This Is My Story, This Is My Song.........

I first picked up a guitar when I was 10 years old.  Even though I was the son of a United Methodist minister, I wasn't too interested in playing church or religious music.  Instead, I learned to play guitar by listening to James Taylor, Paul Simon, Jim Croce and John Denver records.  My music career began to grow while I was attending Millikin University in Decatur, Illinois.  I was able to play many of the clubs in the area that Dan Fogelberg played, but my path would be different.  It wasn't until I was attending Chicago Theological Seminary that I learned I had a gift for writing and performing Christian music.  I moved to the east coast where I continued playing clubs.  I experienced some success there and even opened for Arlo Guthrie and Pete Seeger!  The music career was put on "hold" when my father was diagnosed with cancer, and I moved back to Illinois to be close to home.  I left music and the clubs for a career in education.  It was not until years later that I began performing again.  This time, I was part of a duo with my good friend Bruce Poulter.  We began playing in church and then, area churches.  My songwriting skills improved and so did the desire to perform the music I was writing.  In 2012, I re-started my solo career and released my first CD, SOMETHING THAT MATTERS.  In 2015, I released A BRAND NEW DAY which contains a number of tunes inspired by my first concert trip to England.  I continue to perform concerts and in worship in churches throughout the midwest.  Along with a second tour of the UK in 2016, I have also played in California, Florida, Ohio......  My third tour of the UK in 2018 was a three week tour, playing at 13 different churches and covering 2000 miles!  A fourth tour was delayed in 2020 due to the Covid outbreak, but was completed in April and May of 2023, 12 concerts, 4 worship services, 16 churches in 28 days!!


I have a wonderful wife and family and with their support, I have been able to maintain a very active performance schedule.  I retired from the world of education in May of 2016 and am now able to play music full time.  I have performed at over 150 churches in Illinois, Wisconsin, Iowa,Indiana, and also at the Illinois State Fair, the Susan G. Komen 3 Day Walk To Cure Breast Cancer and have written music for the Appalachia Service Project.

My mission is simple.  I believe I am called by God to celebrate through music His extraordinary presence in an ordinary world.  Through the sharing of music, we can celebrate what God is doing in us, for us and through us!  I am an old school singer/songwriter bringing a gentle Christian message of hope!  I pray that our paths will cross and we can celebrate together!

Blessings and Peace,
Dan