David grew up in a house of music. “My great grandpa led a band in the twenties and roaring thirties. My grandma ended up being in that band at the age of 12 and she toured the world. She performed with Sammy Davis Jr. in the sixties and did a house concert for Michael Landon while he was working on Bonanza in Medford, Oregon,” David said. “My mother followed in her footsteps and worked with gospel legend Andraé Crouch while he was working on the soundtrack for ‘The Color Purple’.” They are still friends and keep in contact.
All that being said, he didn’t even want to be a musician. “I was an athlete and thought I was going to be a pro athlete one day. Even though music runs deep in my family, I didn’t find it until later in my life. I really didn’t pursue it until my 20s.”
David first picked up a guitar when his brother got one for his birthday. It was the summer before his senior year in high school and his girlfriend had just broke up with him. “I plucked on the six strings and it somehow began to heal my broken heart. I was amazed at how I could express my feelings on the guitar in a way that words couldn’t,” he said.
But it was a few years after that before he picked a guitar back up. “I had this crazy dream that I would one day play my guitar in front of thousands of people and it was going to mend the souls of those who hurt. At the time I was doing a little acting with Fox on ‘Nowhere Man’ and some local modeling in Portland. I was working on a demo I was gonna pitch to a connection I had with Warner Bros. and the modeling agency liked it. They asked if I would write a song that they could use in a promo video they we resending out nationally. I guess I have been working professionally ever since—nearly 15 years.”
He has played with some of Portland’s greats, like Paul Delay and Lloyd Jones. He also played with Austin’s Nick Curran. Three Dog Night opened for him at one of his shows last year. (“Long story, but true,” he says.) “Thanks to Peter Dammann I was afforded the chance to be on the main stage the last three years at the Safeway Waterfront Blues Festival.” When asked if he had a day job, he smiled. “It all depends on how you look at it. Around here, in the Mid Willamette Valley, (David lives in a small town outside of Albany,) if you say you are a musician or an artist they look at you as if you have taken up some kind of hobby like knitting or something,” he said. “For the most part they don’t consider how important it is for the fabric of our society to survive without art. Without art there is no life.”
“I invested the money I made from modeling and acting into my first studio/production company. It is called New Destiny and I record, write, produce music, albums, video etc. …In essence I help all artists. I try and help us see how we need each other and see how we can work together to create something we could never create by ourselves.”
But don’t think that David has had it easy. It hasn’t always been roses and bon bons. “I’ve lost everything that was important to me and have even lived in my car twice. I had to rebuild and it hasn’t been easy, but it has grown to the point where I am putting together some new ideas and now have a great team that helps me, including my new friends from the CBA.”
The only band member that has stuck with David through thick and thin is his drummer/percussionist, and friend, Kevin Van Walk. “He is a great musical partner who has great ideas and helps stretch me as an artist. He keeps me grounded both in life as well as in music. We have been working together since about 2002.”
David is definitely a “hands-on” producer. He oversees everything from the album to the photo shoots, video, graphics, web design and just the over all image of it all. He feels that art is in everything. “The way we talk, dress, write, walk, cook, see life, we can express ourselves in so many ways not just singing and playing an instrument.”
In addition to record production, he has been teaching music and developing artists. “My students have been on tour with the Jonas Bros, Switchfoot, and many more. I’m very proud of them. I also help educate artists on how to survive and make a living with the gifts God has given them.” When talking about influences he credits his grandma, mother and uncle. “Without them I would not be a musician at all,” he said. However, one of his favorite quotes of all time is from Willie Nelson who said, “All music comes from the blues.”
“Blues is American music and I loved listening to the recordings of Robert Johnson and Lightning Hopkins. I remember the joy of discovering Ry Cooderand Arlen Roth one summer in Oklahoma while rummaging through an old record store. After that I loved all the ex-Yardbird guitar players: Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page along with all the late 60’s guitar heroes. Jim Hendrix, Pete Townsend, to name a few. Moving along with the 80’s and MR. SRV ‘Stevie Ray Vaughan’ bringing blues and blues rock back to the forefront. I’d have to say even Stevie Wonder has influenced some of what I do. More recently, Miles Davis and his album ‘Bitches Brew’ has inspired my current sound—along with Australia’s haunting blues player Jeff Lang and Austin great Chris Whitley. Daniel Lanois and Brian Eno have inspired my sonic palette as well—sorry—I know so many artists have influenced me and I haven’t even named them all.
David says his music tells stories and takes risks, “utilizing whatever sonic palettes necessary to express heart, soul and truth. The roots will always be in the blues but it is not traditional any longer. If there was a genre called funky/alternative/blues/rock with ambient soundscapes, then pour a little bit of Pappa Johns hot sauce on there for a little soul and that’s my music in a nut shell.”
When asked about instruments he plays, David said, “Well if you think of instruments as languages and if I would list them in how fluent I am in each language it would go in this order. Guitar, bass, then drums and piano would be tied for third. I can pretty much figure out anything I get my hands on.” David is a self-taught musician. He has studied music on his own and now helps with the schools’ music programs by teaching theory.
He is currently working on an album entitled “Acoustic Soulcraft,” featuring the new sound of his acoustic duo act that was showcased at the last CBA meeting. Additionally he has five CD’s, all of which are available for purchase through his website—Unforeseen, Weightless, Feels Real Good, Vision of Love, and Blues for a Day.
For more information or to order one of his CD’s, visit David’s website at www.thedavidsamuelproject.com. Keep your eyes and ears on David Samuel—I think he’s getting ready to rock this Blues community with his 21st century style of blues.
By Laurie Morrisey, Editor
