Donnie was a music prodigy who could play multiple instruments, sang great, and could write amazing songs. The other brother was a decent drummer. They loved each other deeply and although Joe could've been jealous of Donnie because he was a phenom, instead was happy for him and cheering him to shoot for a music career. Joe was content working on their father's family farm. Music to him was fun, but not a career choice.
Donnie's father believed in both boys and did everything he could to support them including building a state-of-the-art $100,000 (half a million in today's dollars) recording studio on their farm and in it they self-produced and self-released their first album, Dreamin' Wild, in 1979, an eclectic mix of rock, soul, R&B, country and funk music.
Their father and mother almost lost their farm due to borrowing money against it to help Donnie pursue his dream; but, the album flopped, and they were in a deep hole. They kept having to sell land to bring in revenue and his 1,600-acre farm dropped down to just a couple of hundred acres.
Here's where the story gets wild. Around 30 years after the album was released (it was 2008), someone in the music business found one of their records at an antique record store in the vinyl section and he was blown away at the sound and the lyrics. The brothers were in shock when they heard someone was interested in their music; especially after so long.
The record company relaunched the album with all the marketing behind it and put them on a mini concert tour. Donnie had kept playing music all those years and was making money at small venues including weddings where he and his wife would play so he was ready to go when they talked about the relaunch. Joe hadn't played drums for 30 years, so he had to quickly catch up.
People began to be exposed to their music and even after 30 years, they were performing great, and the crowds were going wild. They were the buzz in Los Angeles. I knew nothing about this story until I saw the movie, which I strongly recommend watching if you are into music. I'm now a fan.