Dave King
Dave King in 2018
Background information
BornDublin, Ireland
GenresCeltic punk, folk punk, hard rock
Occupation(s)Singer, songwriter, musician
Instrument(s)Vocals, guitar, bodhrán, banjo
Years active1983–present

Dave King (born in Dublin) is an Irish singer, musician and songwriter. He is currently a member of the band Flogging Molly, of which he is a founding member. He first gained notability as the original lead singer of hard rock band Fastway in the 1980s.

Roots and early life

King grew up in a small two-room flat in Beggars Bush, Dublin that had once been part of Beggars Bush Barracks. When he was around the age of six or seven, his parents bought him a guitar. King remembers being called inside by his mother to watch David Bowie perform "Starman" on television, which he cites as one of many influences along with Luke Kelly, Joe Strummer, Johnny Cash, and Freddie Mercury to name a few. King's father died when he was 10 years old. He left Dublin in his twenties, residing in London where he first joined Fastway and later Los Angeles where he formed Flogging Molly with Ted Hutt, Jeff Peters, and Bridget Regan.[1]

Career

King with Flogging Molly at Reload Festival, 2015

King's professional career began in the early 1980s when he was hired as the vocalist for Fastway, an English hard rock band formed by ex-Motörhead guitarist "Fast" Eddie Clarke and ex-UFO bassist Pete Way in 1983.[2]

When Fastway was ostensibly disbanded (Clarke carried on the name with all new members), King formed Katmandu with Mandy Meyer (former member of the band Krokus) and Mike Alonso, (former member of the Detroit-based band Speedball), who released one self-titled album. The band had a couple of minor hits but later disbanded.[3]

King retained a record deal with Epic records, who wanted him to sing for Jeff Beck, but he declined. He started forming the band Flogging Molly, with new material that had a distinct Irish sound, but still retaining the hard driving, loud and fast musical style. He asked to be let out of his Epic contract because "they wouldn't know what to do with the new music anyway..." Since then, Flogging Molly has reached position No. 4 on the Billboard charts top 200 and a No. 1 on the Billboard Indie Chart.[4]

Personal life

King is married to musician and bandmate Bridget Regan.[5]

References

  1. ↑ Friction magazine, by George B. Sanchez, 5 November 2002
  2. ↑ Steve Goldby. "The Official On-Line Tribute to Fast Eddie Clarke". Fasteddieclarke.com. Archived from the original on 22 January 2013. Retrieved 14 December 2012.
  3. ↑ "Katmandu". Sleaze Roxx. Archived from the original on 16 January 2013. Retrieved 14 December 2012.
  4. ↑ Daniel McConnell (16 March 2008). "Band at top of US chart unknown at home". Irish Independent. Retrieved 10 December 2015.
  5. ↑ "Why Irish rockers Flogging Molly are all about the live concert experience". Phoenix New Times. 4 September 2023. Retrieved 15 November 2023.

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