(CNN) -- He was born Roger Kynard Erickson in 1947 in Dallas, but his fans know him as Roky (pronounced Rocky). For a career that spans nearly half a century, Erickson has spent little time actually performing, but he still has a loyal following and is on tour again. Music, he says, has been a lifelong part of him. He learned to play piano as a child, taught himself acoustic guitar at 12 and then learned the electric guitar. "It was just something that I would also look forward to," he says. " If I could, I would get out of school, then I would go home and play the guitar."
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Roky Erickson's career spans nearly half a century
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He has battled mental illness for years after being diagnosed with schizophrenia
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He currently is back on tour and plays alongside his son
Roger Kynard Erickson
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He says playing alongside his father "teaches me so much," and that no matter how bad things get for the elder @placeholder, "he's still positive."