Frequently Asked Questions
	Here are some of the most common questions I get, and their answers (at least for now...). If you have any others, feel free to get in touch. David

What's a Lower Dryad?

If you were to break out your dictionary, it would tell you that in Greek mythology a Dryad is "a nature divinity inhabiting or presiding over forests and trees." Since acoustic guitar music is music made from wood, that kind of fits. The origin of the name in my life, however, comes from Montreat, NC, where lots of houses have names. In the summer of 1990 I lived in the lower apartment of a house called the Dryad, the Lower Dryad apartment. It was during that summer that I decided to take a shot at playing music full time, so I named my fledgling publishing company after that special place. For me, the name brings up fond memories, and the myth sort of works, too.

Is part of that instrumental thing pre-recorded?

Nope. All of the sounds in Shadows are organic, but it's played through a Boss DD-5 delay pedal, which repeats everything I play, so it ends up being sort of like singing in a round. The sounds repeat, and I get to play as my own backup. it's great fun.

Who do you listen to?

Lots and lots of folks. Lately Pter Mulvey The Trouble With Poets, Christine Kane's Rain & Mud & Wild & Green. I also listen to a fair amount of jazz. Lots of Singer/Songwriters, too, but there's a lot of good music in the world. I try to listen to a lot of it. All time faves include Bill Mize's Sugarlands, Bruce Cockburn's Dancing in the Dragon's Jaws, Joni Mitchell's Blue, Paul Simon's One Trick Pony, James Taylor's One Man Dog, Steely Dan's Aja, Miles Davis Kind of Blue,

How much time do you spend on the road?

Lots. In 2002, 223 days. The year before, 235. That's not counting pleasure travel.

What's your favorite song to play?

That's hard to say. New ones are often favorites for a while. In the Light and Shadows are always fun to play, I mean the guitar part specifically. It does change from night to night, though. I think Lens Cap may be my favorite lyric of my own.

Can I get your records in stores?

These days it's pretty hard. Hard Earned Smile was in distribution for a while, but it turned out to be more expense and hassle than it was worth. Sometimes you can still find that one, but the best way is through this site, or by calling 1-877-357-8833, which is a toll-free number. We handle all the orders in-house, so they go out pretty quickly, and your credit card number is safe.

What kind of guitars/strings do you play?

My main guitars are a Taylor 912-ce and Taylor K14-ce. Taylor Guitars, located in El Cajon, CA was kind enough to give me an artist sponsorship, which means I could afford to buy them. My third stage guitar is a Takamine LTD-90 koa-body. The Tak has a particularly flexible neck and a deeper tone than the Taylor's, which makes it especially suited to Shadows. I'm very fond of them, and you're welcome to take them for a test drive at any show - just ask me. I string both my Taylors and my Takamine with John Pearse phosphor bronze light strings. John Pearse gives me an artist deal too, for which I'm grateful. I get a big kick out of the fact that I've ended up with deals from what were already my favorite guitar maker and my favorite strings. Life is good.

What sort of pickup do you use?

My newest guitar is the Taylor K14, and it's loaded with the new Taylor pickup, which has a lovely tone and is pretty hassle free to use. On the Taylor 912 I use a thing called a blender, and it's made by a company called Fishman. The 912 has a tiny microphone mounted inside the guitar, as well as a standard bridge pickup. The blender mixes these two sounds together and allows me to alter the guitar sound quite a bit. Hopefully this all adds up to a good acoustic flavor through the sound system. The Takamine has an excellent factory pickup made by Takamine.

How many shows have you played?

I'm not entirely sure, but certainly over 1600.

How many records have you sold?

Again, I'm not entirely sure, but based on sales records, probably around thirty thousand. That wouldn't impress a major label record company, but it makes me feel good to know that so many people have been interested in my music over the years, and that those records are floating around out there having little adventures of their own without me.

What's the biggest audience you've played for?

I've played to pretty big audiences as a guest on the mainstage at the Kerrville Folk Festival, but I think the biggest was about six thousand people at Youth Triennium, a Presbyterian youth event I played at in 1998. The smallest... well, pick a number. I've played to audiences of two, and I've gone home because nobody showed. Thankfully, it's been a while since that happened. :)

Ever sing on other albums?

The most recent release I sing on is Anke Summerhill's second CD, Shine On Through. It was great fun to be back in the studio with Anke. She asked me to sing on her debut as well. I did some harmonies on Josh Lamkin's debut album, Good Again, and Billy Jonas' latest, Life So Far, as well as the newest one from Chris Rosser, The Holy Fool. Great fun. I sang on Jeff Tarayla's album The Wicked and the Free (he's now known as "Lucky"). I also sang on Jamie Ridenhour's record No Good Reason. That was fun, as I got to sing harmony on my own song which Jamie was recording. It's an obscure and twisted little tune called Lost to the World.

When is your next record coming out?

The next record is underway, and we're planning CD release parties in November (though there's a chance that I'll release it in Europe first on my October tour there). The working title of the record is Element, and it looks like it will feature eleven original songs, almost all of which are previously unrecorded (Just Like Me and Spin, both recorded live on Good Tar, are in the running for studio treatments on this record).

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Do you travel alone? In what?

Most of the time, unless you count the guitars. I travel in a '98 Chevy Astro. It's official name is "Dan, the Tan Van," though Beth Wood christened it "Brown Sugar" (there's a picture of Dan on the Tour Dates page). I have never owned a new car before, but spent so much money fixing my last used car that I decided to take the plunge on Dan. I've built a bunch of cabinetry in it and it sleeps pretty well when I want to camp out. Currently he's got about 175, 000 miles on him - pretty amazing given that I've spent at least a quarter of the year overseas in each of the last few years.