www.motu.com

As keyboard player, songwriter, and founding member of Bon Jovi, David Bryan has seen and learned a lot about music and the music business in the past 20 years. After selling 100 million albums, traveling the world and playing to millions of people in 50 countries, and living through the rock and roll years, the grunge years, the rap years, and everything in between, David has a lot of experience to share.

David Bryan - Keyboardist, songwriter, founding member Bon Jovi

MOTU: David, thank you for spending a few minutes with us.

DB: My pleasure. I've been a MOTU user for a long time. I'm happy to help you spread the word.

MOTU: Can you tell us how long you've used Digital Performer?

DB: I got the first version of Digital Performer when it came out in the late 1980s. I got my first Apple computer in 1984. I've always loved using Macs.

MOTU: Any cool early DP moments?

DB: I sequenced the bass line for Living On A Prayer in DP.

MOTU: That's a memorable part!

DB: I use DP to develop parts and entire song demos. In addition to my keyboard parts I'm deep into working with drum loops and whatever sounds I can get my hands on.
The band has been working on a new CD and I'm using DP to record my tracks. In Jon's studio we have a Pro Tools system and SSL mixing board. When basic tracks get recorded, we do a two track mix, which I transfer onto my G4 Powerbook into DP. I record MIDI and audio parts in DP. When I've got all my tracks recorded as audio, I give those raw audio files back to the Pro Tools engineer and he drops them back into the main session.

MOTU: Do you use OMF export from DP?

DB: I could, but in this case I'm merging the edits into single audio files for each track in DP. I burn those files to CD and give them to the engineer. He just drags those files into the ProTools session and everything lines up perfectly. It's simple and works well.

MOTU: Are you working with MIDI or audio within DP?

DB: Both. I'll record audio tracks directly or I'll work with sequenced tracks triggering hardware synths and virtual instruments. On the new CD I'd say 99% of my tracks come from virtual instruments.

MOTU: Tell us about your virtual instruments.

DB: I have the Moog Modular from Arturia and Reason from Propellorheads to name a few. Now I've got MachFive and it's changed the way I work.

MOTU: How is that?

DB: I've gotta tell you, some of my best keyboard work ever is on this new CD and it's being played on MachFive. I've had all my old sound modules sampled, such as my Yamaha TX816. Originally I played these samples on Akai samplers. Now what I've done is import my Akai library into MachFive. I've also got Kurzweil libraries running in MachFive and, of course, I use the sounds that come with MachFive. That means I've got original samples, Akai samples, Kurzweil samples, and all the stock MachFive sounds ready to go in my Powerbook. I don't have to carry all that hardware around to have access to my entire library of sounds. Also, because all these sounds load up into MachFive, I can build layered instruments that are combinations of different libraries. I've also just got the MOTU MX4 synth and I'm starting to check that out.

MOTU: And then you further tweak those sounds?

DB: Oh yeah! I tweak everything! Mach Five makes it really easy to set attacks, releases, filters, and all those performance aspects. Also I'm really into the effects built into MachFive. I can build these massive layered sounds and then add flangers, distortion, reverb and all that. Mach Five lets me save the effects with the sounds, so it's easy to manage and recall patches when I need them.

MOTU: And you do this on a Powerbook?

DB: That's right. I'm running a 1ghz G4 Powerbook with a gig of RAM. I've been using DP 4.12 under OS 10.3. This is my recording, writing, and road rig.

MOTU: So Bon Jovi has a new CD on the way?
DB: Yes we do. We've been busy and we actually have two CDs coming out. In November we'll be releasing a four CD box set.

MOTU: Greatest hits?

DB: Not quite. The first three disks are songs from over the years that didn't make it to the records. When Bon Jovi goes into the studio to make a record, we might have 25 or so songs on tap and we have to choose the twelve best. So the box set is going to have all those alternate, unreleased songs. The forth disk in the set has demos of some of the hits as well as movie soundtrack material.

MOTU: I understand you have a song of your own on this disk?

DB: I do. I do a lot of film scoring work, all in DP of course. I've been working on a musical called Memphis. I wrote a song called Memphis Lives in Me and we put it in the box set. I started out writing the song at home on my Steinway. I recorded the Steinway as an audio track into DP. I took my powerbook over to Jon's studio and we tracked my vocal part there.

MOTU: Very cool. Anything you can tell us about the new CD?

DB: The new CD is as yet untitled and we're looking at a Spring release. You know, any artist wants to be able to say that their latest work is their best. I think that's gonna be true with this new recording. We are having a lot of fun and are really exited about touring the material. People are going to listen to the new disk and say "Well, they did it again!"

MOTU: I'm sure you will! Thanks David.

DB: Thank you MOTU!

November 10, 2004

www.onlymakebelieve.org

Photos By : Linda Lenzi

New York, NY (11/10/04) --- Of his many roles – founding member, keyboard player and songwriter for rock band Bon Jovi; composer of the musicals MEMPHIS and SWEET VALLEY HIGH; family man – the last thing DAVID BRYAN expected to become this week was Board Member for Only Make Believe, one of his favorite charities. David performed “The Music Of My Soul” as a duet with CHAD KIMBALL who starred in MEMPHIS’ East and West Coast debut’s and then took center stage to perform a solo version of “Memphis Lives In Me” - which is also included on the upcoming Bon Jovi box set - at the organization’s annual benefit. Following the show, OMB’s Founder Dena Hammerstein requested a moment with Bryan. She asked if he would like to become an honorary Board Member of Only Make Believe. “Are you kidding?” Bryan happily replied, “YES! Dena is like a fairy godmother, overseeing this amazing organization that brings the magic of musical theatre to our most important audiences – the kids who really need it.” Other honorary board members include actors Sir Ian McKellen, Brad Oscar, Zoe Wannamaker CBE, Rachel Weisz, Josh Lucas and Cecelia McCarton, MD, the Director of The McCarton Center for Developmental Pediatrics and the 2003 recipient of the James Hammerstein Award.

Bryan was introduced to Only Make Believe two years ago by his MEMPHIS writing partner, JOE DIPIETRO (I LOVE YOU, YOU’RE PERFECT, NOW CHANGE, OVER THE RIVER AND THROUGH THE WOODS and THE THING ABOUT MEN and the upcoming ALL SHOOK UP! on Broadway). DiPietro serves on the board of directors for OMB and as Director of their annual Gala performances. Together, they created MEMPHIS, the story of the first DJ in the South to play “race” music, which played to critical and popular acclaim at North Shore Music Theatre outside of Boston and at Theatreworks in Palo Alto, CA.

David Bryan is a founding member and songwriter and the keyboard player for Bon Jovi. After selling 100 million albums, traveling the world and playing to millions of people in 50 countries and circling the globe 15 times, the band celebrates its 20th anniversary this fall with the release of 100,000,000 Bon Jovi Fans Can’t Be Wrong, a multi-box set. David also wrote and released his first solo record, Lunar Eclipse (Rounder/Universal), an instrumental collection with a single vocal bonus track highlighting all of the aspects of his training and influences – blues, classical, jazz and of course, rock & roll.

David has dedicated his time to become a National Spokesperson for VH1’s Save The Music Program, a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the quality of education in America’s public schools by restoring music education programs in cities across the U.S. and raising awareness of the importance of music participation for our nation’s youth.

Born in Edison, New Jersey, David Bryan began taking piano lessons at the age of seven. He continued this classical study with Emery Hack for thirteen years. He enrolled at Rutgers University where he continued his musical education (and pre-med studies), preparing him for an audition at the prestigious Julliard School of Music. After gaining acceptance to the school, the phone rang with Jon Bon Jovi on the other end saying, "The record company just called. We have a record deal." A choice was made and the rest is history.

The Only Make Believe program debuted in October 1999 at Rusk Institute’s Pediatric Unit, NYU Hospitals Center, as a project of The James and Dena Hammerstein Foundation. Dena Hammerstein established Only Make Believe in memory of her husband James (son of Oscar Hammerstein), his dedication to the theater, and her own passionate love for children in need. The concept of Only Make Believe developed out of Dena’s desire to introduce children living with chronic illnesses and disabilities to the magical world of theater. Since trips to the theater proved to be too overwhelming for many of the children, Dena decided to bring the theater to them, helping to create a unique version of live theater in which each child plays an integral part.

Only Make Believe is dedicated to the principle that freeing a child’s creative spirit is a valuable part of the healing process. We believe in make believe – the healing power of laughter – and our primary goal is to make each and every child feel special. Collaboration between actor and child is therefore the key to Only Make Believe’s success. Each child takes an active part in creating a world of fantasy and fun that transcends the boundaries of the hospital walls, and as a result they are able to gain a new sense of self-esteem and joy. Combining the magic of theater with the power of a child’s imagination enables them for the first time to see a world of possibilities rather than disabilities.

www.paloaltoonline.com

Head to "Memphis"
New TheatreWorks show boasts sensational ensemble and great music by Jeanie Forte

If you see no other theater production this year, you must see "Memphis," the new musical staged by TheatreWorks at the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts. It's playing in an all-too-short run, and if you don't get tickets now, it will be too late, because I guarantee it will sell out. It's hot, hot, hot and deserves every accolade and a long, record-breaking run, after which it should move to Broadway and knock the socks off jaded New Yorkers.

The premise is really nothing so new -- it's a fusion of rock and musical theater (been there), with a script based loosely on history (seen that), mixed with a dash of kitsch and a star-crossed romance (can you say "Forever Plaid"? or "West Side Story"?) -- but in Joe DiPietro and David Bryan's collaboration, the total product is far greater than the sum of all these parts, resulting in a fabulous, fresh star in the musical-theater firmament.

The book follows the rise of Huey Calhoun, a daring deejay who single-handedly turns on a whole region (and by ripple effect the whole country) to the "race" music of the early '50s -- rhythm & blues at first, and then the nascent rock & roll sounds of white artists such as Elvis and others who found their fame in the new genre.

Black artists began to reach a whole new audience and thus a new level of success, although many of them lived to see their work "borrowed" by whites who made it where they couldn't.

The character of Huey is patterned after the rise and fall of famed deejay Dewey Phillips, who championed the cause of the new form and its fledgling artists, both black and white. Here, Huey also gets a love interest in Felicia Farrell, a Diana Ross type who wins his heart on her way to crossover fame and fortune. The real Dewey died fairly alone and penniless at 42; in typical musical fashion, Huey ends somewhat better, with a rousing finale and heartfelt reconciliation.

Some of the songs in "Memphis" began to sound similar towards the end, but I didn't care -- they were all so likeable and infectious. Bryan, a founding member of Bon Jovi, manages to create a surprising field of terrific music that pays reverent homage to the styles of the time without slavishly imitating them. It stays faithful to early rock while layering on a more contemporary sound, but never approaches the heavier, over-souled rock of "Rent."

Bryan also writes funny riffs on the blander offerings of the day, a la Patti Page and Perry Como. There are numerous show-stopping numbers that could easily become standards, especially those sung by Montego Glover as Farrell.

Glover brings the house down more than once, with spine-tingling vocals and an emotional delivery that packs a wallop. She's a true phenom, and you will count yourself lucky to hear her now, when she's on her way to the top.

Chad Kimball, as Huey, is himself a force to be reckoned with -- a restless, perpetual-motion physicality and over-the-top personality that stops just short of irritating. And he sings a mean rhythm and blues besides, that endears him to his real and onstage audiences.

Fabulous voices and acting are the norm in this incredible ensemble. J. Bernard Calloway as Felicia's brother and night-club owner, Delray Jones, can raise the roof with his smoky sound; James Monroe Iglehart reveals knock-out vocal chops in a surprise turn as a janitor-turned-singer; TheatreWorks favorite David Curley is put to excellent use here in a number of roles; locals Melody McArtor and Jeff Leibow do fun cameo turns as well as solid ensemble work, and Molly Bell adds a touch of brilliant comic relief. Derrick B. Baskin, C. Kelly Wright and young Khalia Davis are also impressive in their vocal cameos.

I could list the entire ensemble -- one of the strongest assembled on a local stage in recent memory. The sheer energy and enthusiasm of this fantastic troupe seems to well up from some bottomless source, coming back to reach soaring heights again and again in each demanding number. They must lose several pounds in sweat each performance, yet they make it look effortless and truly enjoyable.

Special kudos for choreographer Todd L. Underwood, who takes us from the jitterbug to the jerk with endlessly fascinating dance numbers, including a sweet hula-hoop duet. The metallic moving sets and evocative lights are a great match for the many different locations, and the costumes fit the era without seeming stereotypical. The whole production comes together beautifully, with no jarring elements.

And, it rocks! Even my matinee audience had no trouble rising to its feet for the curtain call -- I thought fleetingly that we might see dancing in the aisles. There are those who will point out the irony of two white men writing an homage to the birth of rock in its black, R&B roots. But it's as if DiPietro and Bryan are the Hueys here, bringing an era to contemporary light and doing a little consciousness-raising in the process.

Don't miss this one -- great music, compelling story, sensational performers and big heart.

What: "Memphis," presented by TheatreWorks. The play is a collaboration between playwright Joe DiPietro and composer David Bryan.

January 28, 2004

http://sfgate.com/columnists/wiegand

Heather Locklear, Bon Jovi keyboardist David Bryan and Bon Jovi guitarist Richie Sambora make it to the opening-night performance of "Memphis" in Palo Alto. Photo courtesy of TheatreWorks

David Wiegand - Wednesday, 01 28, 2004

Everyone taking part in the retreat attended Saturday's opening of "Memphis" to witness another example of a musical developed through TheatreWorks' New Works Initiative.

Also on hand for Saturday's opening were Bon Jovi's Richie Sambora and wife Heather Locklear, who flew in on a private jet to support fellow Bon Jovian David Bryan, who wrote the music for the show. They grabbed a quick dinner at nearby restaurant the Cantankerous Fish, along with rock band manager Doc McGhee. At a nearby table were Mike and Jean Strunsky, heirs to the Ira Gershwin estate, having dinner with the "Memphis" co-author, playwright Joe Di Pietro. Joe is working with the Strunskys on the book for a new musical based on the Fred Astaire film "Swing Time."

By the way, spies report that Jon Bon Jovi was seen last week sneaking in a side door at the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts to catch the first preview of "Memphis." Jon was in San Jose with his arena football team (he owns the Philly Soul), who were playing a scrimmage Wednesday afternoon with the San Jose SaberCats.

By Karen D'Souza / Mercury News

The closing moments of "Memphis'' come as a riotous surprise. After two bland if amiable hours of buildup, this new rock 'n' roll musical finally hits its stride in an all-out foot-stomping finale that leaves the audience begging for more.

Playwright Joe DiPietro ("I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change'') and composer David Bryan (Bon Jovi's keyboardist) seem to have hit the jackpot with this crowd-pleasing musical about early '50s Memphis, where one rambunctious white DJ fought the status quo to bring black music to the radio waves. While the largely generic-sounding score and some superficial performances may not hurt the show's commercial chances, they do keep "Memphis'' (in its world premiere co-production by TheatreWorks and North Shore Music Theatre near Boston), from living up to its potential for hard-rock catharsis. Despite an energetic ensemble and likable leads, the musical doesn't truly find its soul until its boisterous finale.

"Memphis'' revolves around Huey (Chad Kimball), a white DJ whose heart leads him straight to rhythm and blues despite the racism and fear society has taught him. At a time when drinking from the wrong water fountain could get a black man lynched, no one is ready to hear Huey's message that music belongs to everyone, that pop culture has the power to push us into the future.

Kimball imbues Huey with an impish charisma that makes his character's perseverance in the face of adversity totally believable. While director Gabriel Barre doesn't quite succeed at capturing the atmosphere of the '50s, Kimball's rebellious energy carries the production through some drags in the first act.

If his chemistry with Montego Glover, who plays Huey's girlfriend and muse Felicia, were more galvanic, the musical would have more zing. Glover sings like an angel, but she never fleshes out the character's psychology, which undercuts the social subtext of the show. It's Felicia, a black woman trying to make it in show biz in the South, who has the most to lose by dating a white man.

Throughout the show, Bryan's score provides a catchy if formulaic gospel and R&B backdrop as Huey succeeds in bringing rock to the masses, but then self-destructs with pills and booze. We learn later that he wouldn't sell out, that he would never let the suits tell him how to rock.

That's the realization that paves the way for the show-stopping anthem, "Steal Your Rock 'n' Roll.'' Perhaps that's why the number has such power, because the emotional stakes are finally high enough to give the lyrics weight and blow us all away. If DiPietro and Bryan can tap into that intensity more often, "Memphis'' could be a scorcher.

By Karen D'Souza Mercury News / Lifestyles

"Never let anyone steal your rock 'n' roll!''

A few weeks ago, the cast of the new rock musical "Memphis'' flanked a piano and belted out lyrics until every square inch of TheatreWorks' Mountain View rehearsal hall was pulsating.

Bon Jovi keyboardist-turned-composer David Bryan listened intently and put the singers through their paces. When they were on, he would sing the music softly to himself and conduct the air with his hands. When they were off, even by a half-notch undetectable to the untrained ear, he stopped them cold.

"Hold on a second! Let's get those notes!'' he called out, pointing to each group of singers in turn, like a musical drill sergeant. "Sopranos! Altos! Tenors! Baritones!''

Figuring out the finale

After the musical run-through, director Gabriel Barre got the show's finale on its feet for the first time. It's a complicated production number he had to tear into little pieces and then build back one bit at a time.

"It's about stripping things away and figuring out what the piece is saying, what the authors are saying, what you want to say as a director,'' Barre says. "You have to hone it all out and make it as specific and real as you can.''

Who stands where? Who brings the chair on? Who sits down? Actors kept shifting from one spot to another and tried to get the timing just right. Sometimes it can take 60 minutes of rehearsal to plot out one moment of stage time. But momentum has to keep building from the first scene to the last.

"The songs have got to keep building and the story has got to keep building until the end of the show,'' notes Bryan. "If the audience isn't on its feet at the end, we've failed.''

"Memphis,'' which opened over the weekend (a review will appear in Tuesday's A&E), fictionalizes the story of Dewey Phillips (named Huey in the show), a white disc jockey who crossed racial lines in the '50s and brought African-American music to the airwaves.

"This is a subject that sings and a period in history that sings,'' says the playwright, Joe DiPietro ("I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change''). "And the show tells a story that we haven't heard very much. The central character is based on one of the few deejays to bring rock to the masses, but he was used up at an early age and surpassed by others who did the same thing on a grander scale. His story was largely forgotten.''

DiPietro credits Bryan with giving the show an authentic rock edge. "I don't get many calls from rock stars, so of course I said yes to David,'' he recalls. "But also I really wanted a real rock 'n' roll guy to write the music, not just another musical theater composer.''

(Bryan, discussing a song in the show called "The Music of My Soul,'' resorts to classic rock-speak: "That song crushes!'')

A long, slow evolution

"Memphis'' has undergone the usual growing pains since its world premiere last year at the North Shore Music Theatre near Boston, which has co-produced the show with TheatreWorks. Some songs have been cut, others added.

"It's like a baby,'' says TheatreWorks Managing Director Randy Adams, who has been following the show's evolution since its staged reading at the TheatreWorks New Works Festival two years ago. "It's really been fun watching it grow. It just takes time because musicals are so big and there are so many people involved. Yet half the fun is getting to watch it grow up.''

Change is inevitable in the seat-of-the-pants world of creating a musical, where so many moving parts -- from sets and props to singers and musicians -- have to come together or it all falls apart.

"There are always surprises whenever you do a new musical,'' DiPietro says. "There's always something you think is going to work great that sort of sits there. And there's always something you think is a throwaway that ends up working great.'' Sometimes, the song you pull out of your hat at the last minute is the one that steals the show.

"Memphis'' has nostalgia going for it. Hits such as the Abba musical "Mamma Mia!'' and the Billy Joel musical "Movin' Out,'' both of which will come through San Francisco shortly, trade on the appeal of the recent past. "People like to see stories they know,'' DiPietro realizes.

But he is quick to the point out that unlike those shows, "Memphis'' features a new score, not a recycled one.

"I'm a newcomer to this world,'' Bryan says, "but in rock you can't just keep putting out the same record. You've got to do new work. You won't have any new classics if you don't do the new works that could become classics.''

At this stage of the game, DiPietro says marketing is the last thing on his mind.

"I have been involved in commercial projects where you want to have a product that appeals to certain demographics," he admits. "But with this one we're not concerned about any of that. We just want to tell the story."

Memphis

Book and lyrics by Joe DiPietro, music and additional lyrics by David Bryan, a co-production of TheatreWorks and the North Shore Music Theatre

Alameda Time - Star Newspaper -www.timesstar.com

IT'S not that Bon Jovi keyboardist David Bryan was tired of making best-selling albums with his band or performing live in gargantuan arenas around the world.

He just wanted more people to sing his songs.

Believe it or not, the man who helped pen such Bon Jovi songs as "Love Lies" and "Breakout" is now writing musicals.

Bryan has composed music for "Memphis," which opens Saturday in Mountain View in a co-production from TheatreWorks and the Boston-based North Shore Music Theatre. The 41-year-old rocker is in the Bay Area putting final touches on the show, a tribute to the disc jockeys who broke racial barriers in the late 1940s and early'50s by playing what was then called "race music" -- the African-American blues fusion that quickly evolved into what we know as rock 'n' roll.

As a creative businessman, Bryan was writing songs but having difficulty getting anyone to record them. "My publisher suggested I try musical theater because then people would be singing my songs," Bryan says before heading into a "Memphis" rehearsal. "I figured that in the average musical, people sing about 23 of your songs in two hours. That sounded pretty good."

A first attempt at creating a musical based on the "Sweet Valley High" teen novels made some progress but hit a block. Then Bryan got hold of a script by Joe DiPietro ("Over the River and Through the Woods," "I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change") based in part on real-life Memphis DJ Dewey Phillips. "I read the script, called Joe and told him I heard every song in this show," Bryan recalls. "I could hear the songs in my head. I made a demo of the song 'Music of My Soul,' which really embodies the DJ's character. Joe heard it, called me up and told me I got the gig."

Bryan is used to creating music for a four-member rock band. Now he's crafting nearly two dozen songs for a cast of 20 singers and dancers.

When "Memphis" had its world premiere in the Boston area last fall, critics and audiences got pretty excited. But no one was more thrilled than Bryan. "The timing was perfect because Bon Jovi was on a break," Bryan says. "It killed me that the other guys were heading off to the Bahamas and stuff, and I had to go to work on a musical. But when we got the show in its feet, I stuck around after opening and let it all sink in. This is probably one of the most rewarding experiences I've had as a musician."

"Memphis" cast member James Monroe Iglehart of Hayward describes Bryan's music as blues and gospel fused with the early sounds of Jerry Lee Lewis and Little Richard. "I grew up loving Bon Jovi and singing 'Livin' on a Prayer,'" Iglehart says. "But you won't really hear any Bon Jovi in this music. David has really tried to capture the sound and the feel of early rock music. It's wonderful music. If people are not clapping and waving their hands in the air in this show, we're doing something wrong."

Bryan agrees completely. He wants audiences bouncing in their seats. He's taking everything he's ever learned about pop music and pouring it into "Memphis."

"Rock 'n' roll is about feeling and energy," he says. "I don't know anything about musical theater, so I bring a sort of freshness to this project. But I do know what a good song is and how it works. I love collaborating with Joe and (director) Gabriel Barre. They're theater. I'm pop music. I'm not in their box and they're not in mine, so we're all thinking differently."

Bon Jovi fans may recognize a certain anthemic quality in Bryan's music, and that's just fine with him.

"The thing about an anthem is that it allows the audience to join in," he says. "An anthem is not just a song on a stage. It brings you in and allows you to feel. In the band we've played in front of 80,000 people and made them feel part of the music because it has a melody and it's heartfelt."

Also key, according to Bryan, is the song's hook.

"I have three kids -- 9-year-old twins and a 3-year-old -- and they know the 'Memphis' songs and love them," he says. "If a 9-year-old gets the hook, everybody gets the hook. What grabs you in a song if there's no hook? You can't catch a fish without a hook. I'm not dissing musical theater, but this is my world: We have hooks and big anthemic choruses."

By Ernio Hernandez

Joe DiPietro

California's TheatreWorks in association with North Shore Music Theatre presents the world premiere staging of the new musical Memphis by Joe DiPietro (I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change) and Bon Jovi member David Bryan.

Gabriel Barre (The Wild Party) directs the production which plays Jan. 21-Feb. 15 at the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts.

Based on a concept by George W. George, Memphis is a "musical celebration that chronicles the birth of rock 'n' roll" which follows a deejay who dared to play the music of black and white America together. The work, which was workshopped at TheatreWorks in 2002, played a Boston run at North Shore Music Theatre.

Chad Kimball (Into The Woods) leads a cast that includes Montego Glover, James Monroe Iglehart, J. Bernard Calloway, C. Kelley Wright, Molly Bell, Dawn Troupe, John-Elliott Kirk, Jeff Leibow, Melody McArtor, Darrin Glesser, Bryan Yates Sharber and Rob Robinson.

DiPietro wrote the book and lyrics to the long-running Off-Broadway musical comedy I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change and the current Off-Broadway staging of The Thing About Men. Other credits include Over The River And Through The Woods, The Kiss At City Hall, The Virgin Weeps and The Art Of Murder.

A founding member of rock band Bon Jovi, Bryan has been part of the music industry for almost 20 years. After suffering an hand injury five years ago, the composer keyboardist found an alternate outlets for his creativity. Bryan also serves as a national spokesperson for VH1's Save The Music Program.

TheatreWorks will also present the world premiere of My Ántonia by Scott Schwartz, with incidental music by Stephen Schwartz (Wicked) later in the season.

View the article on line at www.playbill.com

SF Gate: San Francisco Chronicle Joel Selvin, Chronicle Senior Pop Music Critic www.sfgate.com/chronicle

David Bryan just doesn't look the part of a Broadway composer. He looks like a rock star the way Flipper looks like a dolphin. His hand- embroidered cowboy shirt, well worn, is open down the front, a large tattoo of the Joker from Batman peeking out from his chest. The Joker also adorns his oversize wristwatch, and he wears a handsome silver necklace. At 42, he retains boyish good looks, long blond curls and a buoyant enthusiasm that must serve him well as keyboardist with billion-selling rockers Bon Jovi.

But sitting in a Mountain View rehearsal hall last week, a gang of dancers behind him running through their routine -- no music, just counting their steps -- for a number from the musical Bryan composed called "Memphis, '' he just doesn't quite look like theater.

But Gabriel Barre does. Sitting next to Bryan, the director of the production, which opens Wednesday at Mountain View's TheatreWorks, looks deliciously like one of the burghers from the Dutch Masters cigar box, with his Prince Valiant hair and sporty Vandyke beard and a fashionably distressed scarlet scarf wrapped around his neck. Barre can sit quietly smiling and still scream theater.

At the Mountain View theater company's annual New Works Festival two years ago, Barre also directed the first staged reading of the piece -- which Bryan wrote with an authentic off-Broadway hotshot, Joe DiPietro, whose "I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change'' has been running at the West Side on 43rd Street for eight years. The show is based on an idea by George W. George, the 80-year-old son of cartoonist Rube Goldberg, whom Barre and Bryan called their "conceptualist.''

"Memphis'' follows the fictionalized life story of Dewey Phillips, a white disc jockey in a segregated Southern city who started playing black records on the radio. The writers didn't think Phillips, the first man to play an Elvis Presley record on the radio and one of the most unsung of rock 'n' roll's midwives, was a colorful enough character and created in his place Huey Calhoun, the centerpiece of "Memphis.''

Of course, the keyboardist for Bon Jovi wouldn't necessarily be the first place to look for someone to re-create early '50s rhythm and blues and rockabilly from Memphis. Back when he was still known as David Rashbaum, Bryan trained in classical music and was headed to Juilliard when he was hijacked into the rock world by his high school buddy John Bongiovi. Bon Jovi, New Jersey's other favorite rock band, first ascended the mountain with "Slippery When Wet," one of the biggest-selling albums of 1987. The band finished a three-year tour in August at Giants Stadium and recently released a CD, "This Left Feels Right,'' a collection of the band's songs done in new arrangements.

Bryan, an exuberant talker who freely peppers his conversation with New Jersey's favorite adjective, acknowledged that he knew little about the music of the '50s before he started composing. He investigated the record collection of a neighbor to research pop songs like Patti Page's "How Much Is That Doggie in the Window,'' to find out why rock 'n' roll was necessary. He didn't want to write a period piece, anyway. "There's already 'Grease,' " he said.

But Bryan also had never been to the theater ("I think I saw 'Arsenic and Old Lace' when I was in junior high.''). Since starting to write musicals (he already has two more in the works), Bryan has attended a few, but he laughed at how little he knows. He talked about discovering that "Send In the Clowns'' came from a Sondheim musical, but he called the show "A Little Night Songs.''

" 'A Little Night Music,' '' Barre corrected him.

But asked what Bryan brings to the collaboration, Barre instantly grinned. "Authenticity,'' he said. And, indeed, Bryan has resisted being assimilated into the theater realm. He kept referring to the theater as "their world'' and the rock scene as "our world.'' All his instincts for the theater have been honed by his rock-band experience.

He does bring rock-band savvy to the musical theater. "How big you want to get depends on how small you get,'' he said. "Building a show is like writing a set list. You have the slow parts in between, and the whole thing builds to feeding frenzy at the end.''

He defers on matters where he has no knowledge, like choreography. "In my band, we don't dance,'' he said. "We're not a boy band. We're a man band. We groove.''

But he understands how to grab an audience. "In our world, especially in the band I'm in, we write anthems, sing-alongs. You invite the audience in." He is learning lots of new words -- he just found out that what they call a "sitzprobe" in the theater is actually just a run-through. He also ran across a notation on the score sheets, "tacit,'' that he didn't understand. After it was explained to Bryan that the notation called for the musician not to play, he ordered it changed to "DFP'' -- "don't f -- play.''

They're going to love this guy on Broadway.

THEATREWORKS AND NORTH SHORE MUSIC THEATRE PRESENT “MEMPHIS”

JANUARY 21-FEBRUARY 15, 2004

MUSICAL BY JOE DIPIETRO AND DAVID BRYAN
PALO ALTO (December 15, 2003) – TheatreWorks and North Shore Music Theatre present the joint World Premiere of MEMPHIS, the latest collaboration from Joe DiPietro, currently America’s most produced playwright (OVER THE RIVER AND THROUGH THE WOODS;


I LOVE YOU, YOU’RE PERFECT, NOW CHANGE), and Grammy-nominated rock band Bon Jovi composer-keyboardist David Bryan. Workshopped at TheatreWorks in the spring of 2002, MEMPHIS, based on a concept by George W. George, is a rafter-rattling musical celebration that chronicles the birth of rock ‘n’ roll and a “downright demented” deejay who played the music of black and white America together for the first time. Gabriel Barre, who directed TheatreWorks hit SUMMER OF ’42, will helm this riotous, toe-tapping treat. MEMPHIS plays January 21 (Press Opening: Saturday, January 24) through February 15 at the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts. For tickets and information ($20-$48), the public may call (650) 903-6000 or visit theatreworks.org.

At a time when America was deeply segregated, even down to the music played on radio, few envisioned that Memphis would, in 1949, become the birthplace of revolutionary music that broke through the color barrier. Called an “uncommonly good contemporary musical” by the Boston Globe, MEMPHIS follows the meteoric rise of a white disc jockey who dared to play African-American music to his white listeners, unknowingly giving birth to the music known as Rock ‘n’ Roll. Threatened and scorned for his love of so-called “race music,” MEMPHIS’ Huey Calhoun, based on renowned deejay Dewey Phillips, follows his muse into the heart of West Memphis rhythm and blues. In the process he delivers a sound so dangerous, it threatens both his career and his life. A rousing blend of gospel, R&B, and Broadway melodies, this swinging, down-home examination of 1950’s culture and politics immortalizes the man who gave Rock its original roll.

A remarkable sign of national growth for TheatreWorks, MEMPHIS received its initial staging to critical acclaim at North Shore Music Theatre in Boston under the artistic direction of Jon Kimball. “TheatreWorks is proud to be part of this joint World Premiere with North Shore,” said Kent Nicholson, TheatreWorks’ Director of New Works. “As the first piece that has come to fruition as part of TheatreWorks’ New Works Initiative, this unique artistic collaboration embodies our ongoing mission to nurture the development of vibrant new works. We think we have created a truly dynamic production.”

The authors of MEMPHIS, Joe DiPietro and David Bryan, bring eclectic credits to this rockin’ World Premiere. Joe DiPietro wrote the book and lyrics to the musical comedy hit I LOVE YOU, YOU'RE PERFECT, NOW CHANGE, the longest running musical revue in Off-Broadway history. He is also the author of the plays OVER THE RIVER AND THROUGH THE WOODS, THE KISS AT CITY HALL, THE VIRGIN WEEPS, and the comic thriller THE ART OF MURDER (winner of the 2000 Edgar Award). He wrote the book to the Gershwin musical HEAVEN ON EARTH, and a new adaptation of Rodgers & Hart’s BABES IN ARMS. Current projects include the Off-Broadway musical THE THING ABOUT MEN, and the Broadway-bound CAN’T HELP FALLING IN LOVE, an original musical comedy featuring the songs of Elvis Presley. DiPietro is the recipient of the William Inge Theater Festival New Voices In American Theater Award, and won the O’Neill National Playwright’s Conference MacArthur Award for comic writing.

A founding member of legendary rock band Bov Jovi, David Bryan has been part of the music industry for almost 20 years. After suffering a potentially career ending injury to his hand five years ago, Bryan found himself unable to play the piano. It was during this time that he sought alternate outlets for his creativity, and met and began a collaboration with DiPietro. After selling almost 100 million albums, traveling the world, and playing to fans in more than 50 countries with Bon Jovi, Bryan released his first solo record, “Lunar Eclipse,” and garnered and multiple Grammy nominations with his band including the upcoming Awards in February 2004. Bryan is also a national spokesperson for VH1’s Save The Music Program.

The accomplished cast of MEMPHIS includes Chad Kimball, who makes his TheatreWorks debut as rabble-rouser deejay Huey Calhoun. Kimball recently appeared in the Stephen Sondheim/James Lapine Broadway revival of INTO THE WOODS, Frank Wildhorn’s

THE CIVIL WAR, the World Premiere of MY LIFE WITH ALBERTINE at Playwright’s Horizon, GODSPELL Off-Broadway, and SWEENEY TODD at the Signature Theatre. Also making her TheatreWorks debut is Montego Glover as Felicia, Huey Calhoun’s saucy love interest. Glover appeared on Broadway in DREAMGIRLS, and most recently appeared in the World Premiere of THE CONSERVATIONIST at Asolo Theatre Company, and COOKIN’ AT THE COOKERY at the Huntington Theatre.

Having appeared earlier this season in TheatreWorks hit musicals BAT BOY and A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC, and in last season’s acclaimed production of RAGTIME, the gifted James Monroe Iglehart returns to TheatreWorks as Huey Calhoun’s confidant, Bobby.

Rounding out the sterling cast of MEMPHIS are J. Bernard Calloway (CIDER HOUSE RULES, THE PIANO LESSON at Trinity Rep); C. Kelley Wright (BAT BOY, SMOKEY JOE’S CAFE); Molly Bell (BAT BOY); Dawn Troupe (BOOK OF DAYS); John-Elliott Kirk (RAGTIME); Jeff Leibow (JANE EYRE); Melody McArtor (RAGTIME); Darrin Glesser (ON THE 20TH CENTURY at AMTSJ); Bryan Yates Sharber (RAGTIME); and Rob Robinson.

In addition to SUMMER OF 42 at TheatreWorks, Gabriel Barre directed THE WILD PARTY by Andrew Lippa at the Manhattan Theatre Club, which won three Lucille Lortel Awards and received nominations for five Outer Critics Circle Awards and 13 Drama Desk Awards, both including Best Director. He also directed the original production of HONKY-TONK HIGHWAY in New York, where it was awarded three Bistro Awards, including one for Best Direction, and the MAC Award for Best Review. Barre also directed a national tour of CINDERELLA starring Eartha Kitt.

MEMPHIS marks the sixth production in TheatreWorks’ 34th season. With nearly 10,000 subscribers and over 100,000 patrons per year, TheatreWorks has captured a national reputation for artistic innovation and integrity. In addition to presenting sterling productions of classics, the company often brings Bay Area theatergoers their first look at acclaimed musicals, comedies, and dramas, performed by professional actors cast from throughout the Bay Area, New York, Los Angeles, and across the country, working with award-winning local and prestigious guest directors. TheatreWorks is also increasing its commitment to assist the development of new works with nationally recognized workshops, readings, collaborations, and commissions. In addition to MEMPHIS, TheatreWorks will present the World Premiere of MY ÁNTONIA by Scott Schwartz, with incidental music by Stephen Schwartz (WICKED), which the company was instrumental in developing.

Celebrating the show's success!

The MEMPHIS creative team ---David Bryan (Composer, Additional Lyrics, Vocal and Dance Arrangements), Joe DiPietro (Book and Lyrics) and Gabriel Barre (Director) celebrate the show's success!

Fall 2003

MEMPHIS" World Premiere Takes North Shore by Storm
By Sheila Barth

Revere Independent Papers
*Lynn Journal *Chelsea Record *Everett Independent
*Winthrop Sun Transcript *East Boston Sun Transcript

From the moment you enter the North Shore Music Theatre to see "Memphis," the is an unmistakable energy. Maybe it is the word itself - Memphis - and all it connotes - Graceland, the birth of rock and roll, spiritual songs and the blues.

Maybe it is David Bryan, the Bon Jovi keyboardist, and his ardent dedication to rock 'n roll that has spilled over into his music and inspires others to love it as well.
Bryan has teamed with "I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change" author-lyricist Joe DiPietro to recreate this story about the forgotten white DJ, Dewey Phillips of Memphis, who defied the mores of his era to integrate mainstream music. Phillips died at 42, a broken and forgotten man.

But in "Memphis," Dewey Phillips becomes Huey Calhoun, played wonderfully by Chad Kimball. Calhoun, who can't hold a job, loves 'race' music and breaks a segregated barrier by going into a black club in Memphis to hear the music. He's a fast talking, iconoclast who is determined to be a disk jockey and is determined to be on the radio and play 'race' music for those accustomed to Perry Como.

Despite furor from parents and lily-white conservatisms who are spoofed here, the kids love the music. One thing leads to another and Huey has made stars of his beloved black girlfriend, Felicia Farrell, club owner Delray Jones and Bobby the Janitor. Black and white kids are breaking down barriers, banding together, moving and grooving to the new tunes. "Hockadoo!" cries Huey. "Is that dirty?" the white folks ask.

Huey's chosen road isn't easy to travel, but his spirit never falters.
Neither does this superb cast's, the musicians, crew and the audience. "Memphis'" music is jubilant, energetic and fun and although all of its songs are new, they are a throwback to the days when Elvis was king and Motown was born. The story is gripping by itself, but it is the music that relentlessly lures you into clapping moving to the groove.
Costumes by Pamela Scofield are authentic, too, with black and white saddle shoes and bobby sox.

REVERE INDEPENDENT PAPERS/2

"Memphis" has it all, and instead of ending tragically, the way Dewey Phillips did, this play ends so jubilantly and powerfully, it's hard to let go. The only other time I have witnessed so overwhelming a response to a 'work in progress' at North Shore Music Theatre was in "Abyssinia."

At a red carpet gala at Finz restaurant last Thursday night, David Bryan was surrounded by admirers praising the show. Unfortunately, his friend Jon Bon Jovi, who attended the show that night with his wife, had to bow out of the party because his wife was ill. Other celebrities like Ruth Pointer of the Pointer Sisters, were there to congratulate the cast and crew.

Bryan told me he thinks the show is very important because of its message and his goal is to restore rock 'n' roll. He said he could feel the same passion generating from the audience.

Bryan credited the theatre in the round and its staff with some of the shows success.
"It's one of the classiest places I've ever performed in," he said.
Bryan said his play is ready for its performance in Palo Alto, Calif., and the Ford Theatre in Washington D.C. then, hopefully, on Broadway. He's confident it will be successful, and he couldn't be happier.

The Lowell Sun

MEMPHIS a High-Energy Tribute to Birth of Rock

By Nancye Tuttle
September 30, 2003

BEVERLY - It's not often you leave the theater these days hearing someone whistling a tune from the musical he just saw.

But that is exactly what happened last Thursday after the opening of Memphis, the world premiere at the North Shore Music Theatre. The man beside me chirped 'Steal Your Rock 'n' Roll,' while his companion sang the words.

Others were lauding the music, too. And the exuberant cast garnered a standing ovation which is pretty standard with musicals these days, but in this case well-deserved.

The score is composed by real-life rock 'n' roller David Bryan of Bon Jovi fame, whose pal, Jon Bon Jovi, was in the opening night crowd. It is Memphis' strongest element and makes you shake your shoulders, tap your feet and get the urge to start dancing.

Indeed, such showstoppers as "The Music of My Soul," "Stand Up" and "Love Will Stand When All Else Falls" make you want to go out and buy the CD, if a cast album is ever made. With lyrics and book by Joe DiPietro - who also wrote the popular hit I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change - Memphis has been highly anticipated and in the works for several years.

Set between 1949 and 1961, the story centers on Huey Calhoun, a character modeled after long-forgotten Memphis DJ Dewey Phillips, who is credited with playing "race" music on white stations and changing the history of music in America.

Along the way, Huey, ably played by Chad Kimball, falls for a Felicia, a black woman with a beautiful voice and rocks the establishment with this new rock 'n' roll music.

But he is a tragic hero, since he can't go along with the changes that he has created. And while Felicia - remarkably acted and sung by Montego Glover - soars to national fame (think Diana Ross), Huey remains stuck in Memphis as some guy in Philadelphia named Dick Clark gains national acclaim and the dancing feet of America's teens.

Memphis satisfies on many levels, but the second act could stand tightening and the scene where Huey, the downfallen dee-jay, has a nightmare is unnecessary and stalls the narrative.

Under Gabriel Barre's fine direction, the Memphis cast is a well-tuned, high-stepping, energetically singing machine.

They fill you with joy, making you glad to be alive and listening to this music that fills the soul.

Memphis may be Broadway-bound; New York producers were in the audience on Thursday. But why wait for New York? Memphis is in Beverly now. And it's well worth the trek to see a musical-in-the-making that pays tribute to the birth of rock 'n' roll.

Curtain Call Memphis
North Shore Music Theatre, September 23 - October 12

09.30.03: Warring within Memphis, the new rock musical from Joe DiPietro and David Bryan, are not only two cultures but two musicals. The first is conventional—a story of bridging gaps and the power of music; the second is the tale of a self-destructive man who "made the world change and refused to change with it." It's not surprising that Memphis generally opts to follow the more traditional route. But it's in those moments when the show takes the road less traveled that Memphis reaches elevated ground. The story of a DJ who helped bring "race music" to the mainstream and ignored cultural stereotypes, though sufficiently uplifting and inspirational, is a sight far less specific—and therefore less universal—than a portrait of a man whose own fault it is that the world left him behind. As it stands, Memphis' most consistent asset is its leading man. Chad Kimball, a Boston Conservatory graduate whose Milky White was the best thing in James Lapine's misguided Broadway revival of Into the Woods, offers a performance high on star quality and genuine chops. His Huey Calhoun is the most genuine youthful rebel I have encountered on a stage. Kimball's performance, highlighted by a sterling multi-colored tenor that easily segues between pop and legit, is a testament to the thin line between rebel and rebel without a cause. The production is buoyed by director Gabriel Barre's clean, efficient staging and the able support of actors Wayne Pretlow and Montego Glover—though one wonders if the latter's voice can hold up with the amount of tension she exhibits. While Memphis is a musical that could benefit from further development, it already reigns as the best experience I've yet had at North Shore Music Theatre—and an engaging portrait of a forgotten figure who earns the distinction, "Dick Clark with a firecracker up his ass."

October 10, 2003

Bay Windows is a Boston based Gay and Lesbian Newspaper - it has a very large circulation throughout New England. Usually reviews are on line at www.baywindows.com, however sometimes we get bumped due to space issues. Unfortunately this is one of those times, so this one was only in hard copy.

by Paul W. McMahon

Once again, the North Shore Music Theatre has done itself proud this time by presenting the world premiere of a new musical, a musical with great potential and a production that will surely entertain you while causing you to think about what a long way we have come (although there is surely much more to be achieved) in terms of prejudice and bigotry, in this most energetic and mostly very entertaining production of 'Memphis,' which plays in Beverly through October 12.

The musical is somewhat inspired by the then-revolutionary achievements of an all-but-forgotten Southern disc jockey named Dewey Phillips, who was, among other things, responsible for playing early African-American rock 'n' roll music (them referred to as 'race music') on a Southern white radio station, and also for playing very early Elvis Presley recordings of this 'race music.'

In this fictionalized version, inspired by an idea of George W. George, the renowned theater and film producer and screenwriter, this DJ, Dewey Phillips, has become Huey Calhoun, who, in this changed retelling, in the process of promoting black popular music, falls in love with a hugely talented black singer, adding another volatile element to an already explosive situation.

This gutsy disc jockey is being strongly considered for what would become the popular national television program "American Bandstand," which made a television legend of Dick Clark, who got the job instead and plays a brief part (as Stephan Stubbins)in this show. Phillips/Calhoun lost out largely due to his controversial attitudes and, of course, his public romantic relationship. (In reality, Phillips quickly deteriorated and died at 42.)

'Memphis' comes with its own creative talents, its book and lyrics by Joe DiPietro, who includes in his list of achievements the off-Broadway musical hit 'I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change' (currently in its 8th year off-Broadway); and music by David Bryan, keyboard player, song writer and founding member of the very popular rock group Bon Jovi. (Incidentally, Jon Bon Jovi was in the audience on opening night and looks great).

'Memphis' is directed by Gabriel Barre, who is making his North Shore Music Theatre debut, but who has an impressive list of credits and is directing the highly anticipated new musical by Frank Wildhorn, 'Camille Claudel,' headed for Broadway with Linda Eder in its starring role. For "Memphis'" energetic ensemble, Barre has assembled an impressive cast, giving many of them individual cameo moments.

However, the production works as well as it does largely due to its two truly outstanding lead performers: Chad Kimball, as the disc jockey now named Huey Calhoun, and Montego Glover, as the dynamic singer Felicia Farrell surely both destined for stardom. Kimball is virtually on stage throughout the entire length of the production. He sings, he dances, he acts with an in-your-face and most effective directness, even managing a most convincingly painful-looking limp in the second act. All in all a bravura performance.

Equally at ease on stage and a most talented actress/singer who moves with grace, Glover is a consummate performer and one that the world of show business is likely soon to be made very aware of. Although she claimed (at the post-opening night party) that she is really not interested in a recording career, but instead wants to pursue theatre, mostly musical theatre, that incredible singing voice of hers may eventually be persuaded into recordings too.

Note should also be made of the following cast members: J. Bernard Calloway, an actor who includes several theatre credits in the New England area among his list of achievements, who here proves totally at ease belting his songs as Delray, the owner of a black nightclub in Memphis; Susan Mansur, as Huey's loving and understanding mother; David Piel, as the eventually supportive owner of the radio, then television, stations that give Huey his first breaks; and 'perky' ensemble member Cynthia Thomas, who totally radiates in everything she doesÑa joy to watch.

As a given, all of the physical production values are up to the North Shore Music TheatreÕs always high standards, namely the minimal but totally effective scenic designs of Bill Stabila, the lighting by Phil Monat, costumes by Pamela Scofield with special note taken of musical director Galen Butler and his musicians, and, most especially Todd L. Underwood for his lively and inventive choreography.

How often, especially in recent times, does one get to see a world premiere of a new musical?

October 3, 2003

Book and lyrics by Joe DiPietro. Music and additional lyrics by David Bryan. Based on a concept by George W. George. Directed by Gabriel Barre. Choreography by Todd L. Underwood. Musical direction by Galen Butler. Set by Bill Stabile. Lighting by Phil Monat. Costumes by Pamela Scofield. Sound by John A. Stone. With Chad Kimball, Montego Glover, J. Bernard Calloway, Susan Mansur, David Piel, and Wayne W. Pretlow. At the North Shore Music Theatre through October 12.

There’s more rhythm than blues in Memphis, but the rhythm is pretty irresistible. Toes start tapping a few bars into the second number, "The Music of My Soul," in which the deejay protagonist based on legendary Memphis record-spinner Dewey Phillips tries to explain to a nightclub full of black folks how their music speaks to him (this is the song Bon Jovi keyboardist David Bryan wrote as a sort of audition to become Memphis composer). The story — which diverges from the real Phillips story significantly enough that the character has been renamed Huey Calhoun — is a bit simplistic: diversity comes in the door with better music. There’s a generic rock-and-rolliness to the score. And the show is awfully upbeat, considering that its relentlessly music-loving, anti-racist hero dies of drink and drugs at 42. But the musical, the liveliest new one NSMT has fielded since Abyssinia, ultimately proves as infectious as its beat.

Set in the Tennessee town of the title, circa 1950, Memphis tells the story of an enthusiastic erstwhile loser on a mission to birth rock-and-roll. Huey defies a racist upbringing in the Jim Crow South to become a radio evangelist for rhythm and blues (then called "race music"). First, of course, he has to get himself on the radio, where he quickly replaces the sexless pabulum of Perry Como and Patti Page with the sounds of black artists. Memphis, with book and lyrics by I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change author Joe DiPietro (who is also at work on a musical about Elvis), expands Phillips’s story to include a romance with a talented African-American singer whose career, which he jump-starts, takes her beyond him. Hey, it’s a story. Unfortunately, the part about the pioneering deejay’s being thrown off television (though not for kissing his girlfriend on-air), turning to pills and alcohol, and dying young is true.

Like most musicals with a showbiz setting (Gypsy, A Chorus Line, Cabaret), Memphis starts out with a more fighting chance than others. The singing and dancing seem more at home, as they do here from the get-go, in an opening number where black music leaks from the church to Beale Street, turning on a dime from gospel to R&B. The NSMT world premiere also benefits from the propulsive direction of Gabriel Barre, Todd L. Underwood’s spirited choreography, and a terrific cast headed by Boston Conservatory graduate Chad Kimball, a geekily messianic fireball as "happy white boy" Huey, and Montego Glover, who brings both glamour and pipes to the Sarah Vaughan-like character of Felicia Farrell, whom the wishfully color-blind Huey loves and loses in the Tennessee of the early ’50s. Perhaps the best thing about the show, though, is the way in which it captures a time when, for anyone young, radio was the lifeblood, the connection, and a plastic transistor or pre-boombox was like an extra appendage.

Memphis’s first act is a series of unlikely triumphs for Huey, who, having squeezed a foot through the door of a local radio station, moves to the number one spot on the town’s airwaves, defying the odds, the obtuse, the racist, the religious, and his amusingly white-bread competition. It all seems a little too easy, though a production number in which some of the white men brandish baseball bats foreshadows the brief, inevitable violence tucked in at the curtain. By act two, Huey’s made it to TV, taking with him assorted compatriots, from Felicia and nightclub owner Delray to droll radio-station janitor Bobby (a deliciously skeptical Wayne W. Pretlow); bottom-line-loving station owner Mr. Simmons (fuming Wilford Brimley clone David Piel); and, Letterman-style, his mom (Susan Mansur).

Stubborn zeal and self-destructiveness, along with a fierce unwillingness to compromise, ultimately do him in. "Folks grow tired of rebels!" Simmons explodes when Huey blows his chance to take his "Rock Shop" to New York, thus sentencing the youth of America to Dick Clark. There is a soul-satisfying satiric paean to the American Bandstand host, though, lustily sung by Kimball’s defiant Huey and J. Bernard Calloway’s powerful Delray, that begins: "If your favorite color’s white/And your ass is always tight/Then I’ve found your Mr. Right." Amen.

Rock star turned musical-theater composer Bryan hasn’t tried to be authentic: there are electric guitars and bass mixed into his beat-driven melodies. But the music is likable and moves the story. There’s even a Dreamgirls-style showstopper for Glover: "Love Will Stand When All Else Fails." It doesn’t, of course. But rock-and-roll, pictured here in a euphoric infancy, proved to have legs.

Issue Date: October 3 - 9, 2003

October 1, 2003

By Sally Applegate

World-premiere musical at North Shore Music Theatre
Audience members cheer loudly after each dynamic musical number, and with good reason. A dynamic cast and terrific rock score by original Bon Jovi keyboard player David Bryan with book and lyrics by Joe DiPietro combine to make "Memphis" a winner at North Shore Music Theatre. Director Gabriel Barre keeps this production rock and rolling along in a powerhouse performance.

Shining at the center of a stellar cast is Chad Kimball in an exhilarating performance as Huey Calhoun, a rebellious DJ who brings black "race" music to a white audience, paving the way to the future for stars like Elvis Presley. From the moment this cute and cocky guy struts into a black church in search of "The Music of My Soul" to his triumphant takeover of the radio waves in Memphis, Tenn., Kimball is irrepressibly irresistible.

During some of the show's quieter moments, Kimball displays a clear tenor voice, and all his vocal numbers are superbly performed. He is especially effective on "That Ain't Me" in Act II, declaring if he'd watered down his music "I'd be just one more wealthy hypocrite. That ain't me and it never will be." His great falsetto finish on this number draws a huge cheer from the audience.

The round arena stage comes into its own as the persistent DJ goes door-to-door seeking a chance to play black music on white radio stations. This is cleverly conveyed by white lights and creaking and slamming door sounds as each light winks out to be replaced by the next challenging "door."

Kimball runs into some problems in the second act as his character, loosely based on real life DJ Dewey Phillips who died a has-been at 42, unravels at the seams. Kimball, like the show, suffers from the increasingly unpleasant events in Act II. A feel-good number at the end of the show can't quite restore the feel-good energy of Act I, but fuggedaboutit. Kimball is so endearing in Act I, and Act I is so splashy, they are worth the short trip to Beverly, and Act II is hardly a washout. Characters played by the other gifted cast members rise to prominence during Act II.

This rise and fall of Huey Calhoun plot is also about the rise into prominence of black music and singer Felica Farrell, brilliantly realized in a ferociously emotional portrayal by Montego Glover. Her powerfully stunning singing voice appears to have no limitations. She rips into a powerful octave, arms flung wide overhead, at the end of "I Can't Shake the Blues." Her savagely emotional rendition of "Colored Women" set off by unbelievable power at the top of her vocal range, draws screams of appreciation from the audience.

The black-and-white love story of Felicia and Huey plays out against the ever-threatening racial violence of the south in the 1940s and '50s. When Huey gets a visit from Felicia and his momma protests, "She's just a colored girl," Felicia replies, "It's okay Huey, my momma used to say the same thing." Later in the show, thugs beat Huey severely for cross-racial dating. It is a testament to the brilliance of the forgotten Dewey Phillips that he was able to revolutionalize the music industry in this environment.

J. Bernard Calloway gives a rock-solid performance as Delray, who rises to prominence as Felicia's producer and founder of Delray Records. His large and comforting presence contrasts starkly with the volatile little Huey, as his baritone contrasts with Kimball's tenor on "I Don't Make the Rules."

Susan Mansur does a delicious comic turn as Huey's mom Gladys. Appreciating her troubled son while keeping one foot in the traditional church, she performs a fun trio with Kimball and Kevin Covert, playing Reverend Fletcher, "Sin and Degradation." The good reverend points out that "race music" leads to sin "Oh my," degradation "Oh my," and communism "Oh my!" During Act II Mansur morphs into a hilarious cone-bra wearing rock star during a nightmare-for-Huey sequence.

Wayne Pretlow is delightful as Bobby the radio station janitor who later loosens up for "Two Minutes of Your Love," a grand number with the talented ensemble.

The irony of Act II is that Huey Calhoun, like the real Dewey Phillips, is gradually transformed into a rebel without a cause, as his revolutionary music becomes a national craze. The irony for the writers is that they are stuck with portraying the fall of Huey Calhoun. Less depressing detail and a bit more comic relief in Act II might help. That's what the new works program at North Shore is all about, debuting a show and working out the bugs as it possibly heads for New York City. This new show definitely has what it takes to become a major hit.
A plus for the Thursday night audience was the presence of Jon Bon Jovi in the audience. Sitting in the fifth row with Bryan, he watched the stage with the intensity of a critic. During the intermission he graciously signed an autograph for an avid fan, Melanie Lamprey of Seabrook, back with her husband William for the second time that week.

After the show, Bon Jovi stood by his limo and talked about the show for several minutes with an acquaintance, saying he was pleased with how it went, and that he appreciated many of the highlights. Of his friend Bryan he said, "He worked so hard."

Sally Applegate reviews local theater for North Shore Sunday.

THIS APPEARED IN TWELVE DIFFERENT COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS IN THE NORTH SHORE AREA

October 1, 2003

Circling the Square

By Myrna Fearer / Columnist

On a happy note, last Thursday night I was one of a huge crowd of people who were privileged to see "Memphis" at the North Shore Music Theatre. If you haven seen it yet, you've just got to get your tickets. Just be prepared for an experience you'll never forget. That is, of course, if you like toe-tapping music like Bon Jovi keyboard player David Bryan's that rocks the soul, listening to incredible voices like Montego Glover's, and be witness to a work in progress that's destined for Broadway. Congratulations to Artistic Director Jon Kimbell for being able to discern a success from just a first reading and for having the vision and desire to bring something unknown to NSMT.

I never stopped smiling in the first act. The second one, however, did have its sobering moments. The book was written by Joe DePietro, a guy with a clever sense of humor - he's the author of "I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change." The writing is wonderful, including DiPietro's amazing lyrics. The story, however, is based on reality and you can't change that. It's loosely written about the life of the late disc jockey Dewey Phillips who daringly introduced black, a k a race music, to a white and somewhat racist audience. Those of us who didn't live in the South at that time will probably never fully understand just how difficult it was for blacks. I consider myself anything but a bigot and I experienced anger and sorrow for the obviously disgraceful way these people were treated. And, though I was not to blame, I felt I wanted to apologize anyway.

But, I digress. The life of Dewey Phillips, or Huey Calhoun in Memphis, superbly played by Chad Kimball, ends rather tragically. The production, brilliantly directed by Gabe Barre, takes Huey through his meteoric rise to fame and fortune as the deejay who introduced rock 'n roll and his unexpected fall from grace, ignored and forgotten by his once-adoring fans. The man who made Elvis Presley a household name is now a footnote in the King's biography. How fleeting then are fame and fortune? It is a sobering lesson. But, don't misunderstand, this is anything but a sad musical and the show does end on an upbeat note. I would just love to see at least one more happy song to complement a first act that was completely filled with them. In fact, this show is so special, you'll find yourself sad because you never really want it to end. I'm sure you'll catch the "Memphis" bug like I did. (Trust me. It's contagious.) And you'll want to see it again and again. I hope there will soon be a CD of "Memphis." I expect it to rival that of "Mamma Mia."

I also have to praise Susan Mansur's performance as Gladys Calhoun. I loved her. She reminded me so much of Vicki Lawrence's characterization of Mama. I do believe that Gladys (Mansur) is to "Memphis" what Agnes Gooch is to "Mame."

If you had tickets for last Thursday night's performance, you know what an exceptional evening it was. Security was unbelievably tight because the one and only Jon Bon Jovi was rumored to be coming to see "Memphis" and catch the score by David Bryan, his friend and band member. Although I never saw Bon Jovi, lots of others did manage to see the famous star. I did talk to Victoria Block, Channel 7 reporter, who is a trustee, along with Yolanda (whom I saw in the ladies room, of all places). Since it was press night, lots of the media folk were there including folks from People Magazine, who showed up for an interview for the premier of a new musical.

It was an exceptionally exciting evening for Karen Kane and me in many ways. At intermission, I bumped into longtime friends Beverly and Billy Yacovitch, who both thought "Memphis" was the best thing they've ever seen. They couple invited us to join them in the Broadway Club where I saw my good friend, Nancy Palmer, NSMT trustee, her husband, Joe, and son, Mark and his wife, Christine. I also spoke with Susan and Steve Freyer (another trustee) and their daughter, Alex, a talented dancer/singer who attends Danvers High School.

To put the frosting on the cake of this magical evening, I had a special invitation to attend the cast party at Finz in Salem following the evening's performance. It was just like attending the Academy Awards. At the entrance to the restaurant, Bon Jovi fans lined the red carpet. Karen, Nancy, who joined us, and I entered like celebrities. And I certainly felt like one when Julie Arvedon, communications manager, started clapping her hands and chanting, Myrna, Myrna, and the good-natured Bon Jovi groupies picked it up, I was ready to make my acceptance speech.

I know some people were disappointed when Bon Jovi wasn't able to be at the party. His wife became ill and they had to leave from the theater. I wasn't, though. Frankly, who needs Bon Jovi when I had David Bryan. I don't like to brag, but as he came in the door and walked by our group on the way to the People Magazine interview, he stopped to kiss me on the cheek and say, "It's nice to see you again." No, he didn't confuse me with someone else. I had met him the week before at a media luncheon and Q & A.

September, 27, 2003

Nathan Lane offers lesson in wit; Crimson is on Steven Pinker's mind

By Carol Beggy & Mark Shanahan, Globe Staff

“It's born!” said David Bryan as he made his way down a red carpet into Finz in Salem on Thursday night. That's where a gala after-party was held for “Memphis”, which enjoyed its world premiere at the North Shore Music Theatre in Beverly earlier that night. Bryan, the Bon Jovi keyboardist who collaborated on the music for “Memphis”, was beside himself with joy, as was fellow collaborator Joe DiPietro, director Gabriel Barre, and Jon Kimball, NSMT's artistic director. Jon Bon Jovi had attended the opening but couldn't make the party because his wife wasn't feeling well. “I loved the show”, Bon Jovi said before disappearing into a limo. “I know that David has been working his [butt] off for five years, and he really deserves all the attention.” Lead actor Chad Kimball, playing the role of a Memphis DJ who first played “race music” on a white-owned station, was also at the party. “This is the biggest role I've had. I love the energy of it”, said Kimball, who attended the Boston Conservatory before moving to New York. “People say that it's hard to sing a rock score night after night, but if it challenges you, you can sing it forever”. Also at Finz was Ruth Pointer (of the Pointer Sisters), who hung out with cast member Cynthia Thomas, with whom Pointer had toured in “Ain't Misbehavin”. Pointer noted, “I was talking to David [Bryan], and he said they've been working him hard. And I said, David, if you want to work hard, the theater is the place to go”.

September 29, 2003

By Rich Fahey

Your feet won't sit still.

Your toes start tapping from the first beat of “The Birth of Rock and Roll”, the first number in the score of “Memphis” by Joe DiPietro and Bon Jovi keyboardist David Bryan, and never really stop until the crackerjack finale, “Steal Your Rock and Roll”.

The North Shore Music Theatre is hosting the world premiere of the musical "Memphis," and it will rock, roll and romance you.

This “Memphis” has both heart and soul, thanks to DiPietro's solid book about a likeable, rough-at-the edges DJ who sees only music and not color, and a remarkable maiden effort by composer Bryan, who moves seamlessly among the genres of gospel, r&b, pop rock, and Motown without missing a musical beat.

DiPietro often flashed his sense of humor in his hit revue “I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change” and it's here in spades in numbers such as “Sin, Degradation and Communism” and “Dick Clark”, a hilarious rebuke to the longtime TV host.

Throw in some superb choreography by Todd L. Underwood and stalwart direction by Gabriel Barre, whose vision appears to be in lockstep with the writers, and you have a new work of great promise.

“Memphis” begins in 1949, at a time when segregation is the law of the land, including when it comes to selecting music to be played on the radio. Huey Calhoun (Chad Kimball) knew early on he was drawn to so-called “race music” and journeys to an all-black bar in West Memphis to find it (“The Music of my Soul”). There he's derided and scorned by the clientele until he gets a break, becomes a DJ and a champion of struggling black artists whose music will become the birthplace of rock and roll. He also romances a young black singer named Felicia (Montego Glover), a taboo that threatens his life and her career.

Everybody has a friend like Huey, warm-hearted and generous, and loyal, but a person who runs right hrough the stop signs of life. He has a meteoric rise as a disc jockey turned TV host, but he can't stand prosperity and finally crashes and burns, just as Dewey Phillips did. He was the Memphis DJ upon whom the Calhoun character is based.

Is there work to be done? Some. A dream scene in the second act called “Huey's Nightmare” that foreshadows his demise (Think “Golda's Dream” in “Fiddler on the Roof”) stops the story line right in its tracks and forces it to make a detour just as it should be heading straight to its climax.

Fortunately, the show recovers quickly with the numbers “That Ain't Me”. Huey's statement that he was right to be true to himself, and “Steal Your Rock and Roll”, an uplifting and smashing way to send the audience into the night.

There are two, perhaps three songs that don't seem to move the action along. The second act's “Stand Up” falls into that category.

THE DAILY ITEM/2

The cast is strong, led by Kimball as the let-it-all-hang-out Huey. Kimball is up to the task of Bryan's upbeat, bluesy tunes.

Glover, one of the best parts of NSMT's recent production of “Footloose”, steals scenes as Felicia, the wannabe Diana Ross. DiPietro and Bryan have assigned her two sterling numbers - “Someday” and “Love Will Stand While All Else Falls” - while dealing a lesser hand to the also talented J. Bernard Calloway as Delray, the club owner whose star rises with Felicia's.

There's a fine comic turn by Susan Mansur as Huey's beleaguered mother Gladys and solid support from Wayne W. Pretlow as a janitor whom Huey befriends on the way to stardom, and David Piel as the radio station owner who gives Huey his big break.

The production values are up to NSMT's usual standards across the board, with special mention to the costumes of Pamela Scofield.

The cast also missed a beat on press night by forgetting to acknowledge the nine-piece orchestra led by Galen Butler that gave full voice to DiPietro and Bryan's music.

“Memphis” may not yet quite be at the level of another NSMT show, “HONK!”, that went on to worldwide fame and fortune. But it certainly has the chance to get there quickly, perhaps during its next run at Theatreworks in Palo Alto, Calif., or even - dare we say - Broadway.

“Memphis”, a world premiere musical, book and lyrics by Joe DiPietro, music, additional lyrics, dance and voical arrangements by David Bryan. Based on a concept by George W. George. Choreographed by Todd L. Underwood. Directed by Gabriel Barre.

September, 27, 2003

By Ed Siegel, Globe Staff

http://www.boston.com/ae/theater_arts/articles/2003/09/27/rock_n_roll_lives_in_memphis/

BEVERLY - When rock 'n' roll meets musical theater the result is usually rock 'n' snooze. The rebelliousness of rock and the uplift of show music often make for pretentious crossovers rather than for harmonious soul mates.

Not so for “Memphis”, which blends the virtues of both genres into a most agreeable mix in its world premiere at the North Shore Music Theatre. To its credit, the theater averages one new work a year, and this is easily the best since “Abyssinia” in 1995. It is also, judging from Thursday's opening-night audience, a real crowd pleaser.

By now, of course, early rock 'n' roll doesn't threaten the empire the way that it used to, or the best of rap or alternative music does today. That kind of rock rebellion was mainstreamed when Elvis went Vegas, if not when he went Hollywood. Oldies stations finished the job.

The story concerns the life of white disc jockey Dewey Phillips, who broke down radio barriers by introducing rhythm and blues, then called race music, to radio. Unlike the utterly conformist “rebels” on today's commercial rock stations, Phillips - here renamed Huey Calhoun - followed his muse into the heart of African-American music.

“Memphis” is more restrained than he was, but the musical still captures the teen spirit of the 1950s while telling a compelling story. The show unites the talents of Joe DiPietro (“I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change”), who wrote the lyrics and book, with the musical compositions of Bon Jovi keyboardist David Bryan. The result becomes “I Love You, You're Black, Let's Rock”, as the heart of the story involves a mixed-race romance between Calhoun and a singer named Felicia Farrell.

Bryan's music is a wonderfully deft blend of gospel, R&B and Broadway melodies, all the more impressive considering his lack of experience with show music. In fact, everything about “Memphis” is intelligently and professionally executed. DiPietro's writing and Gabriel Barre's savvy music-in-the-round direction never let the story bog down, and every time you think the show is headed toward the maudlin or mundane, they shift the action and throw in new sparkle.

Much of that sparkle resides in the two very likable leads, played by Boston Conservatory graduate Chad Kimball and Montego Glover, who was last seen hereabouts playing the young Alberta Hunter in “Cookin' at the Cookery” with the Huntington Theatre Company. Both are fine singers and even better actors. It is amazing how Kimball, who looks like a cross between Patrick Swayze and Jack Paar, can make the same head swivels and hand gestures connote naivete in the first act and braggadocio in the second. And there's not a false note from the strong supporting cast or from the band.

What the show could use are more blue notes in just about every category - the writing, music, and singing. DiPietro's lyrics aren't nearly as witty as in ``I Love You.'' Bryan purposefully leans more to gospel and r&b than electric blues, but the music is almost too upbeat. (Rather that than the opposite, which is the downfall of many a contemporary musical.)

A good deal of the difference between show music and rock or blues singing lies in the vocal range. Show singers tend to cover a wide range, while rock singers are more likely to home in on a narrower but more distinctive style. These singers understandably lean more toward show music, which does the trick, but which can also make “Memphis” seem a bit generic at times.

Nevertheless, the rock 'n' roll spirit is alive and well in “Memphis”. Most welcome is the putdown of the Wonder Bread antichrist of rock 'n' roll, Dick Clark, who inherits the mantle that Phillips/Calhoun should have worn. Calhoun's fall from grace is handled with particular skill. The downturn in his fortunes tells the story of rock's commodification and limns how Calhoun's virtues became his flaws.

Despite that fall, the final anthemic song leaves the crowd dancing. It's emblematic of all the talent and intelligence that went into this uncommonly good contemporary musical.

Ed Siegel can be reached at siegel@globe.com.

Memphis

Musical in two acts. Book and lyrics by Joe DiPietro. Music and additional
lyrics, David Bryan. Based on a concept by George W. George.
Choreography, Todd. L. Underwood. Set, Bill Stabile. Costumes, Pamela Scofield. Lights,
Phil Monat. Sound, John A. Stone.
At: the North Shore Music Theatre, through Oct. 12. 978-232-7200.
© Copyright 2003 Globe Newspaper Company.

September 23rd, 2003

By Andrew Gans

Montego Glover (L) and Chad Kimball of Memphis.

Memphis, the new rock musical from Joe DiPietro (book and lyrics) and David Bryan (music and additional lyrics), begins its world-premiere run Sept. 23 at the North Shore Music Theatre.

Chad Kimball, who memorably portrayed the cow Milky White in the Tony winning revival of Into the Woods, heads the cast of the production, which will play the Massachusetts theatre through Oct. 12 with an official opening scheduled for Sept. 25.

Directed by Gabriel Barre, the company of Memphis also includes Randy Aaron, Edward Barker, Derrick Baskin, Anika Bobb, J. Bernard Calloway, Catherine Carpenter, Kevin Covert, Kevin Duda, Montego Glover, Frank Lawson, Neal Mayer, Susan Mansur, David Piel, Wayne Pretlow, Jenelle Lynn Randall, Sarah Stiles, Stephan Stubbins, Nell Teare and Cynthia Thomas.

Memphis concerns the story of a white deejay who plays African-American music to his white listeners in the 1940’s, “unknowingly giving birth to the music known as rock-n-roll.” About the production, North Shore Artistic Director and Executive Producer Jon Kimbell said, “Memphis is a rock 'n roll piece designed to reflect both modern and historical musical styles. We are extremely proud to be the first theatre in the world to produce [the musical]”.

DiPietro — of I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change fame — explained, “In working with David Bryan, a bona fide rock star, we were able to be true to both the roots of rock 'n roll and to what audiences want to hear today. This is a story about the era when black music was introduced to white, teenage audiences. It was a turbulent time, an exciting time, and that musical revolution did, indeed, change the world.” And, co-author Bryan added, “It will be an entertaining eye opener for many people. And, as the composer, my goal is for the audience to walk out the door snapping their fingers and singing the tunes. That's what a good musical is all about”.

The creative team for Memphis comprises George W. George (original story concept), Todd L. Underwood (choreography), Galen Butler (music direction), Daryl Waters (orchestrations), Christopher Jahnke (music supervisor and additional arrangements), Bill Stabile (scenic design), Phil Monat (lighting design), John A. Stone (sound design), Pamela Scofield (costume design) and Gerard Kelly (wig design).

The North Shore Music Theatre is located on Dunham Road in Beverly, MA. Tickets — priced $26-$64 — are available by calling (978) 232-7200 or by going to the theatre's website, www.nsmt.org
Additional Details

September 21st, 2003

He enters theater by writing songs for rock musical
By Steve Morse, Globe Staff

EVERLY -- Rock 'n' roll is supposed to be an exhausting lifestyle, but David Bryan, keyboardist for stadium performers Bon Jovi, can't believe how hard it is to switch over to working in the theater world.

“I haven't gone to bed before 3 a.m., and I'm up at 8”, he says, adding that the mantra of sex, drugs, and rock 'n' roll is being replaced by “Can I get a little sleep?”

“This is like a job. I've got to go back to my rock 'n' roll band. It's a lot easier”, says Bryan.

In truth, however, he couldn't be happier. Although he played a hugely successful show with Bon Jovi before 47,000 fans at Gillette Stadium this summer, Bryan is exploring a side career in theater and is here to complete writing songs for the world premiere of a rock musical, “Memphis”, opening at the North Shore Music Theatre on Tuesday.

It's a story inspired by Dewey Phillips, the Memphis DJ who first started playing African-American “race records” on a white radio station more than 50 years ago. The piece blends a message of desegregation with some high-voltage music.

It is Bryan's job to lend authenticity, and he's done that remarkably well, based on the 20-plus songs he and lyricist Joe DiPietro (author of “I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change”) have written. The songs reflect the birth of rock 'n' roll and incorporate blues, rockabilly, gospel, and pop. They bridge the era between Patti Page and Roy Brown, Big Joe Turner and Elvis Presley. And a young, multicultural cast of 22 singers and dancers should ensure that the songs are translated with the utmost energy.

What's more, Bryan's self-proclaimed theater “innocence” is a key factor in the production. “When David talks about playing for 50,000 people in a stadium, that is old hat to him”, says DiPietro. “But when he writes music for a scene transition, he's like a kid here. But he's hungry to learn, and it's very refreshing”.

During a recent rehearsal, Bryan is a manic blur. He coaches two singers at a piano, advising them on the song “Radio” and its line about how “we know [the music] ignites folks out there”. The 41-year-old New Jersey native is eager to help and tells the singers, “If you'd just keep singing that part, you'll be fine”. He then sits down to watch director Gabriel Barre work with the rest of the cast, but all the while Bryan is tapping rhythms with his hands and feet. He can't slow down. Then he disappears to another room to transcribe an additional song and get it ready for production.

“David is very involved”, says Barre. “For someone essentially new to the process of writing for theater, he's put himself in a great place. He's not intimidated by it, and he's open to listening. . . . And he's not precious about the stuff he's written. We've thrown out a couple of songs, and he's OK with that. He's just a terrific guy to have around -- and at dinner he's got some great stories about his band”.

A different gig

Flashback to July 22: Bryan has just finished his set with Bon Jovi at Gillette Stadium and pops into a backstage room to greet several staff members from the North Shore Music Theatre, including associate producer John La Rock and production manager Mike Moore, who oversees all set, prop, and wardrobe departments for “Memphis”.

The staffers talk about being awed by Bon Jovi's immense staging, which consists of a mountainous backdrop of scaffolding and video screens that rival anything the Rolling Stones or U2 have toured with. “See what 44 trucks worth of stuff will get you!”, Bryan tells them.

Soon, the conversation turns to “Memphis”, and Bryan notes that Jon Bon Jovi and the rest of the band will likely be in Beverly on opening night (the official press opening is this coming Thursday). “There will be a train of buses coming from New Jersey”, says Bryan, who has written occasional songs for Bon Jovi but mainly helps arrange the tracks.

Interviewed before the Gillette show, Jon Bon Jovi says, “I've just heard bits and pieces of what David is doing. He's been really possessive about it. But I think everyone will come up to see it, because he's been working so hard on it. This is the real deal -- and hopefully it will be really successful and will land in New York someday”.

First, though, comes the Beverly premiere. The NSMT group tells Bryan that they've just secured New York actor Chad Kimball for the lead role of Hewey Calhoun and explain how the decision was made not to make “Memphis” strictly a “bio piece” about DJ Phillips, hence the name change to Calhoun.

“It freed us up as writers to make the DJ a composite of some of the other [DJs] at the time”, says Bryan. “But these were the guys who took risks, and it's exciting to be telling their story.”

Musical development

The original idea for “Memphis” came from Broadway producer George W. George, who contacted DiPietro a few years ago and suggested that Phillips's history would make a good musical. DiPietro wrote some lyrics but needed a collaborator to do the music. A friend passed DiPietro's script to Bryan, who had expressed interest in the theater, and ''out of the blue I get a call,'' DiPietro notes. ''And the voice says, `Hi, this is David Bryan of Bon Jovi and I'd like to write your score.' Rock stars don't tend to call me a lot, so at first I said, `What?' ''

''In my mind, I heard every song in that musical,'' says Bryan, who immediately wrote the music for two of the songs, ''Steal Your Rock 'n' Roll'' and ''Music of My Soul,'' which sealed the deal with DiPietro. And Bryan, it turns out, had wanted to get into theater for a while. A few years before, he wrote another musical, ''Sweet Valley High,'' but it never got mounted.

A staged reading of ''Memphis'' was held last year at Theaterworks in Palo Alto, Calif. Attending it was NSMT artistic director Jon Kimbell. He loved it and quickly began negotiations to bring it to Beverly. Oddly enough, after its Beverly premiere, it will go to Theaterworks for an official run there, before maybe gearing up for Broadway.

''It's about how music can bring people together and bring races together and cross all boundaries,'' says Kimbell. ''And it seemed to embody what musical theater can do as an art form.''

As for Bryan's contribution, Kimbell says, ''We're able to look at everything through his eyes, and it's almost a childlike approach. It's been fascinating to see him adapt, because this is so different from the rock world.'' (Bryan adds that he's only had to arrange music for three voices in Bon Jovi, but for ''Memphis'' he has arranged for up to 22 voices.)

''But David doesn't grandstand, he doesn't take over, and he's a very real collaborator,'' says Kimbell. ''And that's ultimately the secret of any musical theater piece. It has to be a collaboration.''

''I've been with Jon [Bon Jovi] for 26 years, so this is a fun new thing that has been very rewarding,'' says Bryan. ''There aren't a lot of people who take risks on new musicals, so I'm just thankful for the opportunity.''

''Memphis'' is at the North Shore Music Theatre from Sept. 23-Oct. 12. Tickets are $26-$63. Call the box office at 978-232-7200 or check the web site www.nsmt.org or more details.  View The Article Online

September 17th, 2003

By Terry Byrne

Inside a rehearsal room adjacent to the North Shore Music Theatre, young actors run through their lines, another group works on some dance moves and a third chats with director Gabriel Barre about the logistics of a particular scene. It looks like a typical rehearsal until the composer sits down at the piano.

That's because this composer, David Bryan, is moonlighting from his regular gig as keyboard player for the rock band Bon Jovi. Now that the band has finished its tour, Bryan is sitting in on rehearsals, writing new songs and tweaking others as he prepares for the world premiere of “Memphis” which opens Tuesday.

“It's not really that much of a stretch musically”, says Bryan. “As a classically trained musician, part of my role in the band is to add a broader musical palette. When Jon (Bon Jovi) and Richie (Sambora) came in with “Dead or Alive” (one of the band's biggest hits), they had guitar sounds. I put in the strings, the color and the voicings. I see the emotional content of the lyric and build that into the song. The music has to validate what's being said”.

What's being said in the case of “Memphis” comes from the pen of Joe DiPietro, best known for “I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change”.

“I was originally commissioned to write a show about Dewey Phillips, the Memphis DJ who introduced black music to white audiences, and I loved the character”, says DiPietro. “He was a rebel, and in the segregated South what he was doing was dangerous. But he didn't do it for money, he did it for the love of the music, which he wanted to share with the world. It's really about the power of one”.

DiPietro says it was also important to work in a love story as well as the darker elements of danger and heartbreak that were a part of Phillips' life.

“I don't think you can underestimate how completely segregated Memphis was”, says DiPietro. ““Hairspray” is more of a cartoon version of the story”.

After sketching out a story and some lyrics, DiPietro sent out his draft to various people who might be interested in composing the score for him.

“I was looking for someone who could give the story a rock 'n' roll feel”, says DiPietro. “But when I got a call from David I was completely surprised. I'd never gotten a phone call from a rock star before, and I didn't know if he was dangerous or anything”.

“Are you kidding?” interrupts Bryan. “The most dangerous thing we ever did was break into a roller-skating rink.”

“When I read the script, I immediately heard every one of these songs, and it was not drug induced”, Bryan says, laughing.

“He made a demo of “Music of My Soul””, says DiPietro, “and it was perfect. He understood right away that this song defines the lead character” (renamed Huey Calhoun for the musical).

“The biggest challenge for me was staying true to the characters and writing from their point of view”, says Bryan. “One minute I had to tell myself, “OK, now I'm a black teenage girl, now I'm a club owner, now I'm a worried mom”. As long as I can build a memorable melody around the character, I'm set”.

Although the process for getting a musical onstage is usually slow, both DiPietro and Bryan say “Memphis” has gone remarkably fast.

“I saw a workshop production of the show last year and fell in love with it”, says Jon Kimball, NSMT artistic director and executive producer.

“We were shocked”, says DiPietro, “because he came up to us at intermission, before he'd even seen the second act, and said he wanted to do a full production in his following season”.

The creative team brought in Barre, and he cast Chad Kimball, a Boston Conservatory grad who starred in the now-legendary production of “Side Show” there as well as on Broadway as Milky White in the revival of “Into the Woods”.

“The show does what musicals can do best”, says Kimball. “It captures the joy of music and how it can change lives. Musical theater is all about the emotions passing the intellect and going straight to the heart. That's what “Memphis” does”.

( “Memphis”, at North Shore Music Theatre, 62 Dunham Road, Beverly, Tuesday-Oct. 12. Tickets: $26-$63. Call 978-232-7200 or go to www.nsmt.org. )

September 19th, 2003

By Carly Carioli

The Memphis disc jockey Dewey Phillips is not as well known to most people as Alan Freed or Dick Clark, and that’s one reason to welcome a new musical that will get its world premiere this Tuesday at the North Shore Music Theatre. Memphis, with book and lyrics by Joe DiPietro (I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change; The Thing About Men) and music by Bon Jovi keyboardist David Bryan, centers on one Huey Calhoun, a freely fictionalized Dewey doppelgänger.

The Memphis Creative Team

The real Dewey was dramatic enough: he was the first to play Elvis Presley on the radio, and by then he was already a pioneer (the pioneer) in playing, in the late ’40s and early ’50s, on a program he called Red Hot and Blue, a mix of black rhythm and blues, white country music, boogie-woogie, and jazz for a mixed-race audience. His personal style was as unhinged, unkempt, and unruly as rock and roll would soon become. A pill-popping hillbilly speed freak shouting and singing and talking back to the records as he played them, he invented and personified the image of the fast-talking, jive-spewing madman DJ. The musicologist Robert Palmer once wrote that Elvis Presley’s early "musical ideas were, at their essence, the compression of a Dewey Phillips radio show into a single song, a single person".

In Memphis, Huey Calhoun is a disc jockey who grows up poor, falls in love with both black music and a black woman, and alters the course of American culture. "We used the rough outline of Dewey’s professional life and then fictionalized it for dramatic purposes," says DiPietro. Think of it as a Hairspray with less John Waters than Muddy Waters. "It’s about the rise of rock and roll as seen through the eyes of the early white DJs who were the first people playing race music for white audiences. What was compelling about the story to me was the joy and freedom of this new type of music, and this dramatic conflict — a time where what this music represented racially was so frowned upon that it was downright dangerous to play these records, let alone make them".

In the end, Dewey Phillips was a tragic figure: his wild-man persona was no act, and it combined with years of drug abuse to form a volatile man who after pioneering the idea of playing records on television (two years before American Bandstand) proved too reckless for the air. He was fired when his co-host, in a monkey suit, manhandled a girl on a live broadcast; he sank into depression, drug abuse, and obscurity and died early.

Is Memphis a tragedy? "To some degree," says director Gabriel Barre, "although I think the audience will find that the show is a celebration of Huey’s life, and certainly wonderful things come out of his efforts. And in the end, what will be inspiring is that he stuck to his guns. But there are tragic things about his life that we don’t shy away from, that give it tension and truth. Our Huey takes painkillers, which in our show was the result of, at first, self-medicating an injury from an attack by three white racists, and we see that as well. We’re making a careful attempt to tell it like it was.

"I especially love doing musicals that are about music, because you ease that tricky leap that people in the audience seem hard-pressed to make — people singing their thoughts — when music is the lifeblood of the show itself, as it is for Huey. And one of the things I was drawn to is, it’s a great metaphor for the arts in general — breaking down cultural and racial barriers even if that wasn’t the goal originally. He really just loved the music, and inadvertently woke people up to the fact that we’re all of one race, the human race."

Memphis runs September 23 through October 12 at the North Shore Music Theatre, 62 Dunham Road in Beverly. Tickets are $26 to $63; call (978) 232-7200.

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August 28, 2003

New Musical By Joe DiPietro (“I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change”) and
David Bryan (Founding Member and Keyboard player for Bon Jovi)

North Shore Music Theatre proudly presents the World Premiere of the rock 'n roll musical “Memphis”. “Memphis” is inspired by an era when 1940's DJs held the key to America's living rooms and introduced scores of white listeners to African American music-- music that would later become known as "rock 'n roll."

In this World Premiere, audiences will meet stars like Patti Page and Elvis Presley and be moved by the fearless rebel in the DJ booth who was wild and brave enough to help open the minds of a generation and change the world forever. “Memphis” runs from September 23 - October 12, 2003 with press night set for September 25 at 8:00 pm.

"We are introducing our audiences to rock 'n roll as they've never seen or heard it before", reveals NSMT Artistic Director and Executive Producer Jon Kimbell. "Memphis is a rock 'n roll piece designed to reflect both modern and historical musical styles. We are extremely proud to be the first theater in the world to produce “Memphis” and to bring the talents of two of the most respected writers and musicians in the industry to our theater- Joe DiPietro and David Bryan. Their collaboration brings the worlds of Broadway and true rock 'n roll together and audiences will see the exciting results of that marriage on stage every night."

The recipient of the 1997 William Inge Festival "New Voices in American Theater" Award, Joe DiPietro (Book and Lyrics) is also the author of the hit comedy “Over the River and Through the Woods” and the smash-hit musical “I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change”, which is currently Off-Broadway's longest running musical. Collaborating with DiPietro on “Memphis”is David Bryan (Composer, Additional Lyrics), the key board player and original member of the world famous rock group Bon Jovi. Trained as a classical pianist, Bryan has released a solo instrumental album, Lunar Eclipse through Rounder Records of Cambridge, MA, and has worked on the music and lyrics for a musical based on the popular book series “Sweet Valley High”. He has his own website www.DavidBryan.com.

"By working with a bonafide rock star, Bon Jovi's David Bryan, I was able to be true to both the roots of rock 'n roll and to what audiences want to hear today", explains author and lyricist Joe DiPietro. "This is a story about capturing the era of black music and white audiences and the score was critical to advancing the plot".

According to composer and lyricist David Bryan, the audience is going to through a historical and musical journey during this production. "It will be an entertaining eye opener for many people", says Bryan. "And as the composer, my goal is for the audience to walk out the door snapping their fingers and singing the tunes. That's what a good musical is all about."

Setting the pace for this World Premiere rock 'n roll musical is director Gabriel Barre. Barre directed the national tour of Rodger's and Hammerstein's “Cinderella” starring Eartha Kitt and the off-Broadway musical, “The Wild Party”, at the Manhattan Theatre Club, for which he won the Calloway Award for Best Direction and which was nominated for numerous awards, including five Outer Critics Circle Awards and thirteen Drama Desk Awards both including Best Director of a Musical. Other off-Broadway credits include “Summer of '42” at the Variety Arts Theatre and “Stars in Your Eyes” at the Cherry Lane Theatre. He is currently working on a new musical by Kander and Ebb based on the Thornton Wilder's “The Skin of Our Teeth” and Frank Wildhorn's “Camille Claudel” starring Linda Eder.

The cast of “Memphis” will be headed by Chad Kimball, a recent Boston Conservatory graduate who caused a media sensation in 2002 playing Milky White in the Tony Winning Broadway revival of “Into the Woods”. The rest of the cast includes: Randy Aaron, Edward Barker, Derrick Baskin, Anika Bobb, J. Bernard Calloway, Catherine Carpenter, Kevin Covert, Kevin Duda, Montego Glover, Frank Lawson, Neal Mayer, Susan Mansur, David Piel, Wayne Pretlow, Jenelle Lynn Randall, Sarah Stiles, Stephan Stubbins, Nell Teare and Cynthia Thomas.

“Memphis” is a co-production with TheatreWorks in Palo Alto, CA where the piece had its first staged reading in the spring of 2002. In the tradition of other new works including "Abyssinia" and "HONK!". “Memphis” is part of NSMT's ongoing mission to nurture the development of new works and introduce them to new audiences. Tickets for “Memphis” are priced from $63 to $26. Performances are Tuesday through Saturday evenings at 8:00 p.m. (except October 7 at 7:00 p.m.); matinees Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays at 2:00 p.m.

Tickets can be purchased by calling the North Shore Music Theatre Box Office at (978) 232-7200, via the website at www.nsmt.org or in person at 62 Dunham Road (Route 128, exit 19), Beverly, MA. Personal listing devices and large print Braille programs are available. NSMT will continue its 2003 season with “West Side Story”, Oct. 28 - Nov. 23; and the 15th anniversary of the award-winning, holiday musical “A Christmas Carol”, Dec. 5-21. The 2003 Musical season is sponsored in part by Delta Air Lines.

February 1st, 2003

Website To Feature Exclusive News, Video, Photos and Merchandise Designed By The Artist - New York, NY ---
Coming on the next New Moon …

The Website from David Bryan with everything you’ve ever wanted to know about Bon Jovi’s keyboardist, his solo projects and his philanthropic work.

Visit the site for news about your favorite keyboard player and his on and off the road activities including not one but two musicals in development! The site, developed by David and a team hand selected by him to offer the best on-line experience for news, background, reports from the road, additional information on his activities as Spokesperson for VH1’s Save The Music and his other philanthropic projects, new press clips, photos, videos and exclusive merchandise designed by David as well as a special interactive musical element.

DavidBryan.com offers an opportunity to write to David and have him answer your questions. Want to know more about how he wrote or plays a particular song? Ask him! Want to know more about the Broadway-bound musicals? Ask him! Want to contribute your thoughts to his next solo record? Tell him here!

David wants to hear from you! Check out DavidBryan.com and let us know what you think! Tell us what you thought of the Bon Jovi show you saw last night or of the new video. What else would you like to see on his site? Let David know.

Visit DavidBryan.com for the most intimate experience you can have with the founding member and keyboard player of Bon Jovi on the internet!

February 1st, 2003

DavidBryan.com offers an opportunity to write to David and have him answer your questions. Want to know more about how he wrote or plays a particular song? Ask him! Want to know more about the Broadway-bound musicals? Ask him! Want to contribute your thoughts to his next solo record? Tell him here! David wants to hear from you! Let us know what you think! Tell us what you thought of the Bon Jovi show you saw last night or of the new video. What else would you like to see on this site? Let David know! Email David at askdavidbryan@davidbryan.com and a selection of the best questions will be posted here!

November 5, 2002

Keyboard Player Balances Rock & Roll and Musical Theatre

New York, NY --- (9/02) While some may call Bon Jovi’s recent traffic stopping Times Square performance the group’s Broadway debut, keyboard player DAVID BRYAN has been working on a Broadway opening of his own. On Sunday, September 22, 2002, DAVID performed “Music Of My Soul” from his upcoming musical, MEMPHIS, as part of IN THE WINGS, the NAMT/ASCAP Songwriter Showcase at the John Houseman Theatre. The evening was hosted by Dick Scanlan and Jeanine Tesori, writers of the 2002 Tony-Award Winning Musical THOROUGHLY MODERN MILLIE (NAMT Festival 2002).

The highlight of the evening was the announcement that MEMPHIS is on a fast track and will be presented next Spring between Bon Jovi’s touring schedule at the prestigious North Shore Theatre, Beverly, MA and at Theatreworks in Palo Alto, CA where the piece had its first staged reading in the Spring of 2002.

With not one, but two musicals in development, the classically trained musician has used the time between records and will continue to work while on the road with the band on MEMPHIS, a musical about Dewey Phillips, the first white DJ to play black music on the radio and SWEET VALLEY HIGH, a show adapted from the best selling books and syndicated television show about life seen through the eyes of teenage twins.

David’s theatrical collaborators, already musical theatre veterans are Joe DiPietro (I LOVE YOU, YOU’RE PERFECT, NOW CHANGE) who wrote the book for MEMPHIS and Francine Pascal (MACK AND MABEL) the book writer and originator of the SWEET VALLEY HIGH stories.

Selections from SWEET VALLEY HIGH and MEMPHIS can be heard on David’s solo record LUNAR ECLIPSE (Rounder/Universal).

October 16, 2002

New Album Bounce Is the Highest Chart Debut Ever for a Bon Jovi Album

New York – October 16, 2002 – International superstars Bon Jovi add another milestone to their multi-platinum career as their latest effort Bounce debuts at #2 on the Billboard charts. This marks the highest-ever debut for the band who have earned sales in excess of 93 million albums worldwide.

The new album Bounce is a big rock ‘n’ roll record that harkens to the band’s roots with powerful songs and the inspiring, optimistic and hopeful lyrics that Bon Jovi is known for. The New York Times writes, “Bon Jovi has become a rock ‘n’ roll institution” and The Associated Press hailed, “The boys from Jersey are back with Bounce, one of the best hard-rock records of the year.” Fueled by the hit single “Everyday” the album has already topped the European charts with a number one debut.

Bon Jovi first debuted new material from Bounce at a rousing performance in front of more than 500,000 fans in New York’s Times Square –and countless more watching on TV – at a kick-off event for the NFL season. This feat was followed by a performance at Shepherd’s Bush Empire in London which was simulcast live via satellite to more than 20 cinemas throughout Europe, and webcast live to over 63 different countries and seen by more than one million music fans. Bon Jovi also recently appeared on the “Today Show,” where thousands of the faithful gathered amidst the pouring rain to watch the band’s outdoor performance, garnering the largest crowd the show has ever had in the month of October – rain or shine.

Bon Jovi is slated to mount a worldwide tour in support of Bounce beginning in December and continuing throughout 2003.

Bounce is the follow up to the incredibly successful album, Crush which sold eight million copies worldwide (certified double platinum in the U.S.), spawned the hit singles, "It's My Life" and "Thank You For Loving Me" and earned the group their first ever Grammy nominations for "Best Rock Album" and "Best Rock Performance by Duo or Group" for "It's My Life."

June 1, 2002

Musician David Bryan, Keyboard player for the band Bon Jovi will be in West Orange at the Edison National Historic site (Main Street and Lakeside Avenue) on Saturday, June 1st at 1:00 PM, as part of the Edison Day festivities.

David Bryan will be recording on a sound cylinder, Thomas Alva Edison’s original sound recording device. A native of Edison, New Jersey, David has always been passionate about the Edison Museum and all of the innovative technology created there. As the creator of the keyboard sounds for Bon Jovi and his own records, David considers himself a “gadget guy.”

Currently recording a new Bon Jovi record and programming keyboards using the most advanced technology available in the music industry, David returns to his home state of New Jersey to experience the root of all sound recording at the Edison National Historic Site.

“I remember going to the Edison Museum as a kid on a class trip. It’s an honor to return now, a few years later, to the birthplace of sound recording. Through Thomas Edison’s brain power, the technology was created that allows my band and every other musician to make records,” said Bryan.

David Bryan is the National spokesperson for VH1’s Save the Music Foundation which is dedicated to improving the quality of education in America’s public schools by restoring music education programs and raising awareness of the importance of music participation for our Nation’s youth. Bon Jovi will be performing Sunday at Giant’s Stadium as part of the Z100 Zootopia Show.

June 25, 2001

David Bryan Makes His Mark in 2001 with the Release of Lunar Eclipse

New York- (June 25, 2001)-- David Bryan, founding member and keyboardist for the internationally renowned band, Bon Jovi has forged new musical roads this year with the release of his solo instrumental effort, Lunar Eclipse and his work with the VH1 Save The Music Foundation. Lunar Eclipse touches upon all areas of his musical life—from his classical training to his father’s jazz influences, to his rock and roll roots and into a fusion of all of these musical styles.

In addition, the talented musician has gained awareness and acceptance within the New Age Community with heavy radio airplay of songs from Lunar Eclipse.

He has become an invaluable participant of the VH1 Save The Music campaign by going to schools in Atlanta, Georgia and Greenville, SC to talk to students and educators about the benefits of music education. Bryan also works one on one with students by holding “Master Classes” for those who have received instruments from the program.

“David has been one of our biggest and most generous supporters, and is a passionate believer of the power of music education," says Bob Morrison, Executive Director, the VH1 Save The Music Foundation. "By interacting, up close and personal, with the kids in his master classes, David also actually helps nurture and inspire these children. VH1 Save The Music is fortunate to count him as one of our best ambassadors."

The VH1 Save The Music Foundation is a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the quality of education in America’s public schools by restoring music programs in cities across America, and raising awareness about the importance of music participation for our nation’s youth. Through partnerships with affiliates and advocates, as well as corporate and national sponsors, VH1 Save The Music conducts awareness campaigns, musical instrument drives, and fundraising events in conjunction with public schools to help restore instrumental music programs. Since VH1 Save The Music was created in 1997, more than $17 million worth of musical instruments has been donated to 750 public schools in 43 cities, improving the lives of more than 250,000 children. The Foundation’s ten-year plan is to bring music participation to one million children in public schools.

David adds, “I am so lucky to have this opportunity to do this charitable work with VH1 and at the same time, be able to promote my music to a whole new audience, outside of the pop music world. Through my travels with Bon Jovi and now with this solo project, I see how important it is to make a personal connection with the kids. I am happy to be involved because their energy inspires me.”

Additionally, Lunar Eclipse has received positive reviews from papers across the country such as The Salt Lake City Tribune, Las Vegas Sun and the Desert News among others. Also, the New Age Voice will be running a feature story on David that will coincide with the significant airplay the record is receiving on new age and smooth jazz stations across the country.

His community outreach activities with VH1 Save The Music, combined with the radio airplay of his CD has given David new outlets to showcase his myriad of musical styles.