Guitar player. Guitar teacher. Funny-looking guy.

Dave’s been a Guitar player for almost 30 years.

Working musician (live performances, studio work, sub gigs, etc) for about 23 years.

Guitar teacher for over 20 years (full time for about 16 years).

“Professional” schooling: Attended the American Conservatory of Music in Chicago (1 Semester - Jazz guitar combo / lessons) just after high school but stopped due to the opportunity to play guitar and teach full time.

Solid foundations (playing and teaching) in Rock, Pop, Hard Rock to Metal, Funk, Blues, R&B, Classic Rock, etc, and well-versed in basic Jazz, Country and Classical guitar.

Current recording project - “Have Amp, Will Travel” with drummer Rodger Carter (Rick Springfield) and bassist Lance Morrison (Don Henley).

To sample some music, click a link!....

www.MySpace.com/DaveTheGuitarPlayer

Solo albums:

www.CDBaby.com/cd/DaveBenziger

www.CDBaby.com/cd/DaveBenziger2

www.CDBaby.com/cd/DaveBenziger3

With BUMP:

www.CDBaby.com/cd/BUMPband

Okay, here's the FUN bio:

     What can be said about Dave Benziger that hasn’t been said already? The selfless acts of bravery, the seemingly endless humanitarian work, his incredible findings in the field of neurotoxicology, his…you’re not buying any of this, are you? Okay, so he’s not that brave (in fact, he cries like a little baby at even the sight of a needle) and his ‘findings’ got him laughed out of Springfield University, but he is quite uniquely charitable - just ask him what he plans on going with his money as he becomes more successful.

     Okay, then let’s talk about the facts. Take his overabundance of humor, kindness, and all-around niceness that make him a pleasure to work with. Although, those attributes can shockingly disappear in an instant as he snaps into violent fits of rage where large heavy objects are thrown and his eyeballs roll into the back of his head - there was this one time…you’re not buying this either.

     Ok, Pickypants, here’s the one simple truth. Dave is a solid, talented guitar player, a fine songwriter, and actually is the nicest and one of the funniest guys you could ever want to work with. He’ll agree to the “nice” description (he’s proud of what his family instilled in him in their appreciation for life and laughter), but as far as the guitar playing goes, Dave is humble and has declared on many occasion, “I’m the best guitar player in my house. But then again, the dog has been recording some great stuff lately…” Dave lives to play the guitar. It truly is his life. The music that comes from within him, comes from the very beat of his heart... Yeah, I know - blah, blah, blah. You wanna know his music life story? Then go to his website. For immediate information on what he’s able to bring to the table as a musician, just read the next paragraph.

     Oh, great - glad you decided to join me! Rock, Pop, Country, Metal, Smooth Jazz, Funk, Blues, Fusion, - Dave plays and enjoys it all. Whether writing, performing, arranging, and producing his own material or simply playing guitar for other artists, he brings the pure enjoyment of listening to music to the actual process of creating it. Look, if you wanna know what he sounds like, simply listen to the samples on his website. If you wanna know what he’s like in person, well you can probably figure that out by reading this bio and checking out his website as well. If you want to know what he smells like, well buddy, that’s out of my hands. And why would you want to know something like that anyway. Sure, he smells good, but… ???

     In any case, it’s pretty simple. Check him out online, listen to his work, and you’ll quickly see that Dave’s a funny and good guy who’s also a fine guitar player, and maybe, just maybe, one of the greatest men who ever lived. But probably not (at least that last part).

     In closing, I think we’ve learned something here today. We’ve learned that even though the world may not revolve around Dave Benziger, if someday it unexpectedly begins hurling towards the sun and we’re all heading towards our certain deaths, it’ll probably be his fault.

Roger Myers, Chicago Music Critic © 2009, Springfield Press

     I fell in love with the guitar after hearing Brian May's guitar (and in particular his guitar tone) on "We Will Rock You". In 1993 I was lucky enough to get a Brian May Guild Signature Model Guitar. Brian (I was told) has the first three, mine is serial number 006.

     Just after getting the guitar, I was EXTREMELY lucky to meet Brian after a show in Chicago on his "Back To The Light" tour, where he signed my guitar and graciously accepted my demo tape. About a year later, I got this in the mail (Please forgive the fact that these scans open up HUUUUGE - I tried everything to fix it, no luck):

With this letter, no matter when I die, I'll die a happy, happy man.