Senior Doug Dicharry’s musical journey brings him back home to Missouri Southern
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he room – an intimate lounge area at Webb City’s Just a Taste restaurant – is vibrating on this February evening, from the wooden floors to the tables and chairs scattered throughout. Having laid down a loop that includes a guitar lick, beatboxing and even a whistle, Doug Dicharry grabs his trumpet for a quick solo, his feet constantly in motion to add a percussive beat to his cover of Talking Heads’ “This Must be the Place (Naïve Melody).”
Home is where I want to be Pick me up and turn me round It’s a typically virtuosic performance by Dicharry, whose one-man-band Dance Monkey Dance! earns an enthusiastic reception from his audience during an evening of original songs and covers that run the gamut from John Prine and
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Jackie Wilson, to Bruce Springsteen and the familiar hymn “I’ll Fly Away.” But it’s that Talking Heads’ cover that lands a bit differently, given Dicharry’s personal journey. It’s a path which started as an elementary student in Texas, continued into the late ‘90s music scene in Joplin, and then launched into high gear as a member of the Ben Miller Band before settling down into the role of solo performer. It also led him to Missouri Southern State University not once, but twice over two decades. Having had experience on the regional, national and international stage, Dicharry has settled into a work-life balance of family and music, and a clear vision for where he hopes his education will lead.
CROSSROADS MAGAZINE
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SPRING 2022
