Music history is rife with siblings who perform together, even if at some point they have a falling out of two along the way. Fortunately, most of the family acts have avoided publicized inner turmoil, such as the brother-sister tandem of the Carpenters, the brothers in Van Halen, and the Taylor brethren of Duran Duran.
There are also a trio of brothers, the Finns, in the Eighties New Wave Band Split Enz, who has hits like “One Step Ahead” and “I Got You.” Making hits around that same time were the sisters of Heart, Ann and Nancy Wilson.
Still in all, any musicians who aspire to form a band with Sis or Bub might want to take cautilon, for there are a number of family groups that have nearly torn each other apart physically or in litigation. The Beach Boys with the Wilson brothers could be the most famous example, along with the highly publicized fights between the Davies siblings in the Kinks or the long standing rivalry of Liam and Noah Gallagher of Oasis.
If such familial spats scare you from taking the stage with someone who shares your parents, you can a!ways opt for a separate career from him. Here are seven examples of musical siblings who have not performed in a band together.
Jim Seals and Dan Seals
Each one has a singing partner, the younger (nicknamed England) with John Ford Coley and the older with Dash Croft.
Andy Gibb and the Bee Gees
Barry, Robin and Maurice had been around for a decade before peaking with Saturday Night Fever, and their little brother hit number one around the same time with “Thicker Than Water.”
Crystal Gale and Loretta Lynn
Coal Miner’s Daughter made big sis a big star, but Crystal topped the charts with “Half the Way.”
Julian Lennon and Sean Lennon
They shared a father who was the genius behind The Beatles, so it is no surprise that the two sons have had diverse recording careers.
Rufus Wainwright and Martha Wainwright
Loudon, their folk-singing father, wrote tunes about both of these offspring before each pursued careers in a variety of musical genre.
Shaun Cassidy and David Cassidy
In his role as Keith in The Partridge Family David sang many hits before little brother made his enduring cover version of “Da Do Ron Ron.”
Johnny Van Zandt and Ronny Van Zandt
Lynyrd Sknyrd lost Ronny in a plane crash, only several years later to employ Johnny in the role of lead singer.