A veteran of the Sydney music and audio industries, David Holmes passed away on January 4, 2024, in palliative care at Mona Vale in Sydney. He was 58.
A little over a month earlier, Dave had been diagnosed with CJD, a rare and unforgiving brain disease. Many friends and family were able to spend precious time with David in his final weeks. He knew this book did not have a happy ending, but faced his final chapter with patience, grace, wisdom and humour. He knew he was loved.
Dave was a musician (bass, trumpet, piano), backing vocalist, salesman, live and studio engineer and a widely-liked figure across various facets of the music and audio industries.
In his career, he worked for the likes of Yamaha, Klotz, Syntec International and HME. At the new Brash’s on Pitt Street in the late 1980s, he honed his chops working upstairs in the musical instrument department, alongside the likes of Craig Calhoun, Harvey James and Greg Lines.
Dave played bass in covers and original bands and was usually the one making sure the leads and cords were all plugged into the right holes and sockets. He was also most likely to be telling the guitarists to “turn down”, and suggesting to the drummer they might like to pull it back a little volume-wise.
He was a valued member of the Don’t Give Up Your Day Job house band, which raised funds over several years for various charities including Support Act Limited. In this band, he got to play alongside one of his heroes, Iva Davies.
In recent years he mixed gigs at venues on the northern beaches.
Dave fashioned himself into a highly regarded salesperson. He had the charm, the knowledge and the skill to close the deal. It didn’t matter if it was a $500 guitar or a multi-million-dollar audio fitout.
He did his Masters of Design Science – Audio with David Gilfillan, Carmelo Tripolone from TAG and Dave Rashleigh from Crestron ANZ, and built an impressive studio in the laundry and rumpus room of the house he shared with his brother, Peter, with whom he had played in a band in the early to mid-1990s.
David was a bit of a daredevil, having paraglided the entire southern coast of Bali, skied The Palisades and Motts Canyon in Lake Tahoe, done hot air balloon bungy jumping and completed an FAI 750km triangle in a glider. He was a scuba diver and worked on ski fields in Australia and North America as an instructor. He was enthusiastic and fearless and just got on and did it.
Dave loved live pop and rock music, whether it was Simple Minds, Allniters, Machinations or Pseudo Echo in a Sydney pub in the early 1980s, the legendary Narara ’84 festival near Gosford, AC/DC or Midge Ure at the Sydney Entertainment Centre, George Benson or Earth, Wind & Fire at the Hilton. He was not easily pleased and could be a harsh judge if the mix wasn’t right, or a guitar or vocal was sharp or flat, or the keyboardist was playing with 12 fingers. But if everything was in the pocket, he’d rave at length about a gig.
A memorial and celebration for David will be held at Long Reef Golf Club on Sunday February 11, 2024 from 11am – 3pm.
