Back In The Dave

In late 1983, I began to sense tensions within the band. Clearly, there was a pink elephant in the room. I denied there was a growing issue. Instead, I did what I always did. I went to my bedroom and came up with a bassline for another dance tune, as if music would solve our problems! We felt success was on the way. And all of us began to live as if it had happened already! But in early 1984. Everything went wrong!

Transition; is a word that often refers to the passing of life, a change, a shift, the old to a new. After months of trial and tribulation trying to figure out our sound! Chace experienced a transition between late 1981 thru 1982.  There were so many steps along our journey. As always, defining and taking the first step was our priority. And to me, that meant coming up with a dance song, a funky bass line.  It is a long episode, so hang in there. Our story will amaze you as much as we were living it! And if you're not dancing by the end of the episode, I'll be shocked! 

The fall of 1981 was insane! As a band, we could not find songs that we felt could compete with the top forty artists of the era. Musically we had to stand with Luther Vandross, Rick James, Chaka Kahn, and Tina Marie. And that’s just scratching the surface! Clearly, this was no laughing matter, LOL! We needed to define our sound. That was the key that would separate us from the immense top 40 billboard talent facing us!  The only way to create “our sound” would be to write songs to spotlight our unique talents. And that’s where our heartaches started! We threw out song after song. They were good! Just not good enough; some just sucked! Maybe we should not have compared ourselves to other artists. But we knew that's what the record companies would do. As a new band, we were wet behind the ears. And it showed in the music! We had two things in our favor. Raw talent and a Ballard that gave us hope! 

During high school, I was dead serious about being like the commodores. I modeled myself behind Lionel Richie and wanted to follow in the band's footsteps. I knew the first step was to go to college and start a band. Let me be clear. Not so much to learn music. But to start a band! Like the Commodores did. I did just that in the winter of 1981. Chace became so promising. I dropped out of college to focus on songwriting and growing the band. Then the unexpected happens. Chace broke up in January 1984. Leaving me hurt and confused. That experience, amazingly, started my music career and my life. It is a bittersweet story for me, but what you’ll hear is how we grew from jamming around the family piano in my family’s living room to recording in one of New York City’s major recording studios and preparing to take over the world with our funky, dance sound! 

Do you recall a moment in life when you were struggling with something? No matter how hard. It didn't click! Then out of nowhere. A stranger comes along and teaches you a little something, and bam! You got it. This month's "Back in The Dave" podcast episode tells the story of my struggle learning a challenging style of bass playing called "thumbing."Then five years later, a crazy twist happens! 

I have a new artist and an old friend I would like to introduce to you. His name is Aaron "Bionic" Brown. Aaron and I met twenty-five years ago. It is hard to believe so many years have gone by. His love for jazz and his eclectic taste for so much music surpasses my comprehension.  A few months back. I took a couple of hours to catch up with Aaron. He played his new songs for me, and we talked some studio talk. I was also interested in digging into Aarons back in the day life growing up. Like me, he was a young musician in New York.  I also wanted to know his thoughts on life today, health wellness, and how he juggles it all!  In this episode, you will hear Aaron's new music and learn how to follow him. He is worth every listen.

Benjamin N. Cardozo high school 1977, a new school, and new friends. The tenth grade was the bomb! Not because I was so in love with school, my grades surely told another story! But it was the time in my life when I'd begin to meet musicians from all over Queens,NY. My older brother Anthony had been attending Cardozo high two years before me. Once I arrived at the school. He began introducing me to as many people who were into music as he could. Little did I know. He would introduce me to Julio Herrera. A keyboard player that went on to have an awesome career in music!

“Back in The Dave returns after a one-year hiatus! Listen now to the “Happy New Year” episode, and when you’re done. Now is a great time to binge-listen to the past five seasons. I’m very excited to be back doing the show, and looking forward to engaging with you all!

It's been since Novemebr 2021 since my last episode, much has happeded, and much is changing. I'm here to update you on the show, and more.

Thanksgiving is that one holiday when the family is focused on family, togetherness, and love of family. But, when a family splits in two, Thanksgiving looks and feels different. I did notice those differences, but the music stood out the most.

Our generation grew up when television was just getting started, and if your family was like mine. Going to bed with the television on was a way of life. I’ve asked health coach Christina Wakefield to be my special guest on this episode. Christina works at Parsely Health, a membership-based, holistic health, holistic medicine healthcare provider, to which I am a member, and Christina is my health coach! This was a deep, and informative live session

Have you ever had an experience in your life when you just knew something messed up was going to happen? In 1985 I had that feeling. What I didn't know was, it was going to happen while I was building my new storefront recording and rehearsal studio! I was so pissed!

Long before I had given thought to play an instrument. Life was knocking at my door saying. "Hey, music is your path in your life, man, wake up!" I ignored it for the longest time. Flying model rockets was way more fun! Until one day, I picked up a kazoo, you remember, the little plastic wax paper instrument? I played the hell out of that instrument, which led to performing live in concert, in...the "cafeteria," LOL!

The annual "Summer Jam" celebration. Time to dance, sing, and uplift your spirit with some of the hottest jams of our generation.

Lyrics, the meaning in a song; we're so driven by the beat and groove in a song; the lyrics go over our heads. Yet, when you stop to listen to the lyrics, how many times did you say, that's my story? I feel that way, or I can relate. Music is powerful. Music with lyrics speaking to the human experience is epic! Let's listen to some deep lyrics.

Fantasy World, my latest single releases today, but how did I almost not record this song, and what "reinspired" me to record it after forty years of it sitting in my ice cooler! Come on, let's go "Back in The Dave" to 1981, when this song deeply disappointed me!  

1968 was the mark of a significant change in sound in the music industry. Sly and The Family Stone released their first single, "Dance to The music," and music would never be the same again. I was the young age of six that year, and it would be eight years before I'd make a decision to become a musician and begin to play Sly and The Family Stone songs on my bass. I wouldn't fully understand the "deep" impact of Sly and The Family Stone's influence on my bass playing, songwriting, and production until after decades are gone.

I was innocent in my teens. I didn't care who made the music. I loved it and the artists. Over time, I kept hearing the term "blue-eyed soul," I didn't know what it meant, and I didn't care! But it did begin to stir my curiosity the more I heard it. One day in 1978, at an M-U-1 band practice. I asked John, the bandleader, "what does blue-eyed soul mean?" With a chiseled look, he said, "David, it's white folks stealing our music!" I was shocked! I had no idea. A person's skin didn't matter to me.

Let's honor the life and music of the maestro, Barry White! Through his music, we'll celebrate "Black History Month" and Valentine's day. Sitting in the back seat of my mother's Chevy Nova, a song came on the radio. I thought it was Issac Hayes! I listened more, "no, it's not Issac Hayes, wait, yes it is, no, yes, no, yes,! I thought my ears were playing tricks on me. Finally, I realized it wasn't Hayes. At the end of the song the DJ said, "and that was Barry White!" "Who the heck is Barry White?" I asked myself. I had no idea. I only knew I loved his music, and I soon found out! Before Lionel Richie and the Commodores, Barry White was my man!

My dad, boy, oh boy, I could say a ton of things about him! One thing that stands out was his sick sense of humor. When he was in comedy mode, he'd do anything to get a laugh from his children. One day, he took it way, way too far! In this episode, my take on the Capitol building riot.