David Childers & the Modern Don Juans

By Kenneth Gambill

Photo by Curtis Gaston

It was Pavement’s lead singer/songwriter Stephen Malkmus who said “Hey, you gotta pay your dues before you pay the rent.” This statement holds true for thousands of talented artists that have never been heard, either because the lifestyle becomes too difficult for them or they miss their window of opportunity.

Country rock’s relatively unknown hope, David Childers, hasn’t given up the life yet, but he has certainly had to pay his fair share of dues. When it comes to playing out in small clubs, not making much money and riding in cramped vans, Childers and his bandmates, the Modern Don Juans, have seen it all. It’s not uncommon for the group to play a gig where the crowds may or may not be able to fill up a truck, then turn around and play for a sold-out festival crowd. But Childers plays for the moment and, most importantly, for himself.

“I’ve had a lot of ass whoopins in my life and I’ve administered a few myself,” explains Childers in a deep Southern accent. “I wouldn’t say I’ve really paid a lot of dues to get into the industry because I’m not part of the music industry, and you don’t need those assholes.” As far as small crowds go, Childers and the guys have never felt like a show was not worthy of playing if the room wasn’t full. In fact, they tend to take it on as a challenge, just like everything else they have encountered along the way.

“We drove five hours each way to Richmond, Virginia and played to the bartender, the sound guy and one other guy in the corner,” explains bassist Mark Lynch. “The club tried to get us to pay $75 for the sound guy. That didn’t happen.” Contrast this experience with the fact that Childers just hit up Holland for a two-week tour, including a festival stop to play alongside the likes of Jeff Healey and Shooter Jennings. The band members are all respected musicians and are very used to being called upon to play for many well-known bands, including The Gourds, Mofro and The Two Dollar Pistols. But none of this matters to Childers. He is very modest and humble when dealing with other bands and hates the idea of being famous by association.

“We’re not a real big deal,” exclaims Childers. “We don’t drop names and we don’t say ‘We got so-and-so on our record;’ we just don’t do that.” While Childers and his crew are very professional in what they do, they also have as much fun as they can playing to the styles of their liking and sometimes pissing people off intentionally. “The whole Burning in Hell CD title is tongue-in-cheek,” explains Childers. “We knew we were going to piss off somebody by having Satan on the front cover. I’m too old to please somebody or try to be somebody else.” At the tender age of 55, Childers believes that the best thing he can do is write about what he knows and never try to fool anyone into thinking otherwise.

“I’ve gone through many transformations in my life when I was trying to be somebody else,” says Childers. “At one point I was Jack Kerouac, John Wayne and Dick Butkus. But I figured out a long time ago who I actually was, and as an artist, that’s who I was going to be.” Image and artistic integrity are two things that should never be compromised, according to the Gastonia, North Carolina resident. Childers, who was also a published poet in his heyday, uses his lyrics to convey his thoughts and ideas, while allowing his listeners to understand exactly where he is coming from and establish a connection with him.

“David is a fucking maniac,” says Lynch. “He has always written songs about sin, damnation, grace and redemption. When we decided to call the CD Burning In Hell, the CD art all but decided itself.” Along for the ride with Lynch and Childers are Childers’ son, Robert, on drums and Randy Saxon on lead guitar. But, it is Papa Childers who demands the spotlight and warrants the attention he garners every time he takes the stage. “There was one night where David made a new convert of a lady who got so caught up in the moment, she grabbed his package,” says Lynch. “I defy anyone to find a more rockin’ 55-year-old guy. His passion is inspiring.”

www.davidchilders.com