Starting out with trumpet at age 7 adding guitar at 11 and bass at 15 it is obvious that Duane's passion lay in music. At the ripe old age of 17 he was getting his feet wet in the Minneapolis blues scene as the bassist for Muddy Waters alumni Mojo Buford. He was also doing session work with Mojo, Lazy Bill Lucas and others. After a raucous ride with One Eyed Jack he began touring with The Drifters. On his days off he also made concert appearances with, Tammy Wynette, Faron Young, Buddy Emmons, Crystal Gayle, Mecca, Tex Ritter and others. His reputation as a quick study made him a popular choice as a fill in bassist.
It was then that he also discovered he had a true love for the road. "It was all the things allot of musicians complain about you know. Long bus rides, endless hours in the hotel, or airport or someplace. Sound-checks, laundromats, lousy food, the smell of old socks, cigarettes, stale beer and coffee. But heaven help me I loved it"
After a brief stop home and some time off where he worked as a fundraiser for the Kidney Foundation he made his way to Valdasta Georgia for a short stint with The Jets then back to Mpls where he re-united with Mojo Buford and later co-founded Metropolis. "That was a really crazy time for me. Curt and I were writting all this music for the Jets but... there was allot of tension in the group you know? So when the lead singer took another offer things just sort of fell apart and Curt and I brought the stuff back to Minnesota and started Metropolis."
Since then he has done public performances or session work with, Big John Dickerson, Percy Struthers, Big Walter Smith, Al Rapone, Charles Neville, Hiram Bullock, Jesse Johnson, the Tower of Power horn section, The Harry Connick Jr. Band horn section, The Groove King, The Kinsey Report, Jack McDuff, Mickey Thomas, Danny and the Juniors, Mary Jane Alm, Bobby Johnson and the Crowns, St. Paul, Dan Rinaldi, Paul Mayo, James Solberg, Elvin Bishop, John Schofield, Smokey Smothers and a host of others.
There have been many memorable instances in his career but some have more meaning than others. "It is always a joy (even if sometimes a bit intimidating) to play with musicians that you admire or respect. This is one of the things that I get to keep for myself. But.. one of my favorite things to do believe it or not is to play the benefits. You know... that may sound crazy..Ok? But it is not always practical, or for that matter even possible for me to write a check for every worthy cause out there. But as a musician I can lend my talents for a day to help someone else and that allows me to feel as though I've made a contribution, or that maybe I've nade a difference."
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