Midnite Picker

Extended Network Banner Generated with MyWackoSpace‘Maybe it’s my turn’ Midnight Pickers frontman lives dream By Jennifer Roush Times West Virginian Fairmont resident Dave Lindke sings from the heart. That’s almost essential for a country music artist. But this musician doesn’t sing necessarily from the considerable pain he’s been through, but in a way to hopefully put a smile on people’s faces. His heartfelt music caught the eye of a music executive, and he will soon be working on his first album. Lindke is the frontman for the group Midnight Pickers, often seen at the Sagebrush Round-Up. The 51-year-old spent his young life in an orphanage in Buffalo, N.Y. It was a life he wouldn’t recommend to anyone, but one he doesn’t resent. “Growing up there was very tough,” Lindke said. “It was both sad and happy. Sad in the fact that I had no idea what parents were like. I had no idea what really the outside world was like until I grew up. ... Also sad because I could see people come and go. Some had parents or guardians. They’d come and get them for holidays. I’d just sit there.” His love for music, though, started young. “I guess from probably ever since I can remember I’ve seen people singing on stage and television. And I’ve always wanted to do what they did,” Lindke said. “I have an insatiable desire to make people smile, and my main goal when I’m on stage is to put a smile on people’s face, maybe forget their troubles and have a good time.” He learned to play from watching television like “Hee Haw” and learning their finger positioning on the guitar. Doing many different jobs on and off through his life, he moved here from Los Angeles to help his wife’s family. He kept his musical gift private until about four years ago, when he stepped into Gizmo’s truck stop with his guitar. “I was bored one evening and took my guitar down there and sat and started playing to relieve the boredom,” Lindke said. “And before you knew it, it had people coming in from all over the world (truck drivers). They would bring their instruments and sit right in there and sit and play. And I still do it today. I play every Thursday night.” He also plays the Sagebrush, but when he’s on stage, he has to sit down. Lindke has an incurable disease called chronic lymphedema, which he’s been battling since 1999. It causes the destruction of the lymphatic system. The lymphatic system on the right side of his body is totally destroyed, resulting in elephantiasis. He has no immune system, so he’s susceptible to all kinds of other diseases and things of that nature. It will affect both sides of his body eventually. “It is very painful,” he said. “It makes it hard to walk and stand and things of that nature. “It will eventually lead to death, but I hope not for a while,” he said. “I have too much music to play.” Lindke met Kathy Salsberry, CEO artist management with Business Entertainment Management & Co. based out of East Liverpool, Ohio, at the Sagebrush. She was interested in him when she heard him play and saw him after the show. He signed a recording contract with the company and is in process of collecting songs for his album they should start recording in January. The Midnight Pickers will record with Lindke. He sees this as the opportunity he’s been waiting for. “It’s not very often you can live a dream,” Lindke said. “I guess God has blessed me. Maybe it’s my turn.”
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