The gift of music was well used by family

By CAROL PERKINS Glasgow Daily Times

EDMONTON — Not to be bragging, but I come from a musically gifted family. The Sullivan boys were known in the Cedar Flat community, as well as throughout Metcalfe County, as guys who could play any instrument put before them. Carl, Walter, Johnny (Lonzo), Ernest and Phillip played mainly the guitar. Rollin (Oscar) is one of the most spectacular mandolin players in the world. The girls, Clarice (Baker) and Ruby (Martin), were pianists, and my dad Henry played just about anything that had strings or would blow. Even though some could read a little music, they all played by ear. That was a true gift.

When they were young and gathered in the front yard of their home in the afternoon, music flowed down the hillside into the valley. Neighbors brought their instruments and joined in. Family tales include one that Grandpa Sullivan, a mill owner, would take pay in used musical instruments when one was offered, so his sons learned to play them all.

During this time, neighbors often held square dances in their homes or yards. The Sullivan boys and other neighbor boys were called upon to play for these dances.  They became a band without trying.

By the time my dad was in his early twenties, he and his brothers, Johnny and Rollin (aka Lonzo and Oscar), were playing on various local radio stations. If you saw “Coal Miner’s Daughter” you remember how a musician drove up with his bass guitar on top of the car and went inside a station and played live on the air. That was truly how my dad and his brothers arrived. My dad owned the only car and they wore out many sets of tires on gravel roads.

Their big break happened when Cousin Wilbur and his band were the main attraction at the Taylor County Fair and heard the boys playing in a local talent show. He offered them a job playing on a radio station in Jackson, Tennessee, but it would mean they had to leave the next day. Off the three brothers went to Jackson, where they lived for two years and played on WTJS every morning. At night, they performed in honky-tonks and roadhouses.

 For two years in a row, my dad won the Tri-State Fiddling Championship. His short career ended when he was drafted during WWII and spent five years in war zones. He never wanted to travel again. He could have made a living with his fiddle, but he longed to be in Metcalfe County. However, Lonzo and Oscar went on to become Grand Ole Opry members for almost fifty years and that is a story in itself. Phillip, the youngest brother, was on his way to fame when he was killed in a car accident. He was in his early thirties.

During his life, there was never a night that my dad didn’t go into the bedroom and either play his fiddle, his trumpet, or his sax for thirty minutes or longer. The sounds he made were as pure as the world’s best, at least to me.  When he was in his fifties, he grouped other talented people from the area and formed a Benny Goodman type band, with his cousin Fanny Fields at the keyboard.

Most of my Sullivan cousins are gifted musicians as well. Tommy Sullivan is one of the finest guitarists in the area, although he plays mainly for himself. When we had our family reunion a few years ago, the instruments came out of the cars as fast as the food. For hours, they played and sang with Oscar in the lead.

Over my lifetime, many people have said, “I bet you have that Sullivan talent.” I always shake my head no and reply, “But I sure wish I did!” Sadly, I must confess that I did not receive this gift, not the true talent.

The Sullivan boys (and girls) weren’t the only musically gifted family in the community, but I’ll have to say that they were probably the most well known.

Of the nine children, three are still living. Oscar is involved in his music, even though it is now mostly for himself. If you were to visit him, his mandolin would be nearby and he would be ready to sing, “I’m My Own Grandpa” or “There’s A Hole In The Bottom Of The Sea,” while throwing in a tale or two.

As for my dad, he passed away thirty plus years ago. Sometimes when I hear those Foggy Mountain Breakdown songs, I can also hear his fiddle in the far off distance. What I wouldn’t give to listen to him play one more time!

We are all given a talent, but many of us don’t use it. Some don’t even recognize what their talents are. I wanted to pay tribute to a family to whom a gift was given and not squandered. Each one of them used their talent to their enjoyment and the enjoyment of others. Music was as much a part of their daily lives as eating, going to school, and working.

“The Gift” was well used in the Sullivan family.

Contact Carol Perkins at cperkins(at)scrtc.com. Her book is available at Ivy Bookstore in Glasgow.

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