Roy Talbot, the sole surviving member of famed Bermudian Talbot Brothers band, may have a few extra freckles on him but he is still nice, after all this time.

"I am the last remaining member of the band," Mr. Talbot, 94, joked during an interview with The Royal Gazette.

"I keep grumbling about it. They (the other band members) are all gone besides me. Don't you think they owe me a letter? I don't even know what it is like over there."

Mr. Talbot grew up in the Tucker's Town, Hamilton Parish area and was one of the 12 children of Osmond Talbot and Mamie Lambert.

During the Second World War the family was among many forcibly removed to other locations so that the Mid-Ocean Club and Castle Harbour Hotel could be built.

The Talbots moved to a plot of land on what is now Talbot Lane, in Smith's Parish, across from the Marsden Methodist Church.

As part of their compensation for their Tucker's Town land, Osmond Talbot received a piece of land to quarry, and his wife received a piano.

Although the piano might have seemed like a frivolity, it became vitally important to the future of the Talbot family. Mrs. Talbot, a church organist, used it to teach her children music.

"I remember her taking us off to church to sing, because there was no one else on that Sunday," said Mr. Talbot. "She would play a note on the old piano and say, now Roy that is your note. And then another note, now Archie that's your note and so on.

"She would say that's your note, find it and stay with it. It sounds a bit silly, but it was big stuff then. We learned harmony. No matter what song we were singing, every song had harmony."

It was brother Archie's idea to form a quartet in church that included their cousin Ernest Stovell.

Meanwhile Mrs. Talbot made her sons practice endlessly, telling them, "Your voice doesn't go out singing by itself".

In the 1920s and 1930s one of the Talbots would drive a horse and buggy taxi, and take along his guitar to serenade visitors.

A frequent customer was the influential Ford Johnson senior executive of Smith Barney, and owned a home called The Jungles.

He was one of the pioneer promoters of selling Bermuda as a tourist destination in the 1930s

He was so impressed by the buggy ride music, that he got the Talbot Brothers a gig in a local hotel.

He also had them play at parties at his house. This was the impetus to form a band consisting of Austin, Archie, cousin Cromwell (Mandy) Manders, Roy, Ross 'Blackie' and the youngest Talbot brother Bryan 'Dick' (1920).

The Talbot Brothers made a name playing in the hotels for the thousands of young college students who invaded the Island during college week in the 1950s and 1960s. They became known for such songs as 'She Has Freckles On Her Butt', 'Bermuda Buggy Ride' and 'Yellow Bird'.

They became so popular that they were invited to tour in country clubs in the United States and Europe. They also released four albums in the 1950s.

They appeared on the 'Ed Sullivan Show' twice in the 1950s, and also played at the Mayfair Hotel in London, among other places. To carry out their careers they crossed many colour barriers, as their gigs were often at exclusive "all white" establishments. "We had a real wonderful time as I think back," said Mr. Talbot. "We were always treated well. People were very nice to us."

Mr. Talbot played the base fiddle and was well known for having concocted his own instrument known officially as 'the doghouse' and affectionately as 'Bermudavarius' (a nod to the Stradivarius violin).

When The Royal Gazette visited Mr. Talbot his hands were giving him a bit of trouble, but he was still able to pluck a few notes on the Bermudavarius.

The instrument Mr. Talbot has now was not the original. The first one was made out of plywood and Swift brand meat packing crates. "To make this one I couldn't find the thin plywood I used to make the others," he said. "So I had to get a piece of wood and sand it all down equal. I had to work work work work on it."

It is said that the Talbot Brothers travelled a million miles, to sing a million songs, to make a million people happy. Travelling all that way with a piece of equipment that could be mistaken for a medium sized dog's accommodation, was not without its challenges.

His creations met with about as many adventures and misadventures as the band itself.

"One time we were out in this place going towards New Jersey or maybe New York," said Mr. Talbot.

"The base fiddle was strapped straight up on top of a cab. We were driving along this road that had a lot of slaughterhouses along it. The base fiddle started to slip.

"Everyone was beeping their horns. Somehow the wind along the road picked that thing up. The cab backed up and up until everyone stopped.

"When they stopped there was the base, slowly falling. No one could get near it to stop it. It fell in the road. It was a dangerous road. I went off and got it."

After shows, people would come up on stage, not just to meet the Talbot Brothers but to see the Bermudavarius. It was signed by all manner of people including Sir Winston Churchill, Bing Crosby and many other celebrities and politicians.

This added value to an instrument originally made of recycled materials.

Possibly for this reason, the famous base fiddle eventually went missing when the Talbot Brothers were forced to check it at baggage at John F. Kennedy Airport in New York City.

"I think someone stole it for the signatures on it," Mr. Talbot said.

"That almost broke our hearts. They probably cut out the signatures with a knife. They probably wanted it for a lot of money."

Mr. Talbot made another Bermudavarius, but this one met a better end when a collector in the United States purchased it.

"We had a lot of really nice times, travelling and meeting people," said Mr. Talbot.

Many of Mr. Talbot's recollections are included in the new Talbot Brothers book and DVD compiled by Mr. Talbot's nephew Clement Talbot, son of Ross (Blackie) Talbot.

"Uncle Roy played a very significant part in the story of the Talbot Brothers," said Clement Talbot. "Without Uncle Roy you wouldn't have the story. He also had the collection of historical pictures.

"At first Uncle Roy was a bit hesitant, because they had a problem with their songs being stolen in the past.

"But I convinced him to do it, saying that if we didn't do it now, someone else would later, and maybe not very well. This was our chance to do something of the highest calibre."

But the compilation was very much a family affair, with many other nephews and relatives and friends commenting on the Talbot Brothers history.

Roy Talbot's grandson, Delmont Talbot, Jr. who runs a music shop helped Clement Talbot sort out copywright issues relating to the music.

"The younger generation doesn't have a clue about what contributions the Talbot Brothers, Sidney Bean and other groups made to the development of the hospitality and tourism industry," said Clement Talbot. "If we didn't do this book, in another 10 or 15 years, people would be asking, 'who were the Talbot Brothers?'.

"They would have been totally forgotten like so many other entertainers have been forgotten. I want to thank Uncle Roy, and his wife Mary, for giving me the encouragement to do this major project. Now we have at least part of the history captured in black and white."

Clement Talbot was on his way to collect the first copies of the DVD and book for his uncle Roy. "I already have an idea about the frame I am going to put it in," said Roy Talbot.

Next to music, Roy Talbot's second love has always been carpentry.

"I built my whole house," said Mr. Talbot. "I made up the mortar. All of that was done by hand. The mortar was mixed and no one turned up to help me.

"So I decided to do it myself. I tried it. All I knew that you set the cornerstone on the lowest point on the property and then you come up.

"Other than that I had my level and everything. I brought the line right up. I did pretty good. And I went from there on. The only thing I didn't do was the roof. I didn't know anything about cutting roof. A fellow talking to me one day said he would mark the slate out for me, all I had to do was cut it out.

"I went and bought a nice saw and cut out the pieces and got it all filled in. For the windows the man told me what to do, he told me measure this and that. He told me if I was doubtful to give him a call."

Mr. Talbot has three grown children, and has been married to his wife Mary for 22 years.

"When I finished with the Talbot Brothers I missed it, but not really," he said. "I had enough work to do. It was almost like I breathed a sigh of relief."