David A. Immerglück (born May 3, 1961)''U.S. Public Records Index'' Vol 1 & 2 (Provo, UT: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc.), 2010. is an American

multi-instrumentalist A multi-instrumentalist is a musician who plays two or more musical instruments at a professional level of proficiency. Also known as doubling, the practice allows greater ensemble flexibility and more efficient employment of musicians, where ...

who is best known as a

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

ist in the

alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from Popular culture, mainstre ...

bands

Counting Crows Counting Crows is an American rock band from San Francisco, California. Formed in 1991, the band consists of guitarist David Bryson, drummer Jim Bogios, vocalist Adam Duritz, keyboardist Charlie Gillingham, David Immerglück, bass guitarist Mil ...

Camper Van Beethoven Camper Van Beethoven is an American rock band formed in Redlands, California in 1983, later based in Santa Cruz and San Francisco. Their style mixes elements of pop, ska, punk rock, folk, alternative country, and world music. The band init ...

and the

Monks of Doom The Monks of Doom is an American alternative rock band, formed in California in 1986. The band's music draws from post-punk, progressive rock, indie rock, psychedelic and folk rock traditions.John Hiatt John Robert Hiatt (born August 20, 1952) is an American singer-songwriter. He has played a variety of musical styles on his albums, including new wave, blues, and country. Hiatt has been nominated for nine Grammy Awards and has been awarded ...

. A versatile musician, Immerglück plays

mandolin A mandolin ( it, mandolino ; literally "small mandola") is a stringed musical instrument in the lute family and is generally plucked with a pick. It most commonly has four courses of doubled strings tuned in unison, thus giving a total of 8 ...

pedal steel guitar The pedal steel guitar is a Console steel guitar, console-type of steel guitar with pedals and knee levers that change the pitch of certain strings to enable playing more varied and complex music than any previous steel guitar design. Like all s ...

, bass, slide guitar,

electric sitar An electric sitar is a type of electric guitar designed to mimic the sound of the sitar, a traditional musical instrument of India. Depending on the manufacturer and model, these instruments bear varying degrees of resemblance to the traditional ...

keyboards Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

, and sings.

Musical career

Early bands

Immerglück began playing music in the

San Francisco Bay San Francisco Bay is a large tidal estuary in the U.S. state of California, and gives its name to the San Francisco Bay Area. It is dominated by the big cities of San Francisco, San Jose, and Oakland. San Francisco Bay drains water from a ...

area. Like other aspiring young musicians, he played with various childhood friends, but began a lifetime habit of joining or "sitting in" with more than one band at a time, learning from the exposure to other differing musical influences and interests. He early began to experiment with different sounds with a growing interest in instruments beyond just the guitar. Initially emerging in the early 80's as musician/engineer in an

esoteric Western esotericism, also known as esotericism, esoterism, and sometimes the Western mystery tradition, is a term scholars use to categorise a wide range of loosely related ideas and movements that developed within Western society. These ideas a ...

rock band/studio collective called Polymorph, Immerglück recorded his first single with a band named Mod-L Society (featuring future Counting Crow

Adam Duritz Adam Fredric Duritz (born August 1, 1964) is an American singer, best known as the frontman for the rock band Counting Crows, of which he is a founding member and principal composer. Since its founding in 1991, Counting Crows has sold over 20 mi ...

): "Back To Baltimore"/"Janie", in 1985.

The Ophelias

By 1987, he joined popular SF band The Ophelias (signed to the San Francisco wing of British label

Rough Trade Records Rough Trade Records is an independent record label based in London, England. It was formed in 1976 by Geoff Travis who had opened a record store off Ladbroke Grove. Having successfully promoted and sold records by punk rock and early post-pun ...

), touring and recording two albums with them ("Oriental Head" and "The Big O"), while continuing to pursue his interests in producing and/or playing with other bands in the fertile Bay Area indie rock scene. Immerglück played with The Ophelias for the better part of the next three years, until joining Camper Van Beethoven in the summer of 1989. The Ophelias released a retrospective compilation album "Bare Bodkin" in 2017, containing many previously unreleased tracks.

Monks of Doom and Camper Van Beethoven

The

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...

band

. Formed in 1986, the Monks of Doom "somehow fused post-punk sensibilities with prog rock decadence and

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Folk Plus or Fol ...

tradition elegance". Original guitarist Chris Molla left the group shortly after the band formed and was replaced by Immerglück, who contributed guitar,

pedal steel The pedal steel guitar is a console-type of steel guitar with pedals and knee levers that change the pitch of certain strings to enable playing more varied and complex music than any previous steel guitar design. Like all steel guitars, it can p ...

vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...

and

. One ''

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

'' critic compared their work to "pop

experimental An experiment is a procedure carried out to support or refute a hypothesis, or determine the efficacy or likelihood of something previously untried. Experiments provide insight into cause-and-effect by demonstrating what outcome occurs when ...

ists

Frank Zappa Frank Vincent Zappa (December 21, 1940 – December 4, 1993) was an American musician, composer, and bandleader. His work is characterized by wikt:nonconformity, nonconformity, Free improvisation, free-form improvisation, sound experimen ...

and

Syd Barrett Roger Keith "Syd" Barrett (6 January 1946 – 7 July 2006) was an English singer, songwriter, and musician who co-founded the rock band Pink Floyd in 1965. Barrett was their original frontman and primary songwriter, becoming known for his ...

". Bassist Victor Krummenacher noted, "We were interested in doing slightly more outside music that had heavier and more progressive tendencies. It was an outside expansion, a chance to go wherever our imagination took us." Immerglück described the sonic chemistry between that of himself and Lisher, the band's two guitarists, as music "that seemed to juxtapose the chaotic and the beautiful, the raw bluster and the ornate". Immerglück joined Camper Van Beethoven as a member for the final tours of their initial run, prior to their breakup in 1990. The Monks of Doom intensified their activity after this, ultimately producing five albums to positive acclaim before the members took a long reprieve in 1993. Both groups have since reformed - Camper Van Beethoven in 1999 (with Immerglück peripherally involved as a part-time member), and the Monks of Doom in 2003 (with Immerglück involved full-time).

John Hiatt (& The Nashville Queens)

In late '94/early '95, on drummer

Michael Urbano Michael Urbano (born March 19, 1966 in Sacramento, California, USA) is a musician, programmer, and record producer. Career One of Urbano's first gigs was as a member of Bourgeois Tagg, a 1980s band that was fronted by Brent Bourgeois and Larr ...

's recommendation, Immerglück was brought in to record seminal American songwriter

John Hiatt John Robert Hiatt (born August 20, 1952) is an American singer-songwriter. He has played a variety of musical styles on his albums, including new wave, blues, and country. Hiatt has been nominated for nine Grammy Awards and has been awarded ...

's album '' Walk On''. He became a permanent fixture in Hiatt's band, touring extensively, and went on to record two more albums (1997's '' Little Head'' and 2000's Grammy nominated ''

Crossing Muddy Waters ''Crossing Muddy Waters'' is singer-songwriter John Hiatt's fifteenth album, released in 2000. A raw album recorded with no drummer, it was a purely acoustic album that brought elements of bluegrass music into his Americana sound. It was nomin ...

'') as well as new tracks for a compilation (1998's ''Best of John Hiatt''). His tenure with Hiatt ended in 1999, when he became a full-time member of Counting Crows.

Counting Crows

Around 1993, Immerglück became involved with an early incarnation of the

modern rock Modern rock is an umbrella term used to describe rock music that is found on college rock radio stations. Some radio stations use this term to distinguish themselves from classic rock, which is based in 1960s–1980s rock music. Radio format Mod ...

group

, and has since appeared in some capacity on all of Counting Crows' albums. Because of other musical projects, he initially functioned only as a

session player Session musicians, studio musicians, or backing musicians are musicians hired to perform in recording sessions or live performances. The term sideman is also used in the case of live performances, such as accompanying a recording artist on a ...

. With his skills on guitar and a variety of other instruments, including both

slide guitar Slide guitar is a technique for playing the guitar that is often used in blues music. It involves playing a guitar while holding a hard object (a slide) against the strings, creating the opportunity for glissando effects and deep vibratos tha ...

and pedal steel guitar,

, keyboards and

backing vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are use ...

, he easily fell into place with old friends from the San Francisco Bay scene. Since 1999, Immergluck has been a permanent member of the band, touring and recording. David Immerglück

Other musical work

Immerglück formed another band in the later 90's,

Glider Glider may refer to: Aircraft and transport Aircraft * Glider (aircraft), heavier-than-air aircraft primarily intended for unpowered flight ** Glider (sailplane), a rigid-winged glider aircraft with an undercarriage, used in the sport of glidin ...

(also featuring Counting Crows' drummer

Jim Bogios Counting Crows is an American rock band from San Francisco, California. Formed in 1991, the band consists of guitarist David Bryson, drummer Jim Bogios, vocalist Adam Duritz, keyboardist Charlie Gillingham, David Immerglück, bass guitarist M ...

), during the time he was playing with

. He has also performed as both a session musician and a

sideman A sideman is a professional musician who is hired to perform live with a solo artist, or with a group in which they are not a regular band member. The term is usually used to describe musicians that play with jazz or rock artists, whether solo ...

with a wide range of other artists, including

, Coby Brown,

Chantal Kreviazuk Chantal Jennifer Kreviazuk (; born May 18, 1974) is a Canadian singer, songwriter, composer, and pianist. Born in Winnipeg, she played music from a young age before signing with Columbia Records in the 1990s. Her debut studio album, ''Under These ...

James Maddock James Maddock (born 1962) is an English singer-songwriter and performing musician. Originally from Countesthorpe, Leicester, Maddock has been based in New York City since 2003. His first album was ''Tied Weight'' in 1982. (Reach Up Records SRO 0 ...

Chris Stills Chris Stills (born April 19, 1974 in Boulder, Colorado) is a musician and actor. He is the son of American rock musician Stephen Stills and French singer-songwriter Véronique Sanson. He has played with both his father and his mother. Biogr ...

Tyson Meade Tyson Todd Meade (born September 15, 1962) is an American musician, painter, writer, teacher, and disc jockey best known as the principal singer and songwriter for pioneering alternative rock bands Defenestration and Chainsaw Kittens. Defenestr ...

, Elan Sara Defan, Cracker,

Hootie & the Blowfish Hootie & the Blowfish are an American soft rock band that were formed in Columbia, South Carolina, in 1986. The band's lineup for most of its existence has been the quartet of Darius Rucker, Mark Bryan, Dean Felber, and Jim Sonefeld. The band w ...

, Papa's Culture,

Jonathan Segel Jonathan Segel (born September 3, 1963) is an American composer and multi-instrumentalist. He has played with Camper Van Beethoven, Sparklehorse, Eugene Chadbourne, and Dieselhed. Early life and education Segel was born in Marseille, France, a ...

The Walkabouts The Walkabouts were an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington in 1984. The core members were vocalist Carla Torgerson and vocalist and songwriter Chris Eckman. Although the rest of the line-up changed occasionally, for most of the time ...

Johnny Hickman John Arthur Hickman (born September 10, 1959) is an American musician best known as the lead guitarist and co-founder of the rock band Cracker (band), Cracker. Biography Early years Hickman is a native of Redlands, California, Redlands in San ...

, Low Stars,

Jason Karaban Jason Karaban is an American singer-songwriter and musician living in Los Angeles, California. Karaban first began his career fronting the Philadelphia-based indie rock band ''Dragstrip Courage'' in 1997, and ''Grand'' in 2000. He emerged as a ...

Chris Seefried Chris Seefried is an American singer, musician, songwriter, and record producer. He is best known as the lead vocalist and frontman of the bands Gods Child, Joe 90, and Low Stars, and as producer and co-writer for the neo-soul band Fitz and the ...

and

Sordid Humor Sordid Humor was an American rock music band, formed in 1987 by the duo of Tom Barnes and Jim Gordon. The duo received help from drummers Ken Gregg, Chris Pedersen, and Toby Hawkins, and bassists Tony Fader, David Immergluck and Marty Jones. Bar ...

. Immerglück, along with

Davey Faragher David Allen "Davey" Faragher (born August 18, 1957) is an American bass guitarist from Redlands, California. Faragher's career took off and received critical notice as a founding member of the nineties band Cracker, and his subsequent work wit ...

, was nominated for a

Grammy award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

for Best Contemporary Folk Album in 2001 for his work with

's album ''

'', a bluesy soulful album of only three performers, without drums, compared by some to the work of

Tom Waits Thomas Alan Waits (born December 7, 1949) is an American musician, composer, songwriter, and actor. His lyrics often focus on the underbelly of society and are delivered in his trademark deep, gravelly voice. He worked primarily in jazz during ...

, with Immerglück contributing mandolin,

12-string guitar A twelve-string guitar (or 12-string guitar) is a steel-string guitar with 12 strings in six courses, which produces a thicker, more ringing tone than a standard six-string guitar. Typically, the strings of the lower four courses are tuned in o ...

, slide guitar and vocals on many songs. In 2004, Immerglück again received a Grammy nomination, as well as Oscar and Golden Globe nominations as a co-writer for the Counting Crows song " Accidentally in Love" (the song featured in the film ''Shrek 2''). Immerglück also appeared on the solo debut by Paul Collins, formerly of The Beat and

The Nerves The Nerves were an American power pop trio formed in 1974 and based in Los Angeles, California featuring guitarist Jack Lee, bassist Peter Case, and drummer Paul Collins. All three members composed songs and sang. They managed an internation ...

. Recorded for Sony Records, the album was a blend of

alternative country Alternative country, or alternative country rock (sometimes alt-country, insurgent country, Americana, or y'allternative), is a loosely defined subgenre of country music and/or country rock that includes acts that differ significantly in style ...

and

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

, featuring Immerglück on guitar, alongside the core members of

Chris Isaak Christopher Joseph Isaak (born June 26, 1956) is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist and occasional actor. He is widely known for his breakthrough hit and signature song "Wicked Game", as well as other songs such as "Blue Hotel", "Baby D ...

's band, Silvertone. In 2008, Immergluck began playing music with NYC based British singer/songwriter

, forming the acoustic duo Jimmy/Immy as well as sometimes playing in Maddock's band. Jimmy/Immy have toured extensively in Italy on several occasions, and continue to play regularly in the greater NYC area. 2012 saw the release of ''Jimmy/Immy Live at Rockwood Music Hall'', and in 2016 ''Jimmy/Immy (w/Alex Valle) Live in Italia'' was released. In 2013, Immerglück appeared on the opening track of

Joseph Arthur Joseph Arthur (born September 28, 1971) is an American singer-songwriter and artist from Akron, Ohio. He is best known for his solo material, and as a member of Fistful of Mercy and RNDM. Arthur has built his reputation over the years through c ...

's tenth studio album, ''

The Ballad of Boogie Christ ''The Ballad of Boogie Christ'' is the tenth studio album by American singer-songwriter Joseph Arthur, released on June 11, 2013 on Real World and Lonely Astronaut Records. A concept album, ''The Ballad of Boogie Christ'' follows "a fictionalized ...

''. In 2016 Immerglück produced and played on flamboyant Indie Rock legend

's forthcoming album ''Robbing the Nuclear Family'', as well as joining bizarre improv collective

Mushroom A mushroom or toadstool is the fleshy, spore-bearing fruiting body of a fungus, typically produced above ground, on soil, or on its food source. ''Toadstool'' generally denotes one poisonous to humans. The standard for the name "mushroom" is t ...

Equipment

Extensive description of instruments on the official website in the infobox: * 1971 Gibson Les Paul Deluxe * 1960

Fender Stratocaster The Fender Stratocaster, colloquially known as the Strat, is a model of electric guitar designed from 1952 into 1954 by Leo Fender, Bill Carson, George Fullerton, and Freddie Tavares. The Fender Musical Instruments Corporation has continuously ...

* 1963 Gibson Firebird I * 1965

Fender Precision Bass The Fender Precision Bass (often shortened to "P-Bass") is a model of electric bass guitar manufactured by Fender Musical Instruments Corporation. In its standard, post-1957 configuration, the Precision Bass is a solid body, four-stringed instrum ...

* 1917 Gibson A4 Mandolin * Fender Pedal Steel *

ARP 2600 The ARP 2600 is a semi-modular analog subtractive audio synthesizer produced by ARP Instruments, Inc. History Developed by a design team headed by ARP namesake Allen R. Pearlman and engineer Dennis Colin, the ARP 2600 was introduced in 1971 a ...

Influences

Immerglück has listed a variety of musicians who were influences on his music. They include:

Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the most ...

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...

, David Bowie,

Otis Redding Otis Ray Redding Jr. (September 9, 1941 – December 10, 1967) was an American singer and songwriter. He is considered one of the greatest singers in the history of American popular music and a seminal artist in soul music and rhythm and blues. ...

, Captain Beefheart & The Magic Band, Can,

Grateful Dead The Grateful Dead was an American rock music, rock band formed in 1965 in Palo Alto, California. The band is known for its eclectic style, which fused elements of rock, Folk music, folk, country music, country, jazz, bluegrass music, bluegrass, ...

Gang of Four The Gang of Four () was a Maoist political faction composed of four Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officials. They came to prominence during the Cultural Revolution (1966–1976) and were later charged with a series of treasonous crimes. The gang ...

, Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac,

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...

Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Davis adopted a variety of music ...

, Tangerine Dream, The Rolling Stones, King Crimson, Pentangle, John Coltrane, Muddy Waters, Brian Eno, Tinariwen, and Roy Harper.

Notes

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Immergluck, David 1961 births American people of Austrian descent American mandolinists American multi-instrumentalists American rock guitarists American male guitarists Counting Crows members Living people Seven-string guitarists Sitar players Slide guitarists People from Alameda, California Musicians from the San Francisco Bay Area 20th-century American guitarists Camper Van Beethoven members Monks of Doom members