Here Come 'The Daves': Well-Known Greenport Duo Teams up for Tunes

NORTH FORK, NY - Two familiar faces in Greenport have teamed up to form a musical duo sure to delight friends and fans.

"The Daves," a new band featuring David Nyce and David Berson, had their first performance on Valentine's Day at First and South, Nyce said.

And on Wednesday night, they'll perform at Lucharitos on Main Street from 8 to 10 p.m.

"We played a warm up show, thanks to Sarah at First and South, but here comes the summer and we will be playing all over starting at Luchas on the 20th. Come check us out, bring your friends and have some fun with us. No cover, just come eat, drink and enjoy! The Daves play rhythm and soul that might just surprise you but will certainly entertain," Nyce wrote on Facebook.

Berson, Nyce said, approached him in the fall about putting something together.

"It started out as just playing on Tuesday nights at the Whiskey Wind," Nyce said.

Berson wanted to play some 50s and 60s music, including soul and artists such as Ray Charles, the Drifters and the Moonglows. At first, the pair had a song circle on Tuesdays.

Later, Berson and Nyce decided to formalize the band a bit and started playing together more regularly.

Nyce said he was playing bass, rather than guitar.

"I started off as a piano player, and taught myself bass and later, guitar. Dave had a list of songs and I said, 'Let's give it a try,' and it sort of grew from there. I find it pretty exciting, actually, because we are taking songs that are typically done with a full band, with horn sections, keyboards, guitars, and background vocals, and stripping them down to just guitar, bass and vocal arrangements."

What makes it even more interesting, Nyce said, is that Berson's guitar is not always the lead and the bass is not always the baseline; sometimes, Nyce is playing the horn part or Berson, the keyboard.

Songs performed by Ray Charles were accompanied by a full orchestra, but The Daves are trying not only to make the songs recognizable, "being true to the songs," but also, stripping them down. "It's making it fun," Nyce said.

The pair have known one another for a long time but have just recently begun spending a great deal of time together rehearsing, Nyce said. While Berson often tells Nyce he won't remember the older songs, Nyce said, "Most of them, I do remember. I was listening to the radio at a young age and my mom was into Motown and whatever was on the radio."

Nyce, well known for his traditional Irish music sessions at the Whiskey Wind, will continue the popular nights on Thursdays, beginning at 7:30 p.m.

But The Daves have already begun drawing a crowd: After Wednesday night's show at Lucharitos, they have upcoming dates at the Greenport Harbor Brewing Company in Peconic and back at First and South, too, with the plan to start playing every other Tuesday at First and South after June 21.

The Daves hope to be on the Lucharitos schedule again moving forward, too.

For Nyce, music is a lifelong passion. He began learning piano as a little kid and sang in his high school choir. After college he moved around the country and learned to play bass. "I was in bands from the age of 19 until we moved here," he said.

Of The Daves, he said. "We're having fun."

Berson agreed. "We began playing together years ago at the Whiskey Wind Thursday night Irish music jam, both of us playing guitar. When I learned that the other David was an accomplished bass player I thought maybe we should just start working on some songs just for the heck of it."

Berson said he wnated to play R&B and honor the memory and songs of Eddie Floyd, Wilson Pickett, The Swallows, and Little Willie John. "The other Dave brought Ska to the table, and all of a sudden we were having fun. I am too old to sing songs of self reflection. Now I just want folks to tap their feet."