Big Blue Hearts

Big Blue Hearts may remind listeners of Elvis Presley, Roy Orbison and the Everly Brothers. However, lead singer David Fisher grew up listening to his mother's collection of albums by singer-songwriters such as Carole King, James Taylor and Carly
Simon. One of her friends was a DJ at an underground rock station in Baltimore where Fisher discovered Gary Numan, the Tubes, the Ramones and the Sex Pistols. At age 6 or 7, he got heavily into Kiss and decided he would grow up to be a singer.

Fisher's family moved to Springfield, Va., when David was 2. By the time he was 4, his parents had divorced, and his mother had married a man she'd met in AA. Because he worked in construction, a change in seasons could mean that work would become available. Constantly moving, Fisher attended 14 different schools by the time he finished high school.

In fourth grade, he was given an acoustic guitar and eventually progressed from playing "The House of the Rising Sun" and "Blowing in the Wind" to songs by Minor Threat and the other punk bands on the Washington, D.C.-based Dischord label. He also got into English bands like the Exploited and cut his hair into a mohawk.

At 16, Fisher went to a recording studio and cut a song called "Shock Me Blue." Then he auditioned for a band in Maryland, making up lyrics on the spot. Two weeks later, they had a gig. Fisher's father bought them new equipment, and they recorded an album in a warehouse he owned.

Nothing came of the album, but Fisher wrote more songs, joined other bands and eventually moved to San Francisco. He recruited band members and started performing in tailored black suits as Big Blue Hearts. Signed to Geffen Records without even a demo, the label released their album in 1997. However, corporate restructuring at the label led to the band being dropped from the roster.

Fisher went through a major depression but decided not to go back to heavy drinking, a habit he had kicked only months before. Instead, he sought out new creative partners, including songwriter Douglas Soref and the rhythm section of bassist J.B. Burton and drummer Greg Sobol, who later became members of the revamped version of Big Blue Hearts. Fisher and Soref's collaboration was so fruitful, they were able to pitch several songs to a music publisher who placed them in television shows (including The O.C., Summerland, One Tree Hill, Without a Trace, The Real World, Ally McBeal and Party of Five). Fisher also formed a production company, working with other artists in his Hollywood studio.

In 2003, Soref came to Fisher and said, "I've written a song for Big Blue Hearts." It was the first version of the upbeat, Everlys-reminiscent "Here Come Those Dreams Again." Inspired, they began writing together, and their collaboration evolved into a new lineup of the band that included lead guitarist Scott Minchk. They released the album Here Come Those Dreams Again in 2005.