What's in a Name?

When Nick and I met in 1994, I was actively trying to put a band together, jamming with anyone that would have me. And, Nick was playing pied piper to the various musicians of Scott Hall. Almost immediately, we started recording songs with a four-track Nick borrowed from a neighbor in the dorm. Within a few weeks, another buddy booked us a gig as an acoustic duo, which we cleverly called 'Nick and Dave'. We opened for a more established band called Promenade in the Scott Hall multipurpose room and then at a local bar called The StadiUm. From there, we started lugging our acoustic guitars to every songwriter night on campus. And, by virtue of our persistent cold calls as much our musicianship, became regular openers at The StadiUm.

Around this time, another friend posted a classic note to the whiteboard affixed to Nick's door. It went something like this...

"Dear Nick,

I have decided to change the name of the band from 'Nick and Dave' to 'Dave and Nick'.

Or better yet, just 'Dave'.

Yours truly,

-Dave"

Meanwhile, Nick met another Scott Hall musician, bass player extraordinaire, Bobby Love. Bob came from a jazz background -- he had never even heard Led Zep! So, coming from a rock background, our styles did not mesh immediately. But, Nick insisted he was the man for the job -- and, thankfully, I agreed. And, with the addition of a drummer Nick knew from Louisville, our first line-up was complete.
With only a few weeks to go in the semester, I lined up a few gigs. I'm not even sure where we rehearsed (we probably didn't rehearse much anyway.) But, since we had gigs, we needed signs, and we needed a name. Nick suggested, 'The Dallas-Arbiter Band', after the effects pedal made famous by Jimi Hendrix.


After summer break in 1995, we rehearsed at 21 W. Vine, Nick & my house off-campus, much to the chagrin of our roommates. We continued to play gigs and even recorded a demo as 'The Dallas-Arbiter Band', but after a falling-out with our drummer, decided to signal a new start with a new drummer and a new name. A few candidates were 'Gravity' and 'The Last Day on Earth Band', but when Nick suggested 'The Waystation' -- it clicked immediately.

The name comes from a concept in Joseph Campbell's comparative mythology -- the idea that parallel myths exist in many different cultures. Specifically, there is a common story about a hero, that goes forward on the paths of others, until he comes to the last outpost -- The Waystation -- where he goes out on his own.