A Real Family Affair

The 1980’s! The decade seemed to be a simpler time in the musical world. The music video was established as a needed promotional tool. Record companies were still releasing large musical groups actually playing and recording instrumentally. And there were still family acts actively recording and performing like DeBarge, The Jacksons and The Jets. There is something special about a family having the talent to provide world class entertainment. And believe me The Jets were and still are a fantastic group of musicians. A couple of weeks ago as I was driving along I heard “You Got it All” playing on the radio. It brought back memories of watching The Jets perform and hearing their music played everywhere. Amazingly they were very young at the time with the youngest member (Elizabeth Wolfgramm) being only thirteen years of age. However, youth is no deterrence to musical ability and mature performances. The Jets’ fan base grew quickly with both old and young listeners. Interestingly even with the eventual departure of some original members, the Wolfgramm children remained close. It is well documented that their parents migrated to the United States from the Isle of Tonga in the South Pacific. Also documented is the family, like one of their predecessors The Osmonds, being of Mormon faith. Maybe their faith is a factor in their remaining a close-knit family. Perhaps! The Wolfgramms have also seemed to avoid some of the problems that have affected other family groups like drug abuse and infighting. Even though the children grew up and started their own families and musical projects, they never strayed far from each other. Many musical offshoots from The Jets have been in the gospel music genre but almost always involving some combination or Wolfgramm siblings. Moving forward to the present The Jets have celebrated a twenty-five year anniversary and they are currently working on new music. They certainly are not teenagers anymore but after viewing a recent live performance it looks like they still enjoy performing together. In fact, Saturday May 26th The Jets performed a benefit concert for younger brother Mika who is suffering from heart disease and in need of money for medical expenses. Yes, the Wolfgramm children have definitely grown up but The Jets are still a real family affair.

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