Local Band DavePaul5 CD Release Party at the Royal Block

WAITSBURG-Dayton native Dave Woolson and Waitsburg's Paul Gregutt founded their band - the DavePaul5 - in 2015. Accomplished songwriters and lifelong guitar players, they weren't afraid to dream big - hence the band name for an upstart duo.

Sometimes dreams take a while, and as the band prepares to celebrate the release of its first studio recording this Friday at the Royal Block, some long-awaited goals are about to come true.

During the past eight years, the duo grew to a trio with the addition of drummer Tom Skeen and then to a quartet when bassist Nick Bader joined. Playing together at prime Walla Walla venues, including Tranche, Waterbrook, Canvasback, Saviah, and Castillo de Feliciana, the band polished its sound and brought new energy and songs to their playlist.

Last winter, the band booked a week at Rainmaker Studios in Pasco and recorded 14 original songs on a live studio album.

For Gregutt, the dream began in the 1970s when he was an assistant engineer at Electric Lady Studios in New York City.

The reality that one day he'd record his songs with his band got postponed again and again as life took its twists and turns.

Woolson's career included entertainment law for Dick Clark Productions, and a stint as the head of the Oregon Film Board meant that recording was always on the back burner.

This Friday, May 26, at 5 p.m., when the band welcomes you to the Royal Block to hear the music from their CD and the stories that led to it, a lot of dreams will finally come true.

Opening the evening's event, from 5 to 6:30 p.m., Dave and Paul will talk about the songs they've written for the album, the songwriting process, and the path from an idea to a finished production. After 7 p.m., the band will rock out with two hours of Stones, Dylan, Neil Young, Gillian Welch, and many great originals.

CDs will be available ($15), and band t-shirts will be given away. No cover – 21+.