INFORMATION
Synopsis
Dave Matthews Was Born On January 9, 1967, In Johannesburg, South Africa. A Self-Taught Musician, Matthews Decided To Assemble A Band And Put Together A Demo Tape-In 1990. Through College Tours And Grassroots Marketing, The Band Developed A Devoted Following. In 1994, They Released Their Major Label Debut, Under The Table And Dreaming, Which Went To No. 11 In The Billboard 200. The Band Followed With A String Of Popular Albums, Including Every day (2001) And Stand Up (2005).
Early Life
Musician And Actor David John Matthews Was Born On January 9, 1967, In Johannesburg, South Africa. A Self-Taught Musician, He And His Family Moved Around The World Throughout His Childhood. When He Was 2 Years Old, They Moved To The New York Suburb Of Yorktown Heights, Where Matthews’ Father, A Physicist, Worked For IBM. In 1977, Matthews’ Father Died Of Lung Cancer, And The Family Returned To Johannesburg To Be With Relatives.
To Avoid South Africa’s Compulsory Military Service, Matthews Moved Back To The United States After High School, Where He Became A Bartender At A Jazz Club In Charlottesville, Virginia, Called Miller’s. It Was There That He Began To Dream About Starting His Own Band.
The Dave Matthews Band Forms
In 1990, Matthews Decided To Put Together A Demo Tape And Approached His Favorite Jazz Musicians To Accompany Him: Sax Player Leroi Moore And Drummer Carter Beauford. For Bass, He Signed On Stefan Lessard, A 16-Year-Old Local Prodigy. Violinist Boyd Tinsley Was Recruited Just Weeks After The Band Formed. Early Local Gigs Were An Immediate Success, And The Band Quickly Developed A Devoted Following. The Band’s Manager, Coran Capshaw, Utilized Grassroots Marketing To Move The Band To The National Stage. The Group Was Known As The Dave Matthews Band