Christmas Time’s A Coming brings the tax man

Tex and Jody LoganHere’s a sad story of unexpected consequences, one that befalls many adult children of senior parents who pass away without tax planning. As it involves one of the most celebrated songs in all of bluegrass music – and a chance for us all to help out – we thought it worth sharing with our readers.

Regular visitors to Bluegrass Today, and long time bluegrass fans, will recall the health issues and ultimately the death of Tex Logan earlier this year. He left us at 87 years of age, following a lifetime of accomplishments in both music and engineering, none more lasting that his perennial composition, Christmas Time’s A’ Coming which we enjoy every year at this time.

Initially recorded by Bill Monroe in 1951, the song has since been covered by luminaries like Johnny Cash, Dolly Parton, Rhonda Vincent, The Oak Ridge Boys, and Emmylou Harris, and performed live during the holiday season without fail at bluegrass concerts and jam sessions all over the world. It is truly a beloved song, just as its writer is well-remembered for his outsized personality and musical and technical brilliance.

Here’s Ricky Skaggs & Kentucky Thunder performing Christmas Time’s A’ Coming on the Grand Ole Opry a few years ago.

 

But now comes the sad part… Tex’s daughter, Jody, has now found herself facing a substantial tax bill of $38,000 from the state of New Jersey based on expected future royalties for her dad’s iconic song. Jody lives a humble life as a special education teacher, and is without means to satisfy this debt.

So she has created a GoFundMe page and is asking folks who have enjoyed her dad’s music to consider sharing a few dollars to help her get the tax man off her back. With such a wide popularity and love of the song, it should be a simple thing to raise the money, though $38,000 is a big number.

If you have a moment, and a spare dollar or two, it would be a fine way to show our respect for a wonderful man who has given so much joy to the bluegrass community, and his charming daughter who loved him dearly.

Jody can be reached through her GoFundMe page should any tax attorneys be in a position to extend some assistance. Donations can also be shared there online.

Share this:

About the Author

John Lawless

John had served as primary author and editor for The Bluegrass Blog from its launch in 2006 until being folded into Bluegrass Today in September of 2011. He continues in that capacity here, managing a strong team of columnists and correspondents.