David was born the youngest in a family of five children. Being somewhat younger than his siblings, he spent an early part of his formative years alone with parents stereo. It was there that he began rooting through his sibling's record (LP) collection, soaking up as much sound as possible. His love of music grew to an eventual drum kit, purchased at the age of 12. About this same time, his family moved to a new part of town. Along with the move came the insecurities of starting a new school and making new friends. His first pals, Pat Gleespen (Former bass player for "Stomp Box") and Dave Pickle took him further on his musical journey.
Gleespen and Murnen formed a rock and roll outfit called "The Rude Boys" with school mates Anthony Makes and Tim Peat. During this same time period his pal Dave Pickle introduced him to his older brother John.
John was forming a Jug Band and he noticed Dave's rhythmic talent, vocal abilities and his off the wall comedic personality. So John invited Dave to join the band as a washboard player and vocalist. Dave jumped into the group headfirst. They immediately began making a name for themselves playing summer festivals, church socials and private parties and eventually club dates. At the tender age of 13 Dave was making quite a living for himself and living his dream as a professional musician. He was also being educated regarding the early blues and country music from the turn of the century. He was turning onto influences such as Jim Kweskin and the Jugband (love that kazoo), The Smothers Brothers, The Kingston Trio and Spike Jones and the City Slickers.
He performed with Shenaniganz from age 12 to age 17-18. He began growing tired of the wholesome image of Shenaniganz. This led to his eventual (mutual) dismissal from the group. Although he missed the camaraderie of his band mates, he felt it had become too much of a business and was no longer fun. This left him to pursue his first love of playing drums. He joined many garage bands through those years. This led to his eventual hook up with another friend, Mark Mikel. Mark took Dave under his wing and they began collaborating in the mid to late 90's. Dave eventually joined Mark's group "The Mark Mikel Hallucination". They eventually changed the name to "The Pillbugs". They have released many CD's since the 90's. They still record to this day.
Through the years Dave never lost touch with the Pickle family and Shenaniganz, he even filled in for the new washboard player on many occasions. In 1999 John approached Dave about reforming the band. Once again Dave jumped in headfirst and thus was the start of "The Blue Kazoo".
