Tim Flannery’s life has revolved around three constants: family, baseball, and music. These three simple things have become a kind of a holy trinity for Flannery, or Flan as most folks call him. He found his calling(s) among them, and he’s carved out legacies.
Throughout his baseball career, it was not uncommon to see Flan with his guitar in hand. His uncle, Hal Smith – hero of the 1960 World Series with the Pittsburgh Pirates – was one of Flan’s earliest baseball and musical influences. “My uncle Hal was also a songwriter and carried a Gibson J 35 everywhere. I grew up never knowing you couldn’t do both.”
He spent his entire playing career with the San Diego Padres, retiring as a fan favorite in 1989. During that time, he got married and started a family with his wife, Donna. Flan became third base coach for the San Diego Padres in 1996 at the same time his musical career was starting to blossom.
Flan released five albums of his original music between 1997 and 2002, when he left the Padres organization. Flan writes songs about his family roots, love, and the surrender that comes when you understand some things are out of your control. He writes about baseball and being on the road, the call of the highway, and the beacon of home. He assembled an ace band, the Lunatic
Fringe, that bring his songs roaring to life in various musical genres like bluegrass, country, and rock. More albums came in 2004 and 2005 as he built a loyal fan base through multiple performances with his band.
In 2007 Flan became the third-base coach for the San Francisco Giants who won the World Series in 2010, 2012, and 2014. Flan endeared himself to baseball and music fans alike, releasing four albums during his time with the team. After a horrific incident after a game in 2011, Giants fan Bryan Stow was in critical condition. This violence spurred Flan and his wife, Donna, to create the Love Harder Project, a non-profit charitable organization dedicated to anti-bullying. He raises funds for this effort with the proceeds he makes from his performances, and the 501(c)3 organization also takes donations from the public.
Flan released Three Ring Circus in 2015, Last of the Old Dogs in 2017 and, in 2019, The Light, made its way into the world.
When all the world shut down in 2020, Flannery, who had become a grandfather, spent much of his time with his family. In October, he developed a life-threatening staph infection. After two of the hardest months of Flan’s life, he recovered at home with help from his ever-loving family.
Tim is currently working on his latest album, Waiting On A Miracle which will be released in 2022.
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