The Daniel Nathan Band by The Daniel Nathan Band

The Daniel Nathan Band has been featured at many Milwaukee bars and clubs, including Linneman’s, Fatboy Roadhouse, My Place, Treats and Guitar Bar, just to name a few. Our self titled CD (released January 2007) has already received enthusiastic feedback from airplay on Milwaukee’s WMSE radio shows “Free Jazz BBQ with Dr. Sushi” and “Blues Drive.” The CD is available online, and has sold in cities as far away as Munich, Germany.

My first instrument was actually a violin, which I began playing when I was about four years old. When I was in the fifth grade, I dusted off an old flute sitting around in some drawer and decided to give it a shot. One thing led to another, and I was accepted into a high school for the performing arts in Houston (HSPVA), graduating with a focus on Classical flute.

I didn’t pick up an acoustic guitar until 1997, during my sophomore year in college. I instantly fell in love with the instrument. I learned to play the blues, and entered the live music scene by playing open-mics. My first live appearance on guitar was in 1998, at a bar in Utrecht, Holland. My musical partner in crime was Joe Schlesing, a friend from school who was spending the year abroad. Joe sang and played the slide guitar while I played rhythm and improvised solos on an acoustic. We got the crowd to their feet by playing “Dust My Broom” and “Sweet Home Chicago.”

An electric guitar came a few years later - a 1978 Fender Telecaster. I worked on bluesy Hendrix tunes and in spring 2003 I played my first solo vocal and guitar performance at a bar near a ski resort in Colorado. In fall 2003, I moved back to Milwaukee and began to write my own songs. I took my act to The Up & Under Pub on Brady St., and frequently played at the Sunday night blues jam hosted by the TW Blues Band. In 2004, I earned my first solo live performance on cable TV, “NWCT Unplugged,” broadcast on NWCT, a Minneapolis station. In 2005, I formed The Daniel Nathan Band, and we spent about a year cutting our teeth, playing as a house band at Guitar Bar twice a month. Now we can be seen regularly at Linneman’s and many other local favorites.

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