LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The Marlins have been making music for six decades.
Gary, Jack, Jace, Robert and Rick began by touring the country with their Dad, he was known as Sleepy.
In the 1950s, it was Sleepy all by himself. One man with a fiddle, piling up awards in the U.S. and Canada.
Sleepy Marlin could make a fiddle do what no other musician alive could accomplish. From classic to country and a few trick shots to top it off.
"He brought so much joy with that fiddle," Gary Marlin said.
While the international awards kept coming so did the kids. Eight in all and in time Sleepy handed them all an instrument.
Today, the Marlins play 30 instruments.
"Jace played the mandolin but we needed a bass so we actually talked Jace into playing the bass," Jack said.
Jace puts it a bit differently.
"No, they stuck me with it." he said with a laugh.
In 1962, Sleepy Marlin decided it was time for his musical family to hit the road.
"He decided I'm going to take these boys and play music. That's almost a crazy idea but he did it. I guess he knew we had something," Gary Marlin said.
Robert Marlin said it's really been an incredible journey.
"We've been doing it as long as Mick Jagger," Gary Marlin said.
Through nightclubs, concert halls, and conventions, the Marlins said the secret of their longevity is what their Dad taught them early on.
Jack Marlin, the eldest brother said, "Dad always taught you those people out there are going to tell you what to play. They know what they like and you play what they like. You can play what you want to play at home. When you're out playing for them you play what they like."
They play a bit of barbershop, pop, the standards and Broadway show tunes but say the only opera they do is, "Grand Ole Opera."
Michelle Marlin is a member of the next generation of Marlins to make their living through music.
Michelle, her brother Chris and dad Jack formed the Marlinaires a few years ago. They're also performing on the road now. Rob, who is Robert's son, joins his dad and uncles from time to time.
They all remember being raised with the music.
"Running around the porch, running in the backyard playing in the dirt while they're in there playing music," Chris Marlin said.
"I think we soaked in so many things without even knowing it," Rob Marlin said.
"They would keep going and keep going but when they nailed it just gave you chills," Michelle Marlin said.
Today, The Marlins and The Marlinaires look through their memory books and give all the credit to that one man who was amazing with a fiddle.
"Mainly, Sleepy Marlin is our legacy and that's who we're trying to perform every night and I'm always thinking of grandpaw," Michelle Marlin said.
And the Marlins plan to keep the legacy going. Sleepy Marlin passed away in January of 2011. About that nickname, as a young man he was doing overnight radio gigs and when he walked into the station one morning someone said, "Gee you look Sleepy." It stuck.
Other Marlin family members entertain in Las Vegas and California.
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