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DAVE KELLER: SHINES A BRIGHT BLUE LIGHT

By Lawrence Lebo

Soul/Blues singer-songwriter and guitarist Dave Keller shines
bright and strong in all three of the disciplines. From his heartfelt
singing to his tasty guitar licks and clever song lyrics, Dave
dazzles!

If you know anything about Mr. Keller then you are aware that
he studied acoustic blues with guitarist Paul Rishell, soul
blues with guitarist Robert Ward, and that he’s been
mentored by Mighty Sam McClain. Ronnie Earl invited Dave
to sing and co-write some songs with him, and Dave has performed
regularly with Johnny Rawls. Quite the polished
foundation, I would say!

Dave Keller’s latest release “It’s Time To Shine”
(Tastee Tone Records 2023) contains 12 original
tunes penned by Keller, one of which is co-written
by Katie Henry. All of varying grooves and tempos
that fit comfortably underneath the soul blues
umbrella. Dave and his recording band sparkle
throughout. Keller always stays true to the music,
never over-singing or over-playing but locking into
the groove and adding tasty embellishments at just

the right moments. His tight rhyming lyrics get
straight to the heart of the matter. On the title track
Dave writes “....And when the world says, ‘not this
time’, When the world says, ‘go slow’, I say ‘Hell no!
It’s my time......My time to shine’.

I asked Dave Keller to tell us about himself and his
new release “It’s Time To Shine”. This is what he
told me ....
LL: Would you tell us what it’s like where you live in Vermont (USA)?

DK: It is a small, rural, mountainous state, just south of Canada. Very liberal. Lots of young
back-to-the-landers, and older hippies. Sadly, not particularly diverse, racially or ethnically. But
it’s a good place to be a musician. People really appreciate live music here. Winters are long –
from November until April – so music is important for our sanity. Venues tend to be small, so
musicians get to enjoy being physically close to the audience.
LL: Whose music are you listening to these days?

DK: I’ve been listening to a lot of Kruangbin! They are an amazing band from Houston, Texas,
who play mostly instrumental world-music-inspired funk. Their album “Con Todo El Mundo” is
so beautiful. Very addictive. And very different from what I normally listen to, which is Southern
Soul.

Singers who get regular rotation in my house are: Mighty Sam McClain, O.V. Wright, Arthur
Alexander, Bobby ‘Blue’ Bland, Candi Staton, Ann Peebles, Johnny Rawls, and Tad Robinson.
Guitarists who continue to inspire me are: Ronnie Earl, Robert Ward, and Robert Cray. A couple