The Musical Stages of David Bryan

By: LiliAnn Paras | October 28, 2021 |  , Entertainment |  Colts Neck

FEATURED PHOTO CREDIT: David Bergman

David Bryan, a longtime resident of Colts Neck, has enthusiastically embraced his philosophy that all things are possible if we don’t limit ourselves.

This helps to explain why David, a Grammy® winning, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame keyboardist in Bon Jovi, would also compose two solo albums, (On a Full Moon and Lunar Eclipse), and would be inspired to take on an entire second career – this time as a lyricist and composer for musical theater. David not only pursues new possibilities, he does them incredibly well. His first Broadway show, Memphis, won four Tony awards. He also is the composer and co-lyricist for Diana The Musical, that recently reopened on Broadway after last year’s shutdown, and has another musical in the wings. Even with all this, he makes time to do good works in the community.

David’s three children, twins Colton and Gabby, and Arty grew up in Colts Neck. He and Lexi, his wife, enjoy life there, along with Edie, their much loved “ten-pound Jack Russell terrorist.” He is a true local, listening to Brookdale radio and reading CM each month. David took time from the busy Diana rehearsal schedule to explain his journey from a seven-year-old pianist to international rock star and award-winning composer/lyricist.
 

CM: When did you first realize you loved music?
David: When I was five, my father taught me trumpet, but I wasn’t that good. There was a piano teacher, Emery Hack, a Julliard graduate who led the NBC orchestra and radio for 16 years who had retired and was giving lessons. I had to audition, and when I was seven years old, I heard him playing Mozart and Beethoven and Brahms and Bach and Shubert.  I just couldn’t believe this piece of wood was making that much beautiful music and I thought, ‘I need to do that.’ And so, from age seven, I studied with him every Wednesday for 15 years.

CM: I notice you have many references to the moon in your songs and writings. Is that significant?
David: Yes, I was seven when men landed on the moon. My parents let me stay up late and I remember I saw it on the black and white TV.  I ran outside and could see the moon and I could not believe that people could do that. It showed me that a human being can do anything, anything you put your mind to.

CM: When did you join a band?
David: Jon Bon Jovi had a cover band called the Atlantic City Expressway and I joined that in my junior year of high school in 1979, when Jon and I were both 17 years old.  It was a Springsteen and Asbury Jukes cover band, with a couple of original songs.

CM: How incredible that all these years later you live in the same town as Springsteen.
David: (Laughs) I was here first, Bruce moved into my town. Yes, it is funny that we had that kind of band. It was a 10-piece horn band and it was fun doing all those great Springsteen and Asbury Jukes songs we loved.  We then did those blue-eyed soul Memphis songs and I really fell in love with that kind of music.  Jon left the band and we played for a little bit longer, and then I went to Rutgers to study pre-med and music.

CM: Were you still in a band during college?
David: At the time there was no Bon Jovi band, just us going into New York really late to record songs. That’s when Runaway came out and where I came up with that song’s riff. I knew we were going to make a record deal. I was still going to Rutgers, and then I thought, ‘I want to go to Julliard.’ So, I dropped the medicine part at Rutgers, stayed with the music part, auditioned for Julliard… and then we got a record deal.

CM: You have been with Bon Jovi for about 38 years, toured the world, and sold more than 150 million records. What is the secret to this longevity?
David: Even as young humans we always cared to be ‘that great live band.’ We wanted to kick ass. We just go out there and when we hit that stage, we play our hearts out.

CM: What led you to venture from rock to musical theater?
David: Right around 1990, I decided to write songs with some other songwriters.  At the end of the 90s, Curtis Stigers (jazz singer) actually sang one of my songs called This Time. Clive Davis said it was the best song he heard all year. My publisher at the time suggested I write musicals, and I said, ‘What are musicals?’  When he said he could get me 18 songs covered 18 times a week, I said, ‘I’m interested.’

CM: Had you seen many shows?
David: I didn’t really. It’s funny, I saw Fiddler On The Roof in 1975, a Bar Mitzvah present from my parents. It was with Zero Mostel, it was great.

CM: How did writing musicals go from a suggestion to reality?
David: In 1998 I wrote a musical based on Sweet Valley High (books). It never sold. It was a little too early for rock and roll and musicals. People were saying, ‘It’s too loud!’ and ‘Why do you keep repeating that part?’ and I was like, ‘Umm it’s called a chorus; it’s called a rock song…’ Then in 2001, I got a script for Memphis The Musical, written by Joe DiPietro who is now my collaborator.  Joe was looking for a rock composer. There was no music, no melody, no anything.  It was in that vein of music I had done for Atlantic City Expressway with all those great Memphis songs. Joe said to get back to him with a song. That was about 1:00 in the afternoon. At that time the internet wasn’t so strong and I knew the FedEx pick up in Colts Neck was 6:30 pm. I ran down to my studio, I wrote some stuff, I added some lyrics. Then I got a drum machine, I put the piano down, the bass down, the organ down, the horn parts, and I sang the lead, I sang all the backgrounds, I mixed it, burned it to a CD and got it to FedEx by 6:30 and it was on his doorstep the next morning.  That song was Music of My Soul, which was used in the show.
 

David Bryan playing piano
 

CM: Memphis was nominated for eight Tony awards and won four, including Best Musical!
David: Not so bad the first time out for me. Which is kind of crazy because I never went to theater school. I’m the outsider in one way but yet I bring a fresh perspective.

CM: What was your reaction when Joe DiPietro suggested Diana?
David: I was like, ‘What?!’  But then I thought it was a great idea. It has no winners and losers, or heroes and victims. We just wrote it as a human story which happens to be about royals. The subtext title would be Trapped in the Kingdom. I had the idea to make all the characters have a voice: Diana is rock of the 80s; the Queen is very regal with snare drums and horns; Charles is a string quartet but still in a rock format; Camilla is like light FM, a little acoustic guitar; and the paparazzi are like punk and ugly.

CM: How does the fulfillment you get from Bon Jovi differ from that of musicals?
David: It’s funny, they’re different and the same. In Bon Jovi, I’m the master of my own destiny. I get up on stage, I play those songs- it’s up to me to make it happen. There is no independent thinking with Broadway. All the words and music come from the composer and lyricist. I take my rock and roll energy and put it into those actors. As a singer I can give them that example.

CM: It sounds like you are very hands-on in the productions.
David: I always say I’m the first person to put on the lights and the last guy to turn off the lights. The thing I really love about it is it is the most difficult algorithm you could ever look at. One little change here effects a change there.
 

David Bryan and Joe DiPietro
 

CM: Has there been a downside to fame for you?
David: I never felt any real downside. I’m not the lead singer so I get to fly under the radar a little bit. I think that was probably a little better for my kids too. If anyone asks me for a picture or an autograph I’m always, ‘Of course!’ It’s a nice thing and I remember getting a picture from one of my heroes made me feel great.

CM: Is there someone you would like to meet or play music with?
David: I’m lucky to have met so many of my heroes. But if I could go back in time and play with the Beatles, or the Stones, Zeppelin, or Yes- I would love to do that.

CM: As busy as you are you take the time to do good works: using your voice to restore music education for millions of students; donating a piano to the US State Dept; working with organizations including VH1 Save the Music, Only Make Believe, Best Buddies; Bon Jovi band donating one million dollars for Katrina relief; and much more.
David: I think when you’re blessed, you have to help others. I like to quietly do it. I do a lot with bringing music education back into the schools. I went to Trenton explaining to the lawmakers, ‘You’re cutting music education from the programs to save money but music is math, music is band after school and involves team building…It gives people confidence, a career.’ We ran a pilot program in NJ. It brought music back into the curriculum and started going nationwide because of that day.

CM: IF you have spare time, what do you enjoy doing?
David: I have a lot of spare time with this pandemic. It’s the most time off I’ve had since I’m zero to seven. My wife rides horses. She does dressage and it’s really cool to watch. I’m too afraid to get up on a horse but I love to watch it.

CM: What is your next project?
David: Joe and I have another musical we wrote about seven years ago and put on pause. It is about 95% done now, called Chasing the Song, a fictional story about the first woman song publisher in 1960.

CM: Looking back, how would you describe your original plan for pursuing music as a career?
David: I figured I’d give it a year.  I was 21 years old in 1983 when we got the record deal. In 1984 I left my house for my one-year trial.  I created a “gap year”—I’m still on my gap year!
 

See this story in print!

Colts Neck – Holmdel – Lincroft Edition – view here.

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