My daddy had been a fiddler, and I heard a lot of fiddle music as a child. I had a ukulele and had played along with him.
I grew up in South Florida, and my family was pretty poor. We weren't your upper-class whites by any means.
I had a ukulele when I was about seven. Then I started playing around with the mandolin and the banjo.
I'm sure you have arguments with your friends, but they don't get printed up and magnified in the papers.
I've written some songs that are pretty scary, but 'Jessica,' 'Ramblin' Man,' and 'Blue Sky' are happy songs. That's the way I wrote them: have-fun tunes to make you feel good.
Our main thing we'd have to entertain us: All my uncles would come over, and we'd sit around the living room on a weekend night, and we'd play. That was a big event for me, getting to play. We never did have any percussion.
