Fantasy Band
Updated: Sep 19, 2022
I grew up listening to music and singing with my mother, sister, and cousin. My mom played guitar, and sang lead, while the rest of us chimed in wherever we could with harmonies. All my life, I have followed my favorite musicians by seeing them in person whenever possible, and buying their CDs. I know it's trendy now to download music, but I still prefer to have an actual CD in my hand. I used to have albums, but I moved around too often; they were too cumbersome. Besides, after my last divorce, I didn't have a turntable and speakers that worked worth a damn.
I was saddened to read of the death of the novelist Larry McMurtry. I admit, I was not a fan of his novels. I am, however, a fan of his son, James McMurtry's, music. When my last husband, Bill, and I met in early 1990, he had just seen his first performance of a young James McMurtry. When Bill came to my apartment for the first time, he brought the first album that James had recorded, in 1989, Too Long in the Wasteland. I quickly became a huge fan, and still am. Over the ensuing years, Bill and I attended every concert we could, with the last one in late 2019. Bill passed away in June 2020 from a rare form of cancer. He and I had been divorced since 2010, but that didn't matter. We were still friends. I took him to that concert, knowing that it would probably be the last time for him to see James.
What I didn't know was that it would be the last time that I would see James for a long time, because of the COVID lockdown. Since we have all been hunkering, James has been performing live on his Facebook page, twice a week. I've also become a fan of his son, Larry McMurtry's grandson, Curtis McMurtry, during this time. His music is quite different from James'. More dark and prophetic, and strong on the banjo, he and his girlfriend, Diana Burgess, often perform on Curtis' Facebook page, as well.
When I read about Larry 's death I thought again, about my own mortality. I'm no spring chicken. I grew up listening to Johnny Cash, George Jones, and The Carter Family. But I also love Led Zeppelin, Queen, The Doors, and the Stones. I guess you could say my taste is eclectic. I also remembered all the greats that we lost in the music world this past year, like John Prine, and Charley Pride.
A while back, I put together a fantasy band. Some members of my fantasy band are no longer alive, but, hey, it's my fantasy band! They can all sing, so I have listed only the instruments that they play, or that I believe they play best.
The list is, by no means, exhaustive.
(In no particular order:)
Jon Bonham- drums
Danny Carey- drums
John Paul Jones- bass
Diana Burgess- cello
James McMurtry- guitar
Freddie Mercury- piano
Leon Russell- piano
Steve Earle- mandolin
Rhiannon Giddens- fiddle & banjo
Amythyst Kiah- guitar & banjo
Jimmy Hall- saxophone & harmonica
Slats Klug- keyboards & accordion
Sonny Terry- harmonica
Taj Mahal- harmonica, banjo, & guitar
My friend Joe- guitar
Maybelle Carter-autoharp & guitar
Common- Rap artist
If, like I, you are a music lover, try putting together your own fantasy band. Also, please check out members of mine. Except, sorry, you won't
find anything about my friend, Joe.