A Gofundme started only ten days ago, on October 6, has already raised over $100,000 for veteran tour manager Dave Burton. After Burton suffered a massive stroke in September while working in Kentucky, his found family of touring musicians immediately rallied behind him — donating, spreading awareness and even creating limited-edition merchandise — in a heartwarming display of solidarity and respect for those members of the music industry that do heavy lifting outside of the spotlight.
Dave Burton has been tour manager for hundreds of bands and artists: The Hold Steady, Drive-By Truckers, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, The Shins, Liz Phair, Animal Collective, Primal Scream, Beach House, Best Coast, Franz Ferdinand, Liars and Mercury Rev, just to name a few. He’s been working as a tour manager for over 25 years, traveling across the globe at the drop of a hat with the upmost enthusiasm, his friends said.
But, the flip side of the tour manager life style is that Burton, and most touring professionals, have no long-term health care coverage. This reality has left Burton in financial instability after an over three-week-stay at a hospital in Kentucky last month following the stroke. His long-term prognosis is good, Burton is expected to heal fully in time, according to his fundraising page. And thanks to the continuing success to Burton’s Gofundme, the tour manager might be able to get on the road again once he is healed.
Since 2017, Dave Burton has been Brooklyn-based indie/rock band The Hold Steady’s tour manager. His loyalty and stability during the chaos of touring prompted The Hold Steady to call him “a major, unseen part of The Hold Steady family for over a decade.” To give back, The Hold Steady declared all sales from their Bandcamp will go to Burton’s recovery fund.
The band also added a new shirt to their merch holdings that reads: “Who the f— is Dave Burton?” The Hold Steady called the shirt “pure Dave,” and it’s a reference to the silent movers behind the scenes, that do it not for the fame, not for the notoriety, but for the pure love of music.
Patterson Hood, guitarist for Drive-By Truckers, encapsulated Burton’s personality in his statement on the Gofundme:
David Burton. Great father, film aficionado (he probably would hate that term), foodie (pretty sure he would hate that one too), excellent writer… Rocker, par excellence. A man for all seasons. He’s also one of the finest Tour Managers ever to take that horrifically hard and thankless job. He’s grumpy, but we love him. Very much.
Patterson Hood
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