BROTHERS IN ARMS: Nobody's Clowns, Let Alone Cathy's

Previously, I've mentioned the uncanny musical connection that can exist between siblings. Real siblings, not fake ones like the Traveling Wilburys or the White Stripes. Brotherly love can make for some nice sounds but also some bitter breakups. I think it's time to spend a week discussing the greatest fraternal acts in rock.

The Everly Brothers were weird-looking, a problem compounded by the fact that there were two of them. But Phil and Don, sons of Kentucky country singer and DJ Ike Everly, sang in harmonies so close you couldn't separate them with a butter knife. In the late '50s and '60s, they placed 35 songs on the Billboard charts, more than any other duo. They influenced everyone from the Beatles (listen to "Two of Us" again) to the Red Hot Chili Peppers (Anthony Kiedis named his daughter Everly). If it weren't for the Everly Brothers, Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel would be junior high music teachers in Queens right now.

The Everlys found much of their success recording the songs of Felice and Boudleaux Bryant. The husband/wife duo (my last topic coming up again) wrote "Bye Bye Love," "All I Have to Do is Dream," "Bird Dog" and others for Phil and Don to work their magic on. The Everlys also recorded songs by contemporaries like Roy Orbison and Paul McCartney. Both Phil and Don were accomplished songwriters themselves, penning, together or separately, "Cathy's Clown," "'Til I Kissed You" and "When Will I Be Loved."

By the time their epic stream of hits had dried up, the Everly Brothers couldn't stand one another. They admit they saw each other only once in the 1970s-- at their father's funeral. But some things are too good to leave alone, and they reunited in the 1980s. Their loyal descendants, Simon and Garfunkel, coaxed them back out on the road in 2003. Simon claims the experience was the fulfillment of a lifelong dream. Well, okay, making a video with Chevy Chase was the real goal, but performing with the Everlys is pretty cool, too.

TODAY'S RECOMMENDATION: "Walk Right Back" by the Everly Brothers
AVAILABLE ON: Walk Right Back: The Everly Brothers on Warner Bros.; iTunes