Seven years ago Kimberley Dahme was a struggling singer / songwriter
in Music City, performing the writer night circuit and shopping her
songs to publishers and herself as an artist to major labels. Journalist
Brad Fischer caught up to her at a writers night at the Boardwalk
Cafe and here's what he had to say about Dahme in NMG's Cover Story
Article of July 1999, "Fiercely dedicated to her music, this stunning,
sultry-voiced, six-foot blonde has made a serious impression in the
highly competitive Music City arena with her unforgettable stage presence,
her enormous charm, and her beautiful heartfelt song interpretations."
In those days a gig would involve getting
into her old junker of a car and showing up at the venue with her
guitar tuned. She was heavy into performing the Nashville club circuit
and you could find her any day of the week performing at the Bluebird,
Douglas Corner, the Boardwalk, Broken Spoke and any stage that would
have her. Now before a gig, 17 buses and tractor trailers follow
her to each venue and an instrument tech prepares and tunes
all her instruments before she performs. Things change when you are
hired as the first female musician in the legendary rock and roll
band Boston.
Ironically, the big break
came to Dahme when she was performing outside of Nashville. She was
touring with Tom Hambridge in the Northeast and playing in a pub called
the The Sitting Bull in Maynard, Mass. Apparently, Boston founder
Tom Scholz was also at the gig looking for a drummer, and as fate
had it, he saw the same talent in Dahme as Mr. Fischer had.
Dahme recollected, "I was signing autographs after the show, and Tom
came up to me and asked me if I knew how to play the bass. I didn't
know if it was a pickup line, but I told him 'I could learn'. " The
first thing Dahme did when she got back to Music City was to go to
a pawn shop and put a bass guitar on layaway. Back then she was in
the "starving artist" social class of Music City and had to save her
pennies before taking home her first bass guitar. Ironically now with
a Fender endorsement, she gets the most expensive and innovative basses
free of charge. Being the first class musician she was, she could
already play the flute and acoustic guitar fluently and after an intense
learning curve was overcome, she became proficient enough to contact
Tom Scholz and arrange for an audition. Scholz hired her as Boston's
first female musician.
BOSTON ROAD STORIES
Dahme made her debut
as a member of Boston at the Fiesta bowl on New Years day 2002 in
front of 60,000 people. Dahme remembered … "It was a great moment
for me, but I was terrified. I had been playing bass for only one
month, and here I was on National TV, the first female in the band
Boston, and I thought I'd get tomatoed. The Boston music fans were
so gracious and kind and accepting of me."
Dahme on stage with Boston is bigger than life. She adds an incredible
dynamic to the band thru her stage presence, musicianship and background
vocals. NMG will stop short of saying she stole the show in Nashville
at Starwood this fall, but let's say her solo of her song "With You"
brought the house down. "They said when they hired me I could get
wild on stage, and that's what I'm doing. I'm having a blast, " Dahme
commented and smiled. Her moves on stage in outfits fitting of a rock
star are truly mesmerizing. In fact, one fan was so overwhelmed by
her he rushed the stage. Dahme related, "He was flying thru
the air lunging at me and I was wondering what he was trying to do.
It's not like I was gonna let him carry me off stage. The security
guard grabbed him, before he got to me. One of the band members said
he was obviously going for my tube top."
EARLY ROOTS
Dahme grew up in the San Francisco
area, and at an early age she knew that music would be her life despite
the fact that no one in her family was a singer or musician. Dahme
on her early musical influences, "I grew up listening to such stars
as Patsy Cline, Merle Haggard, Hank Williams and so many more
great singers and songwriters." This love of music motivated her to
learn the guitar on her own. Her drive and dedication to music lead
her to study voice at the Carmel Conservatory of Music and later majoring
in music at Stanislaus State University of California.
Dahne tasted success in California as an entertainer and singer. She
sang several commercial jingles for Honda, Wrangler Jeans, Chevrolet,
Ford and Toyotas through Los Angeles jingle producer Thom Rheinstein.
She also dabbled in acting appearing in TV commercials and the movie
"Roses". In addition, she honed her skill at her first love, "performing",
gigging at clubs and private parties in the Redondo Beach area, where
her family had moved. She also became aware of the seedy side of the
music business. In her own words, "I signed with a management company
that locked down my career. It took time to wait out the contract
while they did nothing to further my career."
Her love for songwriting and singing ultimately led her to Music City,
and in 1997, she packed her bags, said goodbye to California.
Music City embraced her talent even though she never got her big break
here. Kimberley won TNN's "You Can Be A Star" and got gigs opening
for the likes of Wynonna Judd, Ricky Skaggs, Patty Loveless to mention
a few. She also toured throughout Europe as part of Dale Burie's Nashville
New Faces Show.
FUTURE PROJECTS
The future is
very bright for this stunning and musical Diva. Next year the band
will be celebrating their 30th Anniversary and a 2005 album is in
the works, Dahme, "I'm really excited. I'm playing and harmonizing
on the new Boston album and it looks like I'll have a couple of songs
on the CD." Also in the works as part of their anniversary, is a DVD
on the band. Dahme is also coming out with her own album of original
material which will be co-produced by Tom Hambridge and will be available
in records stores and on the internet. Dahme commented about her project,
"The album is gonna have a Bonnie Raitt, Southern Rock and bluesy
feel to it. The songs will all be my originals and motivated by my
own real life experiences. Writing is therapy for me."
Her first love is and always will be music, but on the side Dahme
wants to get into acting. This should be a no-brainer for a film casting
director. She can easily translate her "bigger than life" persona
on stage to the silver screen. NMG predicts you'll be seeing her in
some future action movies.
GIVING BACK
Dahme is very grounded
when it comes to her newly acquired fame. she "gives back" by being
active in several charities and non-profits including Peace Keeper,
VH1's Save The Music, Pet Protection to mention just a few. She still
lives in Music City and has bought herself a 5 acre home here, and
when her schedule permits, she still performs on "The Girls With Guitars"
show. For her tour dates with Boston and club dates in Nashville,
visit her website.
Dahme is handling
her stardom well and hasn't overdosed on her fame. To prove it, after
congratulating her on her success, she got into the same old junker
she had in 1997 and drove off with the words, "I'm the same old Kimberely,
I even drive the same car I had back then. Why not, it still runs."
