Dave grew up in a very musical family in St. Petersburg, Florida where bicycle rides to the beach to spend the day fishing were a common occurrence. Dave was drafted at an early age by the St. Petersburg Boy Choir, which began a long history of performing. He picked up the guitar in his teen years, but soon discovered that he was not destined to be the next Eddie Van Halen. In his college years, he discovered the music of Jimmy Buffett. The songs really spoke to him and the sound and style were fun to sing and fit his voice nicely. When Dave graduated from the University of Florida with a degree in Forestry, he went to work for the Florida Forest Service. His supervisor was also a musician and invited Dave to come sing with him at a little place called The Skunks Nest where he discovered that, much to his surprise, people enjoyed listening to him sing. The owners offered Dave his own night where he became Tuesday Night Dave, playing for free beer and tips. This began a musical adventure that continues to this day. The origin of the name “Flip Flop Dave” Dave was entertaining at a little place called Sun Downer's in John’s Pass Village in Madeira Beach, Florida. The owner (Jim) had nicknamed Dave and his previous musical partner "Mud Flap and Flip Flop", and thanks to the Tampa Bay Parrothead Club, the name Flip Flop Dave just kinda of stuck...... Dave retired after 25 years with the Florida Forest Service, and moved to the western suburbs of Chicago, where he resides in Naperville today. If you would like to know why, you’ll just have to ask him in person.