There is no shortage of famous and influential figures from the Commonwealth. However, only a select few have been inducted into the Kentucky Music Hall of Fame. One of the newest additions is the McLain Family Band. Ruth McLain-Smith teaches at Morehead State University’s Kentucky Center for Traditional Music and is an original member of the group. She said her family has been playing music her whole life.
“We lived in Hindman, Kentucky, where we started playing music together officially in 1968. That's when we had our first television series on the Hazard Television station,” McLain-Smith said.
Filling out the rest of the original group is Ruth’s father Raymond, who was Director of the Hindman Settlement School before moving to Berea to teach Ethnomusicology, her brother Raymond, sister Alice, and her brother-in-law Al White. Brother Raymond taught at Belmont University and East Tennessee State before being asked to come to Morehead to be the Director of the Center for Traditional Music. Ruth said teaching is a virtue for her family.
“One of the most meaningful things ever is to get to be in this environment where it's just inspiring. The students inspire us I think as much as we inspire them,” said McLain-Smith
Many of those students have gone on to have meaningful careers in the music industry. Daxson Lewis is one of those former students and is now a full-time member of the band and current Director of the KCTM. He said because of the band his life will never be the same.
“And to be able to call them my family and to have all of the opportunities that I've had because of my association with them has just been it's changed my life forever in a very positive way,” Lewis said.
Through the years the band has played with and gotten to know many legendary and influential musicians. Ruth even sang the classic tune “I Want to Be a Cowboys Sweetheart” with country icon Patsy Montana. Daxson Lewis said the McLains are a one-of-a-kind band.
“What other band plays a bluegrass festival one day in Indiana, goes to Thailand, and then comes back and works with the Symphony Orchestra? That is a versatility that is almost unbelievable,” said Lewis
The McLains have toured over 60 countries and all 50 states. At the request of the US State Department, they have played with and for musicians around the globe, sometimes singing with them in their native language. Fellow traditional music professor at MSU and musician Nathan Kiser said, what sets the McLains apart from other Kentucky acts is the reach of their influence.
“They may have played in more countries around the world than even some of the biggest modern stars that we had through their connections, you know, working with the State Department and going for the sole purpose of having other cultures experience this music,” Kiser said.
Ruth said being included in the Kentucky Music Hall of Fame is very much valued by her and the rest of the band.
“It's an incredible honor to be included in this 2024 class induction into the Kentucky Music Hall of Fame it's kind of unbelievable,” McLain-Smith said.
Ruth added the Kentucky Hall of Fame is an important link to the past that ensures this music can live on.
“All the sharing they did with the styles of music and the impact they made on how the music changed and to make the music that is available for people now, it wouldn't have happened if it hadn't been for those musicians. So, we have great respect for the Kentucky Music Hall of Fame and the museum there,” said McLain-Smith.
With their induction, the McLain Family Band joins the ranks of influential stars like Bill Monroe, Chris Stapelton, Loretta Lynn, and many others.
The McLain Family Band has been playing music for over 56 years and has no intention of stopping. They are being honored as musicians but to their students current and former they remain a bright light guiding them into the future of music and life.