how Jim Dankert Became Billy Dankert

In 1984, Nick and I were looking for a drummer for our new, still unnamed, band. A mutual friend and fellow musician, Greg Olund, suggested an acquaintance of his, a high school senior named Jim Dankert. We decided it would be easiest if Nick and I brought our gear to Jim’s house for the meetup. Greg came along to make the introduction.

Mrs. Dankert (an absolute sweetheart) met us at the door and led us to the basement. There, the following exchange occurred: 

JIM

(offering his hand)

Hi, I'm Jim

ME

(shaking Jim’s hand)

Hi Jim, can I call you Billy?

JIM

(slightly confused)

Sure

And that's how Jim became Billy.

Once that was out of the way, we played music. 

At some point, Billy's mom brought down a tray with cheese, crackers, and airplane bottles of liquor. We shared the cheese and crackers, and Nick and I drank all the booze.

To this day, Billy has to provide Nick and me with cheese, crackers, and airplane bottles of liquor before he can load his drums into a venue. At the end of the night, he presents a $500 check to each of us as a token of his gratitude for allowing him to share the stage with us. 

He often asks us to hold the checks for a couple of days before depositing them. Sad.

Here’s a shitty photo of that original meetup. Left to right: Nick, the back of my head, Billy, and Greg.