David Tewksbury

"Locally-grown soulful indie folk" rooted in the fusion of art/album rock, jazz, folk and r&b of 70's radio, before stations had "formats"...

I grew up in a household full of music. Both parents sang in choir. My dad played jazz standards on piano and Sweet Georgia Brown on the ukelele. My mom simply sang her heart out around the house. I was encouraged explore and enjoy music of all kinds. Many nights I fell asleep with a battery-powered radio on my pillow, pulling in album-rock stations from around the country. After playing trumpet for 5 years, including jazz band, I quit in high school when the director required us to be in the marching band. Not my gig.

I started writing "lyrics" (poems without music) in my late teens, knowing I couldn't sing (a real passion) with a trumpet in my mouth. I signed up for a community college class in guitar to kick my butt into learning to play, and ended up penning my first tune at 20: a jazz-folky diatribe toward a girl who enfuriated my melancholia with her optimism. Nice. 30 or so songs later gets us to today.

..Still writing, still loving it. It's who I am. I fronted a band called Image for 3 years, was half of the electric-acoustic duo Zofia Drone for 2 years, and have mainly done solo since 2003. Couple years back I pulled a couple friends to form a new thing called Hemingstown Radio for several gigs from Crozet Music Fest to Gravity to a couple cofeehouses. Liking that well.

Most stuff here is me emoting the world I see and feel through my senses and in my soul. Singing and writing is catharsis and therapy for me. It's my calling, whatever that means in the Good Father's grand scheme.