DATE: Thursday, June 5, 1997                TAG: 9706030140

SECTION: NORFOLK COMPASS         PAGE: 02   EDITION: FINAL 

COLUMN: ON THE TOWN 

SOURCE: Sam Martinette 

                                            LENGTH:   79 lines

``KING OF COLLEY AVENUE'' CUTS NEW CD; PLAYS AT O'SULLIVAN'S

When David Carter strums his guitar and breaks into song tomorrow night - first at the Omni Waterside's Riverwalk Cafe, from 5 to 8 p.m., and later at O'Sullivan's Wharf - there's a good chance he'll sing one of the 20 songs he wrote and recorded on his new CD release ``Two Hands Are Enough.''

The Virginia Beach native is a household name to Norfolk club patrons, having first played in the band Horizon at the King's Head when he was only 16. I met him in 1983 as manager of Ghent's Potpourri - now Magnolia Steak - when Carter was entertaining on Saturday nights.

``I started playing at age 12, and was playing professionally by age 15,'' he said. ``I started at the Coach House right out of college, then went to Potpourri in the fall of '81. I first played O'Sullivan's in September of 1985, and this is my 13th season.'' He also played at Batterson's, River's End and Colley Bay Cafe, Phillips' Seafood Restaurant at Waterside, and Fajita Flats. No wonder some call David Carter ``the King of Colley Avenue.''

But it was at O'Sullivan's Wharf that Carter made his mark on Norfolk's music scene. ``That's how I found out about O'Sullivan's,'' recalled the restaurant's current general manager, Joe Bambery. ``I was in college and a friend told me, `You've gotta come down and hear this guy,' and I had to ask, `Where is the place?'

``Dave was the first entertainer Buddy ever tried,'' Bambery said, referring to O'Sullivan's owner Buddy Caramillo, ``and he just kind of exploded.''

The link between Carter and O'Sullivan's is evident on the CD. ``Track seven on the CD, a song called `Here We Go Again,' was written on the deck at O'Sullivan's during a break,'' Carter said. This weekend he'll be playing at the Colley Avenue nightspot Friday and Saturday nights, from 9:30 p.m. on, with no cover.

Many of the 20 tunes on the CD have local roots. The first 15 tracks were recorded live at O'Leary's Irish Bar & Grill in Virginia Beach, and the Oceanfront's Island Republic Restaurant is represented. The CD has Carter's trademark parrot on the front, and the liner notes explain the genesis of the songs included. I played it at home and as soon as Carter's rich, lyrical voice began, it was like a night out on Colley Avenue, or perhaps sitting on an oceanfront deck watching the waves roll in.

Carter's sense of humor is evident in the cuts ``Mother Goose'' and ``Santi Claus,'' both of which had my three kids listening intently. The 38-year old singer has three kids himself, which may partially account for the strong storytelling element in his songwriting.

``What's different about Dave is that he relates to the crowd real well,'' Bambery said. ``He doesn't just play, he socializes with the crowd. He'll meet people once and remember them and if they come in during a song he'll say `Hey Joe, hey Bill,' which really makes people feel good.''

Norfolk physician Al Roper agreed. ``What's special about Dave is the way he relates to his audience,'' he said. Roper said he has followed the singer's career for 13 years. ``He has an incredible knack for reading his audience, and he'll gear his personality and the songs he plays to get the most out of audience response. He has his own distinctive style of rendering things we're familiar with, from Jimmy Buffet to folk songs, and he puts his own spin on it.''

``I first ran into David Carter at O'Sullivan's in '83 or '84,'' said Tim Batterson, whose second Batterson's location has recently opened on Colley Avenue in the former Coach House. ``His voice has a very great range, and he plays happy music and always talks to people in the crowd.''

Carter said he sees the new CD, his second, as a transition stage. ``My first CD, `A Warm Summer Night,' was old favorites, and this one has my tunes that people request a lot, and some things I've written and wanted to record so that I could move on.'

I asked what it was like being up there alone, carrying the evening. ``It's like being in my living room,'' he said. ``It's a real rush to be up there playing, and a real honor for people to choose to spend their evening with me.'' MEMO: David Carter's CD, ``Two Hands Are Enough,'' sells for $15 and is

available at Blockbuster Music at Ward's Corner. ILLUSTRATION: Photo by SAM MARTINETTE

One of the tracks on David Carter's new CD was written at O'

Sullivan's, where he has been appearing for 13 years.

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