September 26, 2009 After October 27th, anyone trying to open this website will be greeted with a "page does not exist" message. This will be because Geocities has decided to end its free website offer. Of course, I could keep the website in its current form by paying a monthly fee, but there are few visitors and my focus in music has changed quite a bit from the days when I first started the site for my old band, Waterloo Clyde, around the turn of the century (I always wanted to use that in a sentence). So, rather than take the time to rebuild the website with a different webhost,I think it's time I pass the torch to a new generation (I always wanted to use that in a sentence too), like Paul's Grandfather, my daughter's up and coming band. If you liked my music, I'm sure you'll really like theirs.
If you want, you can still find me on the web on these fine music sites - Song Ramp and Soundclick. Also, you can check out my newest venture, Half Pint Harmony, on Facebook and MySpace.
Finally, thanks to my biggest and most loyal fan, John, for checking in on this site over the years and reminding me to update. John has followed my music from the earliest days from acoustic trio, to 6 piece rock band, to kids music, never missing an opportunity to bring up my name to someone who might be looking for the next James Taylor!
Dave retires from rock band!
An old shot of The Misfit Toys before we became Common Ground. Left to right: Frank, Laurie, me, Ken, and Dick
(Current members are Frank, Laurie, Paul, Tim and John)
December 6, 2008 For all those local friends and family that have come to hear me when I've played with Common Ground (previously known as The Misfit Toys), you may be SHOCKED to learn that last night (December 5th) was my last gig with the group. Although it's been a great five years with Frank and Laurie and various (Chris, Dick, Ken, Terry, Paul, Tim, John - I don't think I left anybody out) other band members, my yearning to play quieter music finally got the best of me. As I said to Paul, our drummer, last night, "I'm just getting too old for rock and roll".
I wish the band the best of luck and I'm certain they'll find a way to fill the gap I'm creating with my departure. As for me, I'm happier than ever with my other music outlets. "Half-Pint Harmony", the kids music partnership I share with my good friend Bev is growing slowly into a really great business. We now visit two child care centers and a Head Start school on a weekly basis. We've also visited three local Pre-K rooms, done a birthday party and are on the books to do a "Holiday Party" at a neighboring pre-school. Mr. Dave CDs are selling quite well and I might even have to produce more to meet the holiday demand.
I'd like to find one or two like minded people to form an acoustic band with, but if that doesn't happen, I still have plenty of music in my life to keep me happy. In addition to "Half-Pint Harmony", I'm also having fun singing "barbershop music" with three friends of mine. We talk and laugh more than sing and a couple nights ago I learned how to play Wii under the guise of "rehearsing". Also I'm half of the tenor section in our senior church choir and learning (slowly) how to be a bell ringer in the church bell choir.
If you've taken the time to read this - thank you so much! How ever you've found this page, whether you know me personally, or you've found my music through SongRamp, SoundClick, Dmusic, or by way of the Jedi Mind Trick (arrggh) sampling of "Freeman's Farm", I truly appreciate it.
Happy Holidays,
Dave
Cool New CD is Huge Success!!!! (not really ~ just adding a little Republican style spin here, ha ha)
September 30, 2008 Exciting news! Sarah Palin has all the credentials anybody could ask for to be the next Vice President of the United States!!! (not really ~ just a little more Republican style spin ~ ha ha)
Seriously now, I do have exciting news. Today I began distributing "Sing With Mr. Dave", a collection of original tunes and old favorites I've been singing with the kids at the Child Care center that I visit every Tuesday. A few parents have asked for something like this, and it's crossed my mind that a CD might be useful in promoting business, so I took to the recording studio (my basement) a few weeks ago and I'm quite pleased with the results. The CD runs about 30 minutes and includes 10 songs.
More exciting news: It's great being "Mr. Dave". Every Tuesday I feel like a rock star. The toddlers at the child care center where I sing even say, "rock on Mr. Dave" as I leave! But I've always felt a bit limited to what I could do with a guitar strapped around my shoulder and have been thinking for some time it would be nice to have a partner.
As luck would have it, my friend, Bev, just retired from teaching 3rd grade last June and was looking for something fun to do on Tuesday mornings. Bev is great with kids and has a bag full of puppets and a brain full of great new ideas. She just what the doctor ordered. Since bringing Bev on as my partner, Tuesday's have been more fun than ever.
If you'd like a copy of "Sing With Mr. Dave" for your kids or grandkids (or for yourself)~ you can email me at mrdave.music(at)gmail.com.
Dave
Oh What a Time it Was...
July 11, 2008 It's been a couple of weeks now since Corey and Alison's excellent wedding adventure and still my little brain keeps turning back to the many wonderful moments that filled the last days of June and the first days of July. Although it began for my wife, my daughter and me in an incredible rain, thunder and lightning storm that seemed to last for hours as we putted down I-71 in Ohio that ended in Columbus at our first stopover with tornado sirens going off throughout the night, it got much better after we made it safely to Kansas City, two days before the wedding.
Meeting Alison's lovely relatives Thursday evening, shortly after we arrived, set the stage for what I have to say was one of the most congenial merging of families and friends I've ever seen. We had meet Alison's mom and dad earlier this year and found them to be wonderful, but had no idea that everyone in the family was the same. We slept well that night.
I spent the next day learning the route back and forth to the Kansas City International Airport, which had some exciting moments. Alison taught me how on the first trip then let me go it alone. I made five trips total and became an expert by the following Monday.
Friday night we had a fantastic dinner following the rehearsal. I don't like speaking in front of crowds much, but the people at this event were so great to talk to, that I think I could have given David Letterman a run for his money. There were 85 out of town friends and relatives there and they laughed and applauded at everything I had to say including my lame opening line - "Errmmm, hi, I'm Dave Preston. If you don't know me, I'm the father of the groom." My long winded toast ended with a slide show and a few words by the father of the bride. He was received equally as well. I'm thinking we may a future in comedy together.
The next day, of course, was the wedding, and what a wedding it was. The setting was a beautiful Presbyterian Church in Kansas City. Just listening to the organ would have made my trip seem worth while. The wedding party looked resplendent - men in tails, women in beautiful gowns. Alison looked just incredible in her wedding gown, and I think Corey may have "somewhat' combed his hair. It was a really nice ceremony followed by the party of the century at an old school house converted to an antique store and restaurant. Although the idea of a "black tie affair" had me a little nervous, I must admit we all looked pretty darn cool dancing the night away, me in my tails and all. I have new respect for penguins. (Here's me and my friend Jim doing the Crocodile Rock) Again, it was just amazing to me how well people got along with each other. A nicer group of people, you'll never meet, and Corey and Alison never stopped smiling the whole night through.
I won't bore you with the details of the rest of the weekend, but if you're ever in Kansas City you should visit the Arabia Riverboat Museum. The trip home was uneventful - except for a winery we discovered on I-70 outside of Indianapolis - and it was a little hard getting back to pre-wedding life. We did it though - and I've lived to tell you about it!
Click here to see a great slide show my talented friend, Mary, put together showing photos of the whole weekend. It's not the same as being there, but I think you'll like it just the same.
Dave
Another son Takes the Plunge!
Also: "Sago" nominated for S.O.M. on Song Ramp
May 28, 2008 It's getting a little hectic here in Preston Land as we get ready to celebrate the second wedding in the family. In just about a month our son, Corey will be tying the knot with his college sweetheart, Alison. Al and Cor met several years ago while they were both attending Emerson College in Boston. We really love Alison - not only because she's as sweet they get, but also because she shares our political leanings!
After the wedding, Corey and Alison will begin packing for another big adventure - though not as big as the whole being married thing, of course. In August they'll be moving to Williamsburg, Virginia where Corey will be starting his first year of law school at the College of William and Mary and Alison will be looking for a job teaching high school English.
On a music note: You may well remember "Sago", a song I wrote a couple of years ago after the tragic mine disaster in Tallmansville, West Virgina. Just recently it was nominated for Song of the Month on Song Ramp. I feel particularly humbled by the fact that I'm not very good about listening and reviewing other songwriters music there, and right or wrong, that makes me one of the lesser known "rampers". As you can imagine, I'm very grateful then, that someone would nominate one of my songs. That said, it doesn't appear that "Sago" has a chance of winning - it was tied for last place out of five songs last time I looked. Regardless, it's pretty neat to be nominated!
Dave
Twins turn three ~ Dave writes new song!
March 16, 2008 Exciting news! Gabe and Aidan Preston just turned three, and, as you can tell by the photo, it was quite an event. Friends and relatives came from near and far - including my BIGGEST FAN, John and my BIGGEST FAN's wife, Barbara! Unfortunately, you can't see John in the photo, which is ironic, he being my BIGGEST fan and all, but Barb is visible in the background just left of little baby Faolan's (Aidan and Gabe's brother) head .
That's Gabe on the left, and Aidan in his daddy's arms, blowing out candles. Speaking of Aidan, we saw each other the other day in the store where I'm working, making interesting food like soup. Aidan was shopping with his mom and didn't really know what to make of me, all soupy and stuff, but he was adorable none the less, and my co-workers got to see a little "Papa Pride" being demonstrated first hand.
On another note: I just wrote a brand new song that I think you should listen to. The song came to being while driving home after my other job as a visiting music teacher on Tuesday mornings. I wanted to end each class with a short calming song before moving on to the next group - so I came up with the first verse of the song which goes like this:
What a wonderful thing, you and me
You and I are like bright, shining stars
And here's what we'll say at the end of our day
How lucky we are who we are, oh
How lucky we are who we are
I tried it out on the kids at the Child Care Center and they started singing along before I got to the third line, so it seems like it might be a keeper. I added the other two verses later on to make it long enough to record. You can interpret the song any way you want. I picture 4 year old kids giggling like crazy over "I'm Being Swallowed By A Boa Constrictor" as I sing it, but it could just as easily be considered a love song sung by a husband to his wife .....
The strings were added by my ever talented daughter, Katie. You can listen to the song here. If you like the song, let me know. I love the way the final mix came out - especially Katie's strings!
Dave
What Now?
January 23, 2008 Well, first off, I have to admit that I've taken a liking to "retired life". Since my last entry, I've very much enjoyed sleeping in a bit and staying up - some nights - past the eleven o'clock news!!! My original plan was to start looking for a part time job after Labor Day (the beginning of September for you non-American folk), but, at about the same time I retired, my son Chris moved back in with us with his wife and three sons. That living arrangement kept us quite busy, as you might imagine. The boys are a delight to be around. The twins, Aidan and Gabe (pictured to the left), will be three years old in February. Faolan, just turned one in September. However, to be honest, it was almost a full time job just trying to keep the house semi-clean! Aidan, Gabe and I spent many days going on adventures that often were no more than the two of them following me around the yard looking at worms and butterflies. I can't tell you how nice it is being a retired grandfather.
This past November, Chris and the family moved around the corner from us. What a wonderful situation. Now I still had my grandsons to go on adventures with, but I could take 'em home when we were done!!! Meanwhile I've become involved with the local "senior" chorus, the church bell choir, some old friends who sing barbershop music, and continued singing with the church choir. The band has gone through some tough times and hasn't played together since "Hannah's Hope" last October. Currently we've changed our name to "Common Ground" and are looking for a new lead guitarist. I attempted to form a new acoustic style band last fall, but it just didn't work out as I'd hoped
You're probably thinking to yourself, "So, November is where Dave goes out and gets a job, eh?" Well, I certainly thought about it, but it took me a good month to get the house back to the way I liked it. After that it was the "HOLIDAY SEASON", and it just seemed plain crazy to go looking for a job then. So, my wife and I agreed that I'd start looking in January.
And here it is. January 2008. Sure enough I began my search a couple weeks ago, and before the ink had dried on the applications, I've found myself with not one, but two pretty neat jobs. The first one is with a local grocery chain, Wegman's, who, by the way, has been named within the top 5 employers in the country (USA) over the last several years consistently. They where just named number 3 in the country a couple days ago, as a matter of fact. The local store is ten minutes from where I live and I'll be working there 20 hours, give or take, a week. The other job is only for a couple hours a week, but suits me to a tee. It is serving as the "visiting music teacher" at a nearby childcare center. I'll be going from room to room with my guitar singing songs with the kids and doing finger plays. Both jobs start soon, and I can't tell you how excited I am!
That's it for now. I hope the new year for you is as exciting as it is for me. Check back in a few months for the next installment.
Dave
Dave quits day job!
August 12, 2007 My biggest fan, John, reminds me every time he sees me that I should update the website, so here you go John.
The first thing you'll notice that is different, if you've been visiting this site over the past few years, is the countdown box to the day when "Dave can quit his day job" now offers countdowns to upcoming gigs. That's because on July 27th, I did indeed quit my day job. Technically I "retired", which is a whole lot better than quiting (which I wanted to do ten years ago) because you get a check every month for doing nothing.
The last day of work was a blast with breakfast pizza, cakes, sort of glowing tributes, balloons, cards, hugs and later a parade with kazoos. My wife and friends made up cool T-shirts emblazoned with a "Wouldn't it be cool" logo from the song, of the same name, I wrote a couple of years ago. After I "punched out" for the last time I went home to a party that couldn't be beat - more cakes, balloons, cards, hugs - and BEER too! Later on, after the sun set and the crickets announced the commencement of my first evening of freedom, we pulled out some guitars and sang a few of my favorites.
And now here I am in la la land. The next chapter is titled, "What Now", and I hope it includes a part time job or two that allows me more flexibility to do more things musically. Time will tell. I'll keep you posted.
