By Jimmy “Hambone”

As I’ve gotten to know my neighbor Dave Sisk, I’ve picked up pieces now and again that let me know there is more there than meets the eye. I’d see him come home from work at Moffet’s Nursery often with a little dirt on the knees of his jeans; occupational hazard for someone who does landscaping design as a certified horticulturalist.

Not long after I moved in next door, I observed him backing his truck up to a big trailer in his side yard. “Band’s playing tonight!” he said. I assumed maybe he had a little garage band or something. I watched as he orderly loaded the van with equipment far beyond what you would see from a local band: amplifiers, mixing boards, speakers and lights. I wondered just what he was into but didn’t pursue it at the time.

A few months later I noticed the trailer being loaded again. I stuck my nose over the fence, like Tim the Toolman’s neighbor Wilson, and learned this time it was a big benefit show out in Hamilton.

“Been playing long?” I asked.  “Only 50 years or so”, he told me. Another piece of the puzzle.

Last summer I was out front as Dave and his wife Cody were heading off somewhere.

“We won a big Battle of the Bands contest last night.” he hollered as he headed for the truck.

“What’s the name of your band?” I yelled after him. “Crystal Flames”, he replied. “Are they new?” I asked. “They were in 1979”, he laughed as he drove off.

Over the next few months whenever we’d see each other outside, I’d ask about the band. He always had an update; their latest bookings, recording a new cd, whatever. One time he made the offhand comment that it’s not the same as back in his touring days. Touring Days?

Oh yeah, he tells me, he toured with rock and roll icon Johnny Rivers for a dozen years or so and Conway Twitty for a couple more after that. Now I was hooked and had to hear the whole story. We decided to grab a seat on his back deck so I could take some notes.

Dave grew up right here in St. Joe. He started playing guitar at age 11 and by 14 was in his first band, “The Outer Limits.” Through a family friend he was introduced to

He described that period as the most fun you could have, being young and dumb, but with your pockets full of money. His encounters with industry celebrities are too many to mention, but run the gamut from Alabama to Van Halen.

Unfortunately all good things must come to an end, and for Dave Sisk the development of a tumor in his hand required surgery and a couple of years of rehab to regain its use. While he couldn’t play, his mother pressured him to come back home and settle down. He did so, buying a house on Cathedral Hill, just a short walk from his boyhood home.

As his hand got stronger, he started teaching his brothers to play. Before long Crystal Flames was born with his brothers Elvin and Frank. Over the years the line up has changed. Frank dropped out a while back. Wives and in-laws got in and eventually got out.

The current band has Dave on lead guitar and vocals, brother Elvin on drums, Shaun Oliver on bass and David Scott on rhythm guitar. Dave’s youngest brother Jeff handles sound and lights. The band still practices regularly and plays at least a couple of times a month. Anybody that books them tends to ask them back after seeing what kind of show they put on. They do a lot of tight covers from C.C.R. and the Eagles. They also have a ton of originals that range from a jazzy feel to more progressive rock.

You can check them out online at www.myspace.com/Officialcrystalflames. You can also see them in person at the Horseshoe Lake Drive In from 7-9pm on Saturday July 12. For just the price of a movie ticket you get a great double feature and an evening of music from Crystal Flames. Their sound, their equipment and their setup, is pretty much unmatched by other local bands. But then I guess it should be. Dave Sisk has been cranking out Grade-A American rock and roll since before most of us were knee high to a Telecaster. Come see one of St. Joe’s own homegrown music legends and be sure to tell him Joe sent you.