Musicians’ Corner celebrates the families and ancestors of some of the talented performers who have made music at T.C. O'Leary's over the years. Hover over the numbered frames and click (or tap on your mobile device) to see the photos and read the bios for individual photos. You can also scroll down for the full list.
1. Thomas Frederick Steen and Kirk Thomas Steen (c. 1949, Troy, MI) – grandfather and father of revered patron, scholar and musician Michael Steen. Tom was an elementary school science teacher in Detroit, and Kirk was a songwriter who taught Michael to play the guitar as a young boy. Thomas died in 2021 and Kirk in 2014, and Michael received news of both of their deaths while on Alberta St. (c. 1949, Troy, MI) – grandfather and father of revered patron, scholar and musician Michael Steen. Tom was an elementary school science teacher in Detroit, and Kirk was a songwriter who taught Michael to play the guitar as a young boy. Thomas died in 2021 and Kirk in 2014, and Michael received news of both of their deaths while on Alberta St.
2. Paul and Maria Grieco (c. 1942, Brooklyn, NY) - Great, great grandparents of patron and musician, Jacob Grieco, one of “The Lads.” Paul and Maria immigrated to Brooklyn in the early 1900s from the Bari region of southeast Italy. (The Grieco family must have originated in Greece, as “Grieco” literally means “of Greece.”) Paul was in the ice business, delivering blocks of ice around the neighborhoods in Brooklyn (pre-refrigeration). He later opened a corner store where his grandson (Jacob’s grandfather, also named Paul) worked as a clerk in his teens and liked to dip into the ice cream when his grandpa wasn't looking. Maria was a loving housewife to the family of 9 children! Their first born was Dominic, Jacob’s great grandpa. Dominic grew up to marry Catherine, had three kids, including yet another Paul, Jacob’s grandfather. The rest is history!
3. Hyman Gerber (c. 1911, Vilno, Russia) - great great uncle of performer Rose Gerber, posing with the famous child prodigy violinist, Jascha Heifetz. Hyman was born in 1880 in Wolyn, Russia, (now Ukraine) and was a professional violinist who performed around the world and taught violin. The photo was taken when the two musicians were on tour together. Hyman is said to have performed for the Czar of Russia, which is how he met his wife, Rose Winokur, who is said to have been a seamstress at the palace. Hyman was a political activist whose actions (it’s believed) forced him to leave Russia and come to the U.S. in 1914 where he settled in Dorchester, Massachusetts. Rose stayed behind but eventually joined Hyman in 1921. Hyman died in 1936 in West Roxbury, Massachusetts.
4. Dorothy Clark and John G. Powell (c. 1945, Denver, CO) - grandmother and father of musician Ryan Powell. “Grandma Dottie” came from Swiss, Scottish, Irish and English ancestry. (Dottie’s grandmother, Marie Schisser, sailed to New York by herself from Switzerland in the mid-1800s, making her way to Houston, TX, marrying, then to Franktown, CO, to start a family.) Dorothy, her husband Darrell and son John all co-owned a little import shop in Denver called Banbury Fair, with the tagline “the shop with a British accent.” (Yeah, sorry about that one.) It sold imports from England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales, and the clan always had a booth at the Highland Games in Golden, CO, each year when Ryan was growing up. Dottie and John always had a bit of a disagreement over which Scottish Clan to claim in the family. She was a proponent of Clan MacPhearson while John claimed Clan Gordon. Ryan acquired his love for singing the old Irish ballads from his dad John, who would sing to his family in the car (with his deep, baritone and slightly out of tune voice) songs like “Rosin the Bow” and “The Moonshiner.” The trapped audience pretended to hate it but truly loved and absorbed the songs until they became part of the family DNA.
5. Joe and Joyce Howard (c. 1990s, Gridley, CA) – paternal grandparents of musician Preston Howard. Joe worked in concrete construction and Joyce was a homemaker. Joe's ancestors came from Ulster, Ireland, while Joyce's grandfather came to America from the village of Drighlington in West Yorkshire, England, in the late 19th century.
6. Peggy Dall (c. 1972, Atlanta, GA) – Beloved wife of pub musician (bodhrán player) Andrew Dall. Born Peggy Ann Musgrave in 1946 Atlanta, Peggy married Andrew in London in 1969. They moved to Portland in 1975 where they were partners in Dall & Dall Advertising until Peggy’s death in 2022. She is survived by Andrew and their three children--Elizabeth, John and William and granddaughter Louise Mackay Shearer. Regarding the photo on the wall, Andrew said, “I used a new Canon camera I had just bought, and I developed the film myself then printed the photo in the dark room at Georgia Tech. I first saw Peggy in London in July of 1968 when I worked in the Advertising Department of Mobil Oil Company Ltd. Peggy had just been hired by the Public Relations Department right across the hall from my office. It was her first day at Mobil and I literally did a double-take when I set eyes on her - it was the Thunderbolt! We were a couple from the very start, until the day she died peacefully at home 54 years later. I have always felt astoundingly lucky that such a charming, intelligent and gorgeous young woman decided to marry me!”
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