David performed with his mother, father, and brother during his teenage years in churches, playing bluegrass gospel and southern gospel with acoustic instrumentation. During this time, he also sang in school choirs, eventually making it to the Kentucky High School All-State Chorus during the 11th and 12th grade.
David attended college at Cumberland College, where he studied classical singing and music theory. In his extracurricular time (which, in reality, took more time than his actual studies) he got his first electric guitar and learned to play lead, which he utilized in a pop band that played covers contemporary to the time (late 1990's).
It wasn't until around 2005 that David really returned to his grounding in acoustic roots music. He attended a couple of bluegrass and old-time music festivals, in which he competed in guitar flatpicking and placed poorly. This inspired him to focus on learning to play lead on his acoustic guitar in new and better ways.
When David flatpicks and sings, one can hear all the unique influences that have brought him to where he is now. The journey is not over, however, as he continually learns and experiences new things. The best is yet to come.
David's Guitar
David's main instrument is a 2005 Martin JC-16RGTE. That stands for J (jumbo body style), C (cutaway), 16 (fanciness level, which is not very), R (rosewood back and sides), GT (gloss top), and E (electronics).
The guitar came from the factory with a Fishman dual source pickup, the two sources being an undersaddle piezo pickup and an internal mic. Being unhappy with the electronics, David switched the Fishman undersaddle pickup for an LR Baggs iBeam. This helped matters out some, but he is nowhere near satisfied. He hopes to try out a dual B-Band system, as he has received several recommendations for that system. Guitarists. They're never content with what they've got.
You can email David at david@peerlessmountain.com