Will Stratton takes his surname from his great grandfather George Stratton, who was a traveling preacher in Kentucky, in the tradition of the “circuit riders.” Circuit riders were Methodist preachers who rode their routes on horseback, holding services in a different town each day of the week. George’s daughter Louise was Will’s maternal grandmother, and Louise, or “Honey,” as Will knew her, bought Will a piano when he was four years old, and made him sit down and practice every day. Will never really found religion, at least not in a concrete sense, but music took its place early on and never let go.
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