Dan Dennison grew up in Maryland, moving there from Georgia when he was just 3 years old. Well actually his parents did the moving. He just supervised! His father was in the Army, and after finishing his tour of duty in Georgia they headed back up the East Coast to Maryland where his father and mothers families were. His Dad was a singer and trumpet player in High School, and his mother was a fantastic singer with a tremendous voice, so Dan assumes this is where the musical ability came from.
   Dan's initial interest in playing an instrument was on the guitar. He took two lessons and realized that just wasn't for him. Although: the gold sparkle snare drum sitting in the window of the music store may have had a major influence on that decision. When Dan was eleven he fell in love with that gold snare drum at the music store and begged his parents to get it for him. Through a blinding winter snow storm his parents drove and got him that gold sparkle snare drum. That was it, he never looked back. He started taking lessons from local musician Larry Burdette; who had been stricken with Polio as a teenager and was confined to a wheelchair. Larry would play the beats with his trumpet and gave Dan his basic understanding of time signatures and reading music. Sadly, within a short time Larry's disease took his life. So Dan was on his own. He realized you could learn a lot by listening to records and playing along. And he did just that. He played along to records and tapes and basically taught himself how to play within a band setting. It was a tremendous way to learn dynamics and steady timing. Plus he really felt like a Rock Star...
   It wasn't long before his brothers Herman and Harry were learning instruments of their own. Herman on Guitar and Harry on Piano.  And not much longer before his parents decided to put the three together and hit the road. Well, maybe not the road like a world tour, but we played churches, schools, carnivals, festivals, anything you can imagine you could play, we played. That went on for many years, all the way until the end of High School actually.
   At the same time Dan was becoming the premier drummer for his Junior High School jazz band and played many concerts and shows in that capacity. In High School Dan chose to bypass the marching side of drums and stick to the drumset side. He was chosen to accompany the choral group at all of their concerts and found that to be a real learning experience. He also played in several local garage bands during those years, and even played a concert with a bluegrass band once. That was different, but great fun. It was after high school that Dan realized he wanted to make music his life. He was asked to join the Southern Rock group Cottonmouth, who played many cover songs and at the same time wrote and recorded their own original work. Unfortunately that opportunity was short lived when he realized he still needed to work for a living and had been asked to become the night shift supervisor at the company he worked for. Night Shift and Music do not work well together, so he was forced to leave the band and take the supervisor position.
So, he hit the woodshed and practiced his art every day, with the dream of making a career in music still there. But, career advancements and other priorities took him away from his first love for many years.
   It wasn't until 1997 when he was working in a music store ironically, that an old friend wandered in one day and asked Dan to be the drummer for their group. He jumped on the opportunity and became the drummer for the "Knight Brothers" out of Maryland. The Knight brothers were a group of 4 brothers who had tremendous vocal ability and made a summer tour of the East Coast every year. Dan played the summer tour, and also performed with the Knight Brothers on a television show  which showcased East Coast artists. That was a fun night!
While playing with the Knight Brothers, Dan was noticed by Christian Recording Artists "Simple Truth". Simple Truth was a moderately heavy Christian Rock band who toured the East Coast playing concerts and shows for Churches and other Organizations. They asked Dan to man the drums for them and he accepted the offer. Simple Truth remained together for several years and eventually disbanded due to family obligations.
   But, a seed had been planted between Dan and Wade Palmer, the lead guitarist and singer of Simple Truth. They spent many of the following years writing and recording their own music. That music was fun, and to this day it is some of the most technically fun and difficult music Dan ever played. 
   Fast forward to 2006. Dan has moved to Louisiana for a career move and is considering giving up the drums for good. Or so he thought.....
   In September of 2006 Dan's name somehow ended up in front of another artist. Dan was asked to audition for Country artist "Eli Seals". Dan auditioned and was immediately asked to be the permanent drummer for Eli. So much for giving up the drums.....
   Dan has been backing Eli since that audition in September of 2006 and is having a great time. If you haven't heard Eli's music you truly are missing out. Eli Seals has a voice legends are made of and his self titled CD will provide you all the proof you need! Dan can be heard on Eli's music and backing him live at every show. They are currently touring through the Gulf South and also writing and recording the second release from Eli.
   They recently spent a few days in Nashville working on some of the songs for the new CD and the first cut can be heard playing in the background. It is called "Father's Touch" and is a heartwarming song about Fathers. It will bring tears to your eyes! 
   Dan's drumming style is high energy and straight ahead. He prefers to sit in a nice pocket and drive the band rather than play all over the music. But he does diddle, now and then....Bands seem to prefer that type of drummer so he is constantly asked to work with various artists. He's had many requests to record with various artists but a busy family life and full time career limit those opportunities. 
      "I would love to do all the sessions I get asked to do, but unfortunately I just don't have the time required to give a project my all and if I can't give it my all I would prefer not to do it". "You never know, if something really peaks my interest, I might consider doing the session. We'll see". 
   For now and the foreseeable future you can hear and see Dan with Eli Seals as they tour throughout the Gulf South and possibly the rest of the United States.....