His Unlce's Nephew

Taking a spin on the genetic roulette wheel might land Uncle Abner's nose, Aunt Ruthie's eyes or Mama's ears. For Craig Futch his genetic blessing - or curse as he may sometimes look at it - came from his uncle in the form of a passion for music ... and a guitar.

Craig, the nephew of local folk singer/songwriter legend Greg Futch, has been playing guitar for six years now. While he was learning to crawl through his songs, usually blues and American roots pieces, his uncle handed him the guitar that he had used when he first started playing.

Although Craig readily admits Greg was the biggest influence in his life, musically, it almost went the other way, as his uncle warned him, "It can be either your best friend or your worst enemy." Greg Futch's sudden passing at the age of 39 on June 29, 2001, at the hands of a heart condition certainly didn't help.

"It screwed me all up. It made me want to give it up because I didn't want that to happen to me, dying at such a young age. As far as the music business, it is so hard that I felt that if I did the same thing I would end up like him, and I didn't want to do that," says Craig, his voice cracking under the strain of emotion and the rigors of a late night. The hardships of Greg's life were not eased by the fact that he could never afford health insurance. "And in a way, I was just like him. Greg couldn't give it up just because that was what he loved, and I think what he had is the same thing that I have in me. I tried to give up music and I couldn't. I think that is what I got from him."

Like Greg before him, who became a professional musician at 18, within Craig seemingly burns a fire for playing music that can not be doused no matter how hard he tries.

"I think it will always keep me coming back. Whether I like it or not. I think sometimes it's a curse and sometimes it's a blessing to have music in my blood," he says. Craig might have music in his blood and his feet may always take him to the stage, but those feet aren't necessarily heading toward any shoes other than his own.

"I don't have to prove anything, 'cause I know he is looking down on me and he is just proud of what I am doing," Craig says. "I could be doing anything. As far as shoes to fill, I tried to look at it like that. But just thinking of it in that way deterred me a lot from playing, because I would always think to myself, 'I can never replace, and no one could ever replace, Greg Futch.' I can't even say that. I can just do what I do and that's all I can do ... play what I play, play the music I know. I have a long ways to go. ... I am an adolescent. I'm like a little kid compared to him."

Not only has Craig reaffirmed himself and taken the yoke of performing Greg's standards off his neck, he is nearing confidence in what music he should play and what music he doesn't have to play.

"I will get back into my uncle's music." Craig says. "But it has just taken a while. It is hard for me to listen to his music and try to do it without having those feelings come up again. Eventually, I will be able to listen to his music and play his music, but I just haven't got up the nerve or the strength to dig into his material as much as I would like to."

Last year, Craig and some of Greg's friends settled on another path to honor and preserve his legacy. The first annual F.U.T.C.H. Fest (Friends United Together Concerning Health) launched and featured various performers linked to Greg. At the end of the night, they honored him with a tribute performance that featured different performers playing Greg's songs. Craig played the entire tribute.

According to Strawboss' Jason Valdetero, a F.U.T.C.H. Fest organizer and performer, Craig stepped up and "did a fantastic job," even though he was a fish out of his blues water.

Jeff Landry, another organizer, says Craig smacks of talent found in his family. "Craig definitely got the Futch gene. You can see the talent there. I mean he's young and raw. But for his age, (he's) just like his uncle," Landry says.

This year at rehearsals for the event, Valdetero says Craig once again came to play. "He was over there just tearing it up. ... I think a year from now he is going to be a force to be reckoned with."



Legacy: While Greg fought for his life in the ICU ward, plans were being made by friends to hold a fund-raiser to defray his medical expenses. When he succumbed, the emphasis shifted to help his family pay for his funeral costs. F.U.T.C.H. Fest was born and last year it wiped out nearly all of the funeral expenses by raising $10,000. This year, the organizers returned to not only pay tribute to Greg, but, in his kindhearted nature, also help pay the bills of others. They chose Health Care for Musicians because, according to Landry, it was something that could have possibly saved Greg.

"We want tie it in with something that would have helped Greg, 'cause what he had it was preventable," says Landry, citing the high blood pressure that went untreated and is hereditary in the Futch family.

For Valdetero, the event not only draws attention to the needs of the artistic community, but also to a major influence on a generation of local musicians.

"It is important to me to let people know how important Greg was to this town and to the musicians in this town and how much influence he truly had on all the bands that have come out in this town in the last 10 years," says Valdetero, a friend and fan of Futch since he was 15 and his older brother was sneaking him into to bars to see Greg play.

Greg's legacy, for Craig, doesn't depend on the event's success, but only shines brighter thanks to the efforts being made in his name.

"His legacy to me will always be the same if no one knows of Greg or never met Greg, just because of this. It's remarkable; it is really a beautiful cause," says Craig. "There's a bunch of guys out there that play music for a living that are just wonderful people. They play music and put smiles on people's faces and do good things. And they go play benefit concerts, but yet they don't even have health care, so when they get sick this is what happens to them.

"For me, I wouldn't want the same thing that happened to us - me and my family - to happen to another musician's family," Craig continues. "This cause, this concert, we are gonna raise money, and we are gonna make this happen, this great, beautiful thing."