JANUARY - 2003

Road notes below - scroll down for previous post.
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01/26/03 -  ROOM AT THE TOP OF THE WORLD - Gatlinburg, TN

Hello friends, "I've got a room at the top of the world tonight, and I ain't coming down", are the lyrics to the Tom Petty master piece that is gracing my laptop speakers on this wedding night of ours. Vicky and I were married yesterday at 2 PM at the Victorian Chapel in Gatlinburg, TN. Yes I was a little nervous, but my best man and best friend, "Jeff Stevens" was there for me. He has never let me down. My parents and I were talking before the wedding and they had mentioned that the place they went on their honey moon was only 2 miles from the location that my wedding took place. As I write this, my very beautiful wife is asleep on the couch by the fireplace. It's very cold out, but very warm in here. Vic and I opened gifts from Mark and Tracy and others at the cabin. We had a note from Larry Grisham of the Beat Daddys...attached to a silk rose. he had bought us an extra night on the honey moon. This cabin is just amazing. We're miles from anyone and we're way up in the mountains, looking down at the world below. It feels like the world has stopped  spinning just for Vicky and I. I called my good friend John Vanover before the wedding to talk to him. He gave me all the best wishes and the best advice a man could get from one of his best friends in the world. I also called another best friend, "Michael Hicks" and left him another signature goofy message on the phone, it was a must. I'm sorta rambling on this post, it's just too much emotion to put into a categorization order. The chalet that Vic and I are staying for the honey moon is called the "Bunny Hutch". There are dozens upon dozens of little bunny statues, photos, figures, blankets, pillows, etc. laying around. We found a journal that has memos from everyone who has stayed here. Upon reading this journal, we came to find that all the bunny items around the room, where left by couples who have stayed here in the past, and marked with the date and names. I think this is the coolest thing. Some of the items date back a few years. Vic and I will venture into town tomorrow to find our special "bunny" item to leave for others to read and find. You know naturally, I can't leave out Sammy Hagar on this special occasion. Vicky had left the hotel to get her hair done, as I went to wash the truck at a local car wash before the wedding. I wanted to have a "special" CD in the cd player for when we both drove off after the wedding. I found "5150"...(the first Van Halen record featuring the Red Rocker Sammy Hagar), Love Walks In is featured on this record. It played all day on the CD, a few times on the radio. Jeff mentioned he had heard it on the radio that day, and it and a few other 5150 tunes graced the speakers of TGI Fridays, which we dined after the ceremony. So I considered it to be a wedding gift from the man himself. In his own Karma type of way. If only one man other than I that understands this, it's Michael Hicks..."Fo Sho Fo Sho". Well, Again, I'm speechless with so much to say, as I'm entering the first day of our honeymoon. What a wonderful feeling...to stand up with this wonderful and beautiful strong woman, who I love very much and will hold onto with all my might to the end of my days, and introduce her as MY wife. Thank you Jesus for this wonderful gift.

"And then you sense a change, nothings feels the same, all your dreams are strange, love goes walking in, some kind of alien, waits for an opening, and simply pulls a string, and love goes walking in"...Sammy Hagar...dp

01/24/03 -  LAST NIGHT AS A SINGLE MAN - Gatlinburg, TN

Hello friends, whew...drum roll please. Hereeeeee we go!!! As I write this, I JUST now shut the door on our joining rooms here at the hotel, kissing Vicky goodnight for the last time before we see each other tomorrow at the alter. The day started with the drive from Cincinnati to the Smokey Mountains. We picked up the marriage license and dropped by the chapel for some last run through check ups. Jeff Stevens, "my best man" is here rooming with me, he mentioned that it's just like any other time when we're on the road together. We've both got our laptops running and the TV as background noise. Kelly Mason is the Bride's maid and is in the next room with Vicky. My parents as well as Vic's parents drove down tonight also. Mark Barnett and his wife Tracy also rode in for the wedding, but didn't show up to the dinner tonight. We all went to Applebee's for dinner tonight. It's a wonderful feeling and I'm very excited. A few nights ago, I went to Owensboro, KY to pick up the rest of my belongings from my old apt. I rented a U haul and my dad helped me pack everything down the stairs. As we packed everything up, it started to snow, and I don't have to tell most of you in that part of the country, it's been stupid cold. So I was delayed by a few hours. I was able to visit with some old friends and spend my last few nights in Owensboro. I also didn't something else while in town. Please sit if needed for the next statement....I cut off my hair. It's still rock n roll looking, but very much shorter than it was. I'm sure I'll have photos up very soon from the wedding so you'll be able to see what it looks like. I was just looking at my new promo photo on the www.van-dells.com site, wow, it sure was long in that photo, and that was taken only 3 weeks ago. Well, it's approaching midnight, and I'm a little restless. I really need to get some sleep, but I have a feeling I'll be tossing and turning all night. We'll I'll talk to you on the other side, and thanks to all who have written with the well wishes. Sorry I can't return all e-mails, there are too many to get to at a time like this, but I do appreciate them all. Rock on...dp

01/17/03 -  REMEMBERING MAURICE - Home

Hello friends, kicking back on my last week of being a bachelor, loving life and enjoying some music here at my new home. I'm listening to all the music that I always have and some I haven't picked up in years. I remember when I was a child, my mother would put me in her VW Bug and drive around listening to the 8 track cassettes. Mostly we'd listen to the Bee Gees. I know most of you know that Maurice Gibb passed away earlier this week. That's why I'm writing about this cause I remember being upset when Andy Gibb passed away. I went to school crying. Their music has influenced me in too many ways. I remember bringing up the songs to the guys in the Van-Dells about putting some into the show a few years ago. Now the Bee Gees medley is one of the favorite parts of the show. We'll play Louisville, KY this weekend, and I'm sure we'll dedicate the show to his memory. The picture below was taken from www.beegeesonline.com Click the photo for a larger image...dp
                                                            

01/11/03 -  WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN DAVID?????!!!!! - Home

Hello friends, "David crawls into the room with his head hung low, bottom lip slightly pouted out. Knowing he's been a baaaaad little boy. But he has a great explanation". So here it goes... After all the chaos settled through the month of December with the Holidays and all. I tried to update the site, but the server was down. A few days later I attempted to upload some files, but the phone line at the hotel kept logging me off line. (Don't ya just hate that) So...a few days later, I went to give it a try and my laptop decided to go on vacation on me. So I just gave up and worked on other things for a few days. Not to mention my touring schedule hasn't really allowed me too much down time. My Christmas was fabulous, Santa bought me Play Station 2, which I'll be using a lot on the road watching DVD's and playing a lot of games with the boys in the band and crew. Alan and I have had a few late night Play Station parties lately. New Years Eve was wonderful, the stage set up was great. Buddy Leach was playing keys and sax. Vicky looked wonderful as I was VERY proud to have her on my arm. The band sounded great and I didn't want to stop playing. Just one of those magical nights. Kasey played percussion that night to my right as we had a ton of fun with that. We loved grooving on all the tunes and I voted that we bring him on the road ALL the time. Well, OK...here's the part that I cry. I went to gig with the Beat Daddys for a few shows down south at the end of December to work on their new live record. It was a ton of fun as always working for Larry, Britt and John, but I awoke at Britt's the next morning to watch the last season football game of the Miami Dolphins and they lost. I was soooo bummed. I can't believe they didn't make the play offs. I know to some it sounds silly, but it really knifed me...oh well...we'll get 'em next year. It was soon time for the Van-Dells to hit Biloxi for the first two shows of 2003. It was quite a lot of fun and I always love playing the coast. Last week we performed at a showcase in Columbus. For those of you who don't know what these are. They're private shows held by the entertainment industry for buyers for business reasons only. Each group are allotted only 20 minutes each to impress the buyers. Once you're finished with your show, you quickly make your way back to your representing booking agencies suite where you eat and shmooze for a few hours, hopefully filling in some tour dates for your group that year. Every touring group does this, but you hardly ever hear of it. Sometimes I don't like working them because they're mostly a pain, but sometimes they're kinda fun. You get great treatment by your agency. Variety ALWAYS takes good care of us. I love seeing them at a showcase. You get to see some pretty cool bands, and other perks are in this as well. We didn't play one last year at all, and some years we've worked a whole tour of them from state to state. The most recent showcase was in Columbus, OH. We arrived not knowing who was on the bill or even stage set up times. Turns out the Fox Brothers, who we've worked with dozens of times were there. We always enjoy hanging with them backstage and trading road stories. My mom actually took me to see them when I was a child. They're a GREAT country Christian group. They're vocals fill all the sound and I just love watching them perform. You should check out their show and CD's sometime. I caught up with all the guys backstage and took a few photos. Another group on the bill that day was the country group, Highway 101. I loved this group when I was a child, and I would watch the drummer on CMT all the time. They had a few hits and my mom was also a fan of this group. As soon as their drummer came off stage last week, I couldn't pass up the chance to meet him and get a photo with him. He was pleased to see a drumming fan of his as we got a great photo. Well, I guess now is as good of a time as any to explain this months animation. Most of you already know, but two weeks from today, I'll be getting married. I'm not nervous, just excited and very very happy. I've moved from Owensboro, KY as Vicky and I now live in Cincinnati, OH. Stay posted to my site, I'll have a few wedding shots up after the wedding. Well, there's my first post for 2003, I hope it was worth waiting for and I apologize for the delay, but I'm sure you understand. Take care and I'll be posting again very soon. Rock on...dp

Below are photos from Columbus, OH 1-07-03

Left to right: Highway 101 live: David and Highway 101 Drummer backstage:
The Fox Brothers live:  David with two of the Fox Brothers backstage: