendrix, things like that. My uncle plays popular music as a professional, but can play many things.

My dad plays the bass, rock and roll, rock especially. His father was a double bass jazz player, we still have his double bass, my dad plays it occasionally, but according to him, it's difficult compared to a regular 4 strings bass with frets.

And me, I picked the drums, the most attractive instrument.. I betrayed a family of strings lol.
 
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