The recent demise of James Seals led me to the fab pop fact that his brother was the Dan in England Dan & John Ford Coley. Which set me thinking; there’s plenty of examples of brothers in the same successful band. Spencer Davis Group, Gerry & the Pacemakers, Creedence, Dire Staits, Spandau Ballet, The Beach Boys to name but a few. Often it doesn’t work out so well, our kid. But anyway, other than in jazz where I imagine Wynton and Branford Marsalis have their own combos, are there there any other examples of brothers playing separately in successful bands?
The Brother
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George Young – The Easybeats and Flash And The Pan.
Older brother of Malcolm & Angus Young
Mike McGear of The Scaffold – his brother was quite famous
Beat me to it. Was thinking that when I was about 8 I was familiar with Thank You Very Much and the theme tune to the Liver Birds, meaning I knew Mike’s stuff before I knew Paul’s!
Branford and Wynton couldn’t be in the same band because the latter believes, or believed, that jazz stopped in about 1955.
Thom Yorke’s brother had The Unbelievable Truth but I hardly think that counts as successful. Before David Mitchell joined, anyroad (oho!)
Don’t recall him saying that “Jazz stopped in about 1955” but he is on record as saying jazz-fusion and free-jazz are very much not to his liking. He said some rather idiotic things about jazz on that Ken Burns TV series. Including there not being any good European Jazz.
I suspect Ken Burns had a pro-US agenda going with that series and Wynton was led on, for effect, but at the time he was definitely a straight-ahead purist.
His father is a jazz pianist and teacher and he has another 2 musician brothers.
I like Wynton and I loved him in Jazz but you’re right about it having an, if I may say so, typically parochial thesis.
I could never take him seriously after my friend and I, having a Jimmy riddle at a wynton marsalis gig, became aware he was also having a gypsies in the public bogs during the interval, and my pal said “Great gig, Winston”.
I’ve got the first Unbelievable Truth album and it’s pretty good. Better than Pablo Honey..
I listened to it only a few weeks ago. It’s not bad but I can see why it didn’t set the world on fire.
Bruce McLean of Love who wrote their most celebrated song and his sister is Maria McKee.
Bruce was also one of Cynthia Plastercaster’s, er, subjects.
You mean Bryan?
Yes Bryan Bruce McLean. Bruce to his close friends.
I seem to remember a Scottish artist called Bruce McLean – went to Glasgow School of Art – don’t know if he has a sibling…
And “Bruce-off-to-bed-and-no-supper” to his long-suffering Mum
Step sister I think
Must we split hairs? Now the wind has gone out of my four sails.
Jerry Harrison – Blondie
Nigel Harrison – Talking Heads
Tony Harrison – V
There’s Johnny Winter & Edgar Winter
There are some sisters too:
Dolly Parton & Stella Parton
Aretha Franklin & Erma Franklin
And also Carolyn Franklin, more known as a songwriter than a singer.
The Ruffins – David (with and without the Tempts) and Jimmy (the What Became of the Broken Hearted? hitmaker)
PS. Bloody nora! I’ve just discovered that Jimmy was on Soul Deep!
Jimmy Lydon of 4 Be 2. A modest success shall we say.
Neil Finn of Crowded House and Tim Finn of Tim Finn (but also occasionally CH).
Alex Harvey SAHB
Les Harvey Stone The Crows.
Although Les played earlier in his brother’s band.
What about brother and sister? In the same band or in different bands? If none, why?
The Cowboy Junkies, two brothers and a sister.
Brother and Sister in the same band … The Carpenters
Blues singer-guitarists Jo-Ann and Dave Kelly.
Mike and Sally Oldfield.
Peter Sarstedt’s brothers Eden Kane (Richard Graham Sarstedt) and Clive Robin Sarstedt.
Mick Jagger and Chris Jagger.
Meeting the Starstedt Brothers must have been quite odd. How would you address them? Clive started as Joe Meek/RGM artist Wes Sands, reverted to his real name, but had his only hit “My resistance is low” using his middle name Robin Sartstedt. “Hello Peter. How’s your brother?” “Which one?” “Urrrr…the youngest one!”
Is this the moment to dig out my There Ain’t Half Been Some Clever Sarstedts joke? No?Please yourselves.
Big up for that one!
The Corrs
The Magic Numbers have two sibling pairs. Romeo and Michele Stodart plus Angela and Sean Gannon.
The Springfields?
Dusty and Buffalo…
Twin sister’s Kim and Kelley Deal in The Breeders.
Talking of the Breeders… Tanya Donelly and Kristin Hersh are step sisters
Rufus and Martha Wainwright.
Shelby Lynne and Allison Moorer.
If we’re going that root, Teddy and and Kami (of The Rails) Thompson.
Rufus and Martha have a half-sister Lucy Wainwright Roche (also a singer) from Loudon’s later relationship with singer Suzzy Roche. Their cousin Lily Lanken (Anna McGarrigle’s daughter) is a singer too.
In the dynasties to watch section, look out for Zak Hobbbs, RTs grandson. Quite the chip of his grandads strat. Mainly sessions, popping up occasionally with various family members.
Any relation to Leee John?
It’s summer, loads of extra b’s around.
Wow!
John Taylor, Roger Taylor, Andy Taylor, Simon Le Bon Taylor, Nick Rhodes Taylor
Stephen Duffy Taylor was an original member, and they were later joined by Warren Cuccurullo Taylor
Gary Kemp, Martin Kemp, Ross Kemp, Phil Mitchell, Tony Hadley, Foghorn Leghorn..
You mean Foghorn Hadley and Tony Leghorn, surely?
Ronnie Kray, Reggie Kray, Robert Cray, Carmen McCrae and Jacqueline du Kray.
That’s the spirit!
That’s just crayzy talk!
Take it from whence it came!
Robin Campbell and Ali Campbell of UB40. When Ali left, to form another UB40, Duncan Campbell joined. He had a stroke and left, so Donald Campbell joined,
I’m calling your bluff…it was Patrick Campbell.
Patrick’s version of You Ain’t Seen Nothin’ Yet is tremendous.
Oz bands The Numbers, The Ferrets and Goanna all had a brother and sister in ’em….INXS were three brothers plus a couple of others.
And mid-70s Canadian combo Promises had the three Knauer siblings in its ranks. Literal-minded associates thought both Leslie and Benny singing vocals on their “Baby It’s You” hit meant there was some kind of pervy incest theme happening, when they weren’t busy ogling Leslie’s generous proportions.
The Eddie Jobson lookalike seems to have forgotten to put his shirt on…
Prompted by the Canadian band above:
Bachman Turner Overdrive had two siblings in the band when they were having their hits (see clip) – and three when they first started…
This thread has become siblings in the same band whereas the OP is brothers in different bands. So, I offer Ray and Dave Davies of the Kinks. They were in the same band but thought they were in different ones.
All this way down and no mention of the Nolans? Unless I missed it…
Chris Jagger.
Dooleys
Slightly off topic but something I found out only recently…
Chip Taylor’s real name is James Voight, he was the writer of many songs most notably Wild Thing and Angel of of the Morning.
His brother is none other than Jon Voight who appeared in many brilliant films as well as a memorable two second cameo in an episode of Seinfeld.
That means Wild Thing was written by Angelina Jolie’s uncle!
The only Swedish brothers-in-different-bands exemple I can think of is the Norén brothers; two in the band Sugarplum Fairie and one in the band Mando Diao.
Plenty of exemples of brothers, sisters, siblings of both genders, or parents and children combos playing in the same band, but at the moment I can’t think of any other exemples of successful brothers in different bands.
This might be slightly cheating but Stevie Ray Vaughn was in his own band while Jimmie Vaughn was in The Fabulous Thunderbirds.
Also Art Wood in The Artwoods while Ronnie was in The Birds and The Creation
And I declare that the thread winner is …. The Neville Brothers! There are about a half dozen of them and they’ve all played in the same band, as well as who knows what combinations in other bands. And Art Neville was the only Neville in The Meters, and one of them played with Keef, and Aaron Neville had a great solo career, and some of them played with Dr John … They just cover all. the bases mentioned in this thread (except sisters though ).
Joe Henry and Madonna are, of course, brother- and sister-in-law.
Haaks! Good time älskad band who livestream an afterwork show on Facebook on Fridays 6 pm. Ideal with a glass of Langois bubbel and some nibbles. Two of them share the same parents. They are in the same band so don’t fit the OP description. Never mind.
Norwegians.
Two brothers and a sister, Lars, Martin and Line Horntveth are all in Jaga Jazzist.
Horn player/guitarist Lars is also in Amgala Temple, The National Bank and The Olsens.
Drummer/keyboard player Martin was also in Bigbang and is in Killl and The National Bank
Line plays tuba and flute and is also in a duo Budding Rose.
The Scissor Sisters. I’ve heard they’re very close.
Oh I say.
Of course pop was only their second choice career. Their childhood enthusiasm for athletics was thwarted when they were advised that they “shouldn’t run”..
They were told that by the larger members of the family, who lived in a cupboard.
I said to my doctor that I keep thinking I’m a pair of scissors. He said “well, you can cut that out for a start!”.