“I’ve always loved music from the time I was a child,” David Stewart shares at the beginning of a conversation about his life, music, and stories of restoration. "I think anyone can learn how to play an instrument, but to have a passion for it, I think you have to be born with it." David says that he wasn’t born into a musical family, but his parents did own a tavern in Bradenton, Florida that had a dance hall. The Village Barn was home to a lot of music and square dances. “I started playing when I was about 10 years old pretending that I was on the stage of the Opry. About the age of 13, I had an uncle that would take me down to a local tavern, sneak me in, and I’d play for the people in the afternoon. He’d put a tip boot out, but I think he got more of a cut than I did,” David chuckled. “I was exposed to music when I was a young child because there was music all around me, and I think that’s what got me to loving music.”

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