Dan Conway - Bassist

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Savannah Rain by Jud Conway

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Released: Jan 1, 2008

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Savannah Rain by Jud Conway
4:21
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Ragdoll by Jud Conway
4:13
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Bid Adieu Blues by Jud Conway
3:18
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Snake Charmer by Modereko
3:59
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Antietam by Red Diamond
3:50
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Total Plays: 1,069 / Plays Today: 4See All Featured ►

General Info

Genre: Blues / Experimental / Fusion
Location WASHINGTON, Washington DC, US
Profile Views: 16314
Last Login: 5/28/2010
Member Since 10/31/2007
Website www.danconway.net
Record Label Unsigned
Bio
.. .. .... .. .. I've been playing bass for nearly 25 years... .... ...nearly my entire life. I started young. Back before I discovered jazz, before I discovered Jeff Andrews, Jaco Pastorius, and Matthew Garrison, I grew up listening to Steve Harris and John Entwistle. I remember hearing about Cliff Burton's death on the radio and being heartbroken. Geddy Lee floored me. I wanted to be a rock star. .... My first professional gig was with an Elvis impersonator in York, PA back in the early nineties. We played all the area hot spots - carnivals, VFWs, high school reunions. Tamaqua. These were very formative years for me. This was my first taste of "the business." This was the big time. I learned the standard wedding repertoire, which would actually be an invaluable asset later in life. I learned the lingo. I learned how a band should (and should not) be led. I learned about getting ripped off. .... In high school I was obsessed with writing love songs. An ecclectic mix of influences (e.g. Slayer meets Dan Fogelberg) converged with my overactive teenage hormones, causing me to create some extremely schizophrenic and ultimately pretty bad music. There are tapes. They are out there. We'll move on. .... On the recommendation of my buddy Brian Wallace, I went to George Washington University to study bass with the fantastic Dave Marsh. Dave, along with Jim Levy and Peter Fraize, introduced me to jazz. I learned my circle of fifths. I obsessed over Jaco and Victor Wooten. I bought my first Real Book. These were the glory days - spending an inordinate amount of time practicing, jamming with friends at all hours of the day and night, and listening to a vast and varying array of music. I also learned about life outside my little box, about culture, art, music, food, people. I learned that not everyone grew up like I did, a middle-class white kid from Pennsylvania Dutch country in the Susquehanna Valley. Who knew? .... In college I toured extensively with songwriter and producer extraordinaire, Chris Keup, in the band River. He, with Mario Sacasa and Jay Tobey, taught me the power of the well-written and well-executed song. A healthy counter to my narcissistic and overly-scholastic jazz noodling, River made me realize the power of a great song; that songwriting, too, is an instrument that must be practiced and honed over many years. River taught me to be tasteful, to explore melody and counterpoint in support of the overall song. It was with River I played one of my all time favorite shows -an ASCAP showcase at the Sundance Film Festival with Nickel Creek and The Old 97s. Life was good. .... After college, I continued playing in the DC area. To help pay the rent, I got a day gig accompanying dance classes on the piano at GW. I also hit the scene, playing standards, tux gigs, real book gigs, weddings, bar and bat mitzfahs, accompanying Persian pop stars, you name it. I lived in a closet (literally), and I practiced a lot. Ben Karpf, Jon Matloff, and I made a phenomenal jazz-fusion record as the band Zeugma. Zeugma played at a little Italian restaurant in Georgetown every week for free Chicken Parmesan. We were not a rock stars. .... Later, a scheduled six month tour with a singer named Matt Cheplic ended up falling through at the last minute. I found myself without a job, a lease, a band, or any scheduled gigs. It seemed like a good time to move to New York City. It was September 2001 - Turned out my first few weeks in NYC were going to be a bit rough. Nonetheless, what doesn't kill us, makes us stronger. And sometimes what doesn't kill us covers us with a horrible-smelling dust and gives us nightmares for years. .... Regardless, I decided to stay. My girlfriend (and future wife) Rachel was in grad school at NYU, and we lived in the best neighborhood in the world - Alphabet City. I got a day gig fixing computers. Shortly thereafter, I discovered the power of the NYC Craigslist. I met fantastic musicians like Spencer Katzman , The Color Bars, and Ed Littman. I studied with my heroes, Matt Garrison and Jeff Andrews. I saw so much live music, and played with so many fantastic players, I thought I might just be able to pull this musician thing off. I fell in love with the city and its culture. .... Through a friend and fantastic guitarist, Doug Derryberry, I met and auditioned for the jam band supergroup, Modereko. I literally auditioned over the phone in the back of Bruce Hornsby's tourbus outside one of his gigs in Midtown. Bobby Read and JT Thomas played the Zeugma record over the phone to John Molo in LA while I sat there, wondering if I'd get the gig. I could play, but I looked young. The bass chair was previously held by heavies like Jimmy Haslip and Oteil Burbridge. I admittedly have big feet, but nothing close to big enough to fill those kind of shoes. Thanks to the power of AT&T wireless and John Molo's cell phone, I ended up getting the gig. .... I toured the country with Modereko, playing extremely difficult music to some of the greatest fans in the world. I discovered that the jam band scene is where music lovers go to find great artists. And I learned that a plethora of great artists go to the jam band scene to play to these insatiable music-a-holics. It's a win/win! We were playing jazz, rock, bluegrass, country, you name it. We toured and jammed with Keller Williams, The Wailers, Derek Trucks, Garaj Mahal... I continued learning. A lot. .... In 2002, JT Thomas invited me to play an extended gig at the Cafe Carlyle in NYC accompanying Rita Coolidge on her "caberet" debut. I had to shed fast to get my upright chops up to snuff, but with a few weeks of intense practicing, I was able to pull it off. I worked a full day fixing computers, and then we did two shows a night. I slept a lot on the subway. .... In 2003 I moved to LA to join my Modereko compatriots, and to explore the west coast music scene. Tim Kobza hooked me up with some television commercial work, and I auditioned for several major label acts. It was about this time that I realized my "look" might not fit in with the incestuous, young, west coast scene surrounding most of the acts for which I was auditioning. You see that stuff in the magazines and on TV? That's for real, people! .... After six months or so, I began to get burnt out. The culture shock of moving from the East Village to Reseda was a bit much to handle. I continued touring with Modereko, but I eventually decided to move back East, back to where my friends and family were. Upon returning, I brushed up on my production chops, and produced a fantastic record for my brother Jud Conway, featuring a slew of musician friends that I had met along the way. I also played with Red Diamond - hands down, the best rock and roll band I ever had the pleasure playing with. .... I decided to settle down. I got a day gig and married the love of my life. That was 2006. After playing for 20 years or so, traveling all over the country, living on both coasts, studying, practicing, fetishing over music, I decided I was probably never going to be a rock star. And having learned what I'd learned over those 20 years, I suspected I wouldn't really want to be one anyway. .... Now... It is on to phase two. Welcome. -Dan 3/17/2010, 3:30 AM .... ----------------------------------.... .... .. .. Jud Conway's debut album, Southern Bound, is finally complete!! Fantastic songs and incredible musicians from all over the country, including yours truly, members of Phil Lesh and Friends, the Dave Nelson Band, the Bruce Hornsby Band, Modereko, and others. Check out a few samples on my page, or stop by his page at http://myspace.com/JudConway. .... ----------------------------------.... .. Modereko, live at the Georgia Theatre, October 2003!! .. .. .. ....El Kabong.... .. ....Sahara Sod.... .. ....Seven Heaven.... .. ....Huckleberry.... .. ....Miracles.... .. ....Solar Ignitor.... .. ....Getaway Float.... .. ....Immigrant Song/Some of That.... .. ....Soul Cheese (With Kofi Burbridge on Flute).... .. .. .. .. ..---------------------------------------------------.... .. .. ....NEW: Click here to check out John Molo, RS Hornsby, and myself jamming a bit on Pink Floyd's "Money" groove for the kids at the 2007 National Guitar Workshop. Pure, unbridled, improvisation, baby!...... .. .. .. .. .. .. ..
Members
Influences
Matthew Garrison, Jaco Pastorius, Oteil Burbridge, Jeff Andrews, David Marsh, Gary Willis, Marcus Miller, Tim Lefebvre, Victor Wooten, Paul McCartney, Fima Ephron, Phil Lesh, Kai Eckhardt, John Entwistle, Cliff Burton, Danny Lilker, Screaming Headless Torsos, Grateful Dead, Frank Zappa, Jeff Buckley, Los Lobos, Waylon Jennings, Radiohead, Ryan Adams, Hank Williams, Beck, Earl Scruggs, PJ Harvey, Steve Earle, Joni Mitchell, Justin Conway, Modereko, John Molo, Tim Kobza, JT Thomas, Bobby Read, Keller Williams, Mookie Seigel, Ashley Lennon Thomas, John "The Drummer" Matloff, Ben Karpf, Adam Kleiner, Spencer Katzman, Dane Paul Russell, Joe McNeal, Chris Keup, Mario Sacasa, Jamieson Tobey, Max Fisher, Heath Mensher, Walter Robinson, Red Diamond, Ed Van Wicklen, Dane Paul Russell, everyone I’ve played with through the years.....
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Bio:

.. I've been playing bass for nearly 25 years...

...nearly my entire life. I started young. Back before I discovered jazz, before I discovered Jeff Andrews, Jaco Pastorius, and Matthew Garrison, I grew up listening to Steve Harris and John Entwistle. I remember hearing about Cliff Burton's death on the radio and being heartbroken. Geddy Lee floored me. I wanted to be a rock star.

My first professional gig was with an Elvis impersonator in York, PA back in the early nineties. We played all the area hot spots - carnivals, VFWs, high school reunions. Tamaqua. These were very formative years for me. This was my first taste of "the business." This was the big time. I learned the standard wedding repertoire, which would actually be an invaluable asset later in life. I learned the lingo. I learned how a band should (and should not) be led. I learned about getting ripped off.

In high school I was obsessed with writing love songs. An ecclectic mix of influences (e.g. Slayer meets Dan Fogelberg) converged with my overactive teenage hormones, causing me to create some extremely schizophrenic and ultimately pretty bad music. There are tapes. They are out there. We'll move on.

On the recommendation of my buddy Brian Wallace, I went to George Washington University to study bass with the fantastic Dave Marsh. Dave, along with Jim Levy and Peter Fraize, introduced me to jazz. I learned my circle of fifths. I obsessed over Jaco and Victor Wooten. I bought my first Real Book. These were the glory days - spending an inordinate amount of time practicing, jamming with friends at all hours of the day and night, and listening to a vast and varying array of music. I also learned about life outside my little box, about culture, art, music, food, people. I learned that not everyone grew up like I did, a middle-class white kid from Pennsylvania Dutch country in the Susquehanna Valley. Who knew?

In college I toured extensively with songwriter and producer extraordinaire, Chris Keup, in the band River. He, with Mario Sacasa and Jay Tobey, taught me the power of the well-written and well-executed song. A healthy counter to my narcissistic and overly-scholastic jazz noodling, River made me realize the power of a great song; that songwriting, too, is an instrument that must be practiced and honed over many years. River taught me to be tasteful, to explore melody and counterpoint in support of the overall song. It was with River I played one of my all time favorite shows -an ASCAP showcase at the Sundance Film Festival with Nickel Creek and The Old 97s. Life was good.

After college, I continued playing in the DC area. To help pay the rent, I got a day gig accompanying dance classes on the piano at GW. I also hit the scene, playing standards, tux gigs, real book gigs, weddings, bar and bat mitzfahs, accompanying Persian pop stars, you name it. I lived in a closet (literally), and I practiced a lot. Ben Karpf, Jon Matloff, and I made a phenomenal jazz-fusion record as the band Zeugma. Zeugma played at a little Italian restaurant in Georgetown every week for free Chicken Parmesan. We were not a rock stars.

Later, a scheduled six month tour with a singer named Matt Cheplic ended up falling through at the last minute. I found myself without a job, a lease, a band, or any scheduled gigs. It seemed like a good time to move to New York City. It was September 2001 - Turned out my first few weeks in NYC were going to be a bit rough. Nonetheless, what doesn't kill us, makes us stronger. And sometimes what doesn't kill us covers us with a horrible-smelling dust and gives us nightmares for years.

Regardless, I decided to stay. My girlfriend (and future wife) Rachel was in grad school at NYU, and we lived in the best neighborhood in the world - Alphabet City. I got a day gig fixing computers. Shortly thereafter, I discovered the power of the NYC Craigslist. I met fantastic musicians like Spencer Katzman , The Color Bars, and Ed Littman. I studied with my heroes, Matt Garrison and Jeff Andrews. I saw so much live music, and played with so many fantastic players, I thought I might just be able to pull this musician thing off. I fell in love with the city and its culture.

Through a friend and fantastic guitarist, Doug Derryberry, I met and auditioned for the jam band supergroup, Modereko. I literally auditioned over the phone in the back of Bruce Hornsby's tourbus outside one of his gigs in Midtown. Bobby Read and JT Thomas played the Zeugma record over the phone to John Molo in LA while I sat there, wondering if I'd get the gig. I could play, but I looked young. The bass chair was previously held by heavies like Jimmy Haslip and Oteil Burbridge. I admittedly have big feet, but nothing close to big enough to fill those kind of shoes. Thanks to the power of AT&T wireless and John Molo's cell phone, I ended up getting the gig.

I toured the country with Modereko, playing extremely difficult music to some of the greatest fans in the world. I discovered that the jam band scene is where music lovers go to find great artists. And I learned that a plethora of great artists go to the jam band scene to play to these insatiable music-a-holics. It's a win/win! We were playing jazz, rock, bluegrass, country, you name it. We toured and jammed with Keller Williams, The Wailers, Derek Trucks, Garaj Mahal... I continued learning. A lot.

In 2002, JT Thomas invited me to play an extended gig at the Cafe Carlyle in NYC accompanying Rita Coolidge on her "caberet" debut. I had to shed fast to get my upright chops up to snuff, but with a few weeks of intense practicing, I was able to pull it off. I worked a full day fixing computers, and then we did two shows a night. I slept a lot on the subway.

In 2003 I moved to LA to join my Modereko compatriots, and to explore the west coast music scene. Tim Kobza hooked me up with some television commercial work, and I auditioned for several major label acts. It was about this time that I realized my "look" might not fit in with the incestuous, young, west coast scene surrounding most of the acts for which I was auditioning. You see that stuff in the magazines and on TV? That's for real, people!

After six months or so, I began to get burnt out. The culture shock of moving from the East Village to Reseda was a bit much to handle. I continued touring with Modereko, but I eventually decided to move back East, back to where my friends and family were. Upon returning, I brushed up on my production chops, and produced a fantastic record for my brother Jud Conway, featuring a slew of musician friends that I had met along the way. I also played with Red Diamond - hands down, the best rock and roll band I ever had the pleasure playing with.

I decided to settle down. I got a day gig and married the love of my life. That was 2006. After playing for 20 years or so, traveling all over the country, living on both coasts, studying, practicing, fetishing over music, I decided I was probably never going to be a rock star. And having learned what I'd learned over those 20 years, I suspected I wouldn't really want to be one anyway.

Now... It is on to phase two. Welcome. -Dan 3/17/2010, 3:30 AM

----------------------------------

.. Jud Conway's debut album, Southern Bound, is finally complete!! Fantastic songs and incredible musicians from all over the country, including yours truly, members of Phil Lesh and Friends, the Dave Nelson Band, the Bruce Hornsby Band, Modereko, and others. Check out a few samples on my page, or stop by his page at http://myspace.com/JudConway.

----------------------------------

Modereko, live at the Georgia Theatre, October 2003!!

Immigrant Song/Some of That

Soul Cheese (With Kofi Burbridge on Flute)

---------------------------------------------------

NEW: Click here to check out John Molo, RS Hornsby, and myself jamming a bit on Pink Floyd's "Money" groove for the kids at the 2007 National Guitar Workshop. Pure, unbridled, improvisation, baby!

Member Since:

October 31, 2007

Influences:

Matthew Garrison, Jaco Pastorius, Oteil Burbridge, Jeff Andrews, David Marsh, Gary Willis, Marcus Miller, Tim Lefebvre, Victor Wooten, Paul McCartney, Fima Ephron, Phil Lesh, Kai Eckhardt, John Entwistle, Cliff Burton, Danny Lilker, Screaming Headless Torsos, Grateful Dead, Frank Zappa, Jeff Buckley, Los Lobos, Waylon Jennings, Radiohead, Ryan Adams, Hank Williams, Beck, Earl Scruggs, PJ Harvey, Steve Earle, Joni Mitchell, Justin Conway, Modereko, John Molo, Tim Kobza, JT Thomas, Bobby Read, Keller Williams, Mookie Seigel, Ashley Lennon Thomas, John "The Drummer" Matloff, Ben Karpf, Adam Kleiner, Spencer Katzman, Dane Paul Russell, Joe McNeal, Chris Keup, Mario Sacasa, Jamieson Tobey, Max Fisher, Heath Mensher, Walter Robinson, Red Diamond, Ed Van Wicklen, Dane Paul Russell, everyone I’ve played with through the years.....