By Danny Coleman
originally published: 12/03/2015
"You really don't know anything about me," said D.L. Byron with a laugh. "Well, I'm a singer/songwriter from South Jersey; let's start with that."
Currently living in Manhattan because he wanted to "Be in the music business," Byron has seen his share of ups and downs in the entertainment world over his decades long career; yet one gets the sense that he seems to have taken them all in stride. "My first disc was on Arista, I had a girlfriend at the time who worked for a guy named Sam Hood who owned the Gaslight and he got a band called Fotomaker signed to Atlantic Records but they were made up of a couple of ex Rascals members; which helped. So she took a demo tape into work and Sam said, "Hey, I should really manage this guy" and we began to shop me around. First we went to Columbia and they said they were interested but they didn't respond anytime soon, so we took it to Arista and they responded right away."
Clive Davis saw potential in Byron; envisioning him as possibly the next Elvis Costello or Graham Parker and immediately put him to work recording his first effort for the label, 1980's "This Day and Age;" which spawned the "Top 40" hit "Listen to the Heartbeat" and a corresponding popular MTV video.
Prior to this success, Byron had been living in what was termed a "Fleabag" hotel until he got himself a "$75 a week job as a staff writer for E.H. Harris." Contacts he made there encouraged his attendance of New York City open mics. and he soon became a staple at many throughout Manhattan and beyond. Once Davis and Arista came into play and the single began to do well; things really changed for the man from Jersey. "Yeah, what an interesting time it was back then," he started somewhat deliberately. "Arista set us up to open for the Boomtown Rats and then Bob Seger on his "Against the Wind" tour here in the U.S. We got as far as Chicago and we were taken to dinner by a guy from the record company. When we got there he said, "Look, if the record doesn't sell better; they're going to pull you off the road." "Sure enough they pulled us from the tour. I didn't think it was selling that bad and to be honest I thought they could've done a little more for us in terms of promotion but regardless; we were suspended by Clive. It was like he said, "Go sit in the corner." "I wasn't worried, I had a two record contract so I used the time to write and one of the songs that I wrote was "Shadows of the Night" and Clive said it wasn't a big enough hit. That song was a big hit over in Germany, then Rachel Sweet recorded it and VanWarmer tried too but neither were successful with it; until Pat Benatar came along. Pat wound up recording it on her "Get Nervous" album and she won a Grammy that year for "Best Female Rock Vocal." "I left Arista and looking back I should've had a place to go but I was too young and inexperienced to know better."
Influenced by The Beatles, Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan and The Byrds; Byron has seemingly wrapped all of them into his unique style and seems to have righted the ship as he has released a 2014 CD entitled "Satori" and is in the process of putting together a band and a possible 2016 tour. "Those influences were and are all there," he stated once again with a laugh, "But you know, growing up you couldn't like The Beatles and the Stones at the same time; that was not acceptable. I started my own label, it's called "Zen Archer Records" and I've put out about eight or nine albums out on this label. My latest, "Satori," is the zen word, the Japanese word for "Awakening." This disc is 10 tracks and goes from ridiculous to sublime, the songs have no connection and it's not a concept album in any way; it's actually the antithesis of that. This is my first disc where I pretty much don't care anymore, I didn't care about the consequences when I put it together; let people think what they may. I find it kind of funny that it's doing pretty well and so is my first CD but that's out on another label."
Byron has lined up his old buddy Joe Vasta as his bassist and is currently looking to complete his rhythm section as his old friend Thommy Price is currently on the road with Joan Jett, I'm looking at putting the pieces together now," he said. "Once i get that together I plan on contacting every booking agent that I know or ever worked with. Ideally, I'd like to start in Europe where my music has always done well hopefully in the spring and stay through the summer and hit some of the big festivals over there. I've got the New York City area bookings covered pretty well but I'm a typical artist; I'm not my best representative."
With that and as his laughter faded, Byron looks to the future. A future in which he sees a return to music no matter where that path may lead. A two hour live radio appearance/performance on the program "Rock On Radio" is scheduled for Sunday December 13 at 10 p.m. EST and will feature a full interview and pure D.L. Byron. perhaps it's the start of something more or at the very least, it promises to be an insight into this unique talent.
To discover more about D.L. Byron, please go to www.zenarcherrecords.com. Rock On Radio can be found on 40 Foot Hole Studio at www.40footholestudio.com.
That's it for this week! Please continue to support live and original music and until next week....ROCK ON!
THIS WEEKS CALENDAR LISTINGS
Alchemist & Barrister28 Witherspoon Street Princeton
(609) 924-5555
Thurs. 9 p.m. "Thursday Jazz" feat. "The Original" Dick Gratton Trio
Wed. 9 p.m. Arnie Baird
All shows 21+
Amalfi's Restaurant146 Lawrenceville-Pennington Rd. Lawrenceville
(609) 912-1599
Fri. 8:30 p.m. The Prophets
Sat. 8:30 p.m. The Dadz
Amarones Windsor Inn29 Church St. Windsor
(609) 448-7144
Fri. 8 p.m. Smoked Ice
Sat. 8 p.m. Meg Hanson Band feat. Billy Hill
Blend Bar & Bistro911 Highway 33, Hamilton
(609) 245-8887
Tues. 8 p.m. Triviajam
Candlelight Lounge 24 Passaic St. Trenton
(609) 695-9612
Sat. 3 p.m. Sylvia Cuena Drum Quartet (No cover-$10 minimum)
Chickie's & Pete's183 US Highway 130 North Bordentown
(609) 298-9182
Tues. 8 p.m. Acoustic Music Night feat. The Dawgs
Wed. 9 p.m. Trivia Night
City Streets510 Route 130 South East Windsor
(609) 426-9400
Sat. 9 p.m. Gyrl Band
Dog & Bull Brew House810 Bristol Pike (Rte. 13) Croydon, PA.
(215) 788-2855
Thurs. 8 p.m. Dane Rosenfeld
Fri. 4 p.m. "Happy Hour Jam" feat. David Dzubinski Group (9 p.m.) Kevin Toft & The All Stars
Sat. (11 a.m.) "Saturday Brunch Jam" feat. David Dzubinski Group (9 p.m.) New Pony
Sun. (11 a.m.) "Sunday Brunch" feat. Dick Gratton (3 p.m.) Dick Gratton & Linda Lee
Mon. 8 p.m. The Keith Lesnik Trio
Tues. 8 p.m. Nytrous
Fran's Pub116 S. Main St. New Hope, PA.
(215)862-5539
Mon. 8 p.m. Open Blues Jam
All shows 21+
Havana New Hope105 S. Main Street. New Hope, Pa.
(215) 862-9897
Thurs. 10 p.m."Beat The Clock" College Night DJ Dance Party
Fri. 8:30 p.m. Fish Out Of Water
Sat. 8:30 Jumper
Sun. (1 p.m.) Midnight Sun Orchestra (6:30 p.m.) JB Kline Band
Mon. 10 p.m. Karaoke w/ DJ Ron
Wed. 8 p.m. Gary Hoey Christmas Show
Hopewell Valley Bistro15 East Broad St Hopewell
(609) 466-9889
Sat. 8 p.m. Dusty Rivers Band
Hopewell Valley Vineyards46 Yard Avenue Pennington
(609) 737-4465
Thurs. 6 p.m. "Thurs. Jazz" feat. Adelente
Fri. 6 p.m. Jeff Brown Trio
Sat. 6 p.m. "Rave On" Buddy Holly Tribute
Sun. 2 p.m. "Jazzy Sunday" feat. Darla & Rich
Ivy Tavern 3108 S. Broad Street, Hamilton
(609) 888-1435
Thurs. 9 p.m. Karaoke
Fri. 10 p.m. Papa Delux
Sat. 10 p.m. Soul Custody
All shows 21+
John & Peter's 96 S. Main Street New Hope, Pa.
(215) 862-5981
Thurs. 9 p.m. Workhorse III w/ Kingsnake
Fri. 9 p.m. Ray Manzarek Tribute
Sat. (3 p.m.) Basement Noise (9 p.m.) Keith Kenny
Sun. (3 p.m.) David Falcone (9 p.m.) The Jephries
Mon. 9 p.m. Open Mic. Night
Tues. 7 p.m. J & P's Annual Arts & Crafts Show
Wed. 9:30 p.m. The Invitational
All shows 21+
JoJo's Tavern2677 Nottingham Way Hamilton
(609) 586-2678
Wed. 10 p.m. Karaoke
Kuser Farm Park & Mansion390 Newkirk Ave. Hamilton
(609) 890-3630
Fri./Sat. 6 p.m. "Winter Wonderland" feat. Dick Gratton & Linda Lee
Millhill Basement300 S. Broad Street Trenton
(609) 989-1600
Check web site for upcoming events
Palermo's Of Hamilton310 Klockner Rd. Hamilton
(609) 838-7979
Thurs. 9 p.m. Karaoke
Sat. 9 p.m. The Drunk Monkeys
All shows 21+
Patriot's Crossing1339 River Rd. Titusville
(609) 737-2780
Fri. 7:30 p.m. DT & The Burnerz
Sat. 8 p.m. Audio Pilot
Pete's Steak House523 Whitehorse Ave. Hamilton
(609) 585-8008
Fri. 9:30 p.m. (TBA)
Sat. 9:30 p.m. Tangled
Randy Now's Man Cave134 Farnsworth Avenue Bordentown
(609) 424-3766
Please check web site for upcoming events
RHO Waterfront50 Riverview Plaza Trenton
(609) 393-7300
Thurs. 9 p.m. "College Night" w/ DJ Paul Desisto. $15 ($5 w/ college ID)
Fri. (4 p.m.) Happy Hour Buffet. $10 (7:30 p.m.) "Moving Trenton Forward" Mayor Eric E. Jackson Presents: "The Capital City Christmas Soiree" A White Christmas Theme w/ DJ William H, (TBA). Cocktails 7:30 p.m., Dinner 8:30 p.m., $60
Sat. 10 p.m. "Holiday Extravaganza" w/ DJs Kevin Mcallister and Bark Da Ripper. Dress code required, ages 30+, $20 (advance $25 (door)
Small World Coffee14 Witherspoon St. Princeton
(609) 924-4377
Sat. 8:30 p.m. Black Cat Habitat
Tavern On The Lake101 Main St. Hightstown
(609) 426-9345
Fri. 9 p.m. (TBA)
Sat. 9 p.m. Sleeping Dogs Lie
Wed. 8 p.m. Karaoke Night / (TBA)
The HOB Tavern146 Second Street
(609) 291-7020
Sat. 9 p.m. Karaoke
Tues. 9 p.m. Open Mic. Night
The Ivy Inn248 Nassau St. Princeton
(609) 921-8555
Thurs. 10 p.m. Karaoke w/ DJ Ron
Fri. 10 p.m. DJ Fatha Ramzee
Sat. 10 p.m. DJ Darius
Tues. 8 p.m. Quizzo w/ Bob E Luv
Wed. 10 p.m. "Wednesday Wheel Night Spin To Win Karaoke" w/ DJ Rockn Ron
The Record Collector358 Farnsworth Avenue Bordentown
(609) 324-0880
Fri. 8 p.m. "Holiday Hoedown" w/ Jet Weston & His Atomic Ranch Hands / Crash Gordon & Debra Dynamite. All ages, doors at 7:30 p.m., $12 (advance)
Sat. 8 p.m. Spanking Charlene / Sad Bastards of Brooklyn. All ages, doors at 7:30 p.m., $12 (advance)
Sun. 8 p.m. Ed Goldberg & The Odessa Klezmer Band. Allages, doors at 7:30 p.m., $12 (advance)
The Roost 181 Rte. 539 Cream Ridge
(609) 208-0050
Fri. 9 p.m. Infinite Bandwidth
Sat. 9 p.m. No Way Out
The Sticky Wicket 2465 South Broad St. Hamilton
(609) 439-0007
Fri. 9 p.m. Radio Fiction
Sat. 9 p.m. General Krank
The Sun National Bank Center 81 Hamilton Ave. Trenton
(609) 656-3200
Check website for upcoming events
Tir Na Nog 1324 Hamilton Ave. Trenton
(609) 392-2554
Fri. 9 p.m. David Falcone
Sat. 9 p.m. Seamus Kelleher
Sun. 3 p.m. "Irish Sessions" w/ Kathy DeAngelo & Dennis Gormley
Tues. 9 p.m. Open Mic. w/ Taylor Reed
All shows 21+
Trenton Buzz702 Pine St. Trenton
(609) 392-6000
Thurs. 8 p.m. Open Mic. w/ Hek Cat
Trenton Social449 South Broad Street Trenton
(609) 989-7777
Fri. 7 p.m. First Friday
Mon. 9 p.m. Monday Night Karaoke w/ Benny P
Tues. 7 p.m. Open Mic. Night
Triumph Brewing Company (New Hope, Pa. Location)
400 Union Square New Hope, Pa.
(215) 862-8300
Fri. 10 p.m. Nick Greeley & The Operators. ($5 cover charge)
Sat. 10 p.m. Anders and Friends. ($5 cover charge)
Sun. (1 p.m.) Doylestown School of Rock (7 p.m.) Open Jam Night (Sign-ups at 6:30 p.m.)
Tues. 9 p.m. Live Band Karaoke
All shows 21+
Wildflowers Inn2572 Pennington Rd. Pennington
Sat. 9 p.m. Acoustic Rock
All shows 21+
Danny Coleman is a veteran musician and writer from central New Jersey. He hosts a weekly radio program entitled 'Rock On Radio' airing Sunday evenings at 7:00pm EST on ThePenguinRocks.com where he features indie/original bands and solo artists.
