Daniel Lee Toler (September 23, 1948 – February 25, 2013),
known professionally as "Dangerous" Dan Toler, was an American guitarist.
Life and career
A native of
Connersville, Indiana
Connersville is a city in Fayette County, Indiana, United States, east by southeast of Indianapolis. The population was 13,324 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The city is the county seat of and the only incorporated town in th ...
, Toler became popular in the late 1970s as a member of
Dickey Betts & Great Southern. He was featured on the albums ''
Dickey Betts & Great Southern'' and ''
Atlanta's Burning Down''. He went on to become a member of
The Allman Brothers Band
The Allman Brothers Band was an American rock music, rock band formed in Jacksonville, Florida, in 1969. Its founding members were brothers Duane Allman (slide guitar, lead guitar) and Gregg Allman (vocals, keyboards), as well as Dickey Betts ( ...
with Betts from 1979–1982, appearing on ''
Enlightened Rogues'' (1979), ''
Reach for the Sky
''Reach for the Sky'' is a 1956 British biographical film about aviator Douglas Bader, based on the 1954 biography of the same name by Paul Brickhill. The film stars Kenneth More and was directed by Lewis Gilbert. It won the BAFTA Award fo ...
'' (1980) and ''
Brothers of the Road'' (1981).
Toler and his brother David (Frankie) Toler were members of the
Gregg Allman Band in the 1980s.
[Tobler, John (1991) ''Who's Who in Rock & Roll'', Crescent Books, , p. 1958] They performed on the albums ''
I'm No Angel
''I'm No Angel'' is a 1933 American pre-Code black comedy film directed by Wesley Ruggles, and starring Mae West and Cary Grant. West received sole story and screenplay credit. It is one of her early films, and, as such, was not subjected to t ...
'' (1987) and ''
Just Before The Bullets Fly'' (1988), as well as a reformed version of Great Southern in the 2000s. Prior to rejoining Great Southern, Toler had not spoken to Betts in over 10 years. Dan experimented with jazz fusion multi-instrumentalist Mark Pettey in
Sarasota
Sarasota () is a city in and the county seat of Sarasota County, Florida, United States. It is located in Southwest Florida, the southern end of the Tampa Bay area, and north of Fort Myers and Punta Gorda. Its official limits include Sarasota Ba ...
in the early 1990s, recording a short demo, and performing live shows in the Tampa Bay area. Mark and Dan continued to collaborate on jazz influenced projects together.
Toler, John Townsend, Toler's brother David (Frankie) Toler, Bruce Waibel and Mark Pettey created the Townsend Toler Band in the early 1990s, starting with a demo cut in Telstar Studios in Sarasota. This was followed by tours of the eastern United States, including shows in New York City and up and down the east coast. He later joined The Renegades of Southern Rock, whose members included
George McCorkle
George McCorkle (October 11, 1946 – June 29, 2007) was a founding member and guitarist for the Marshall Tucker Band. He wrote " Fire on the Mountain", the band's first top 40 hit, though had hoped that Charlie Daniels would record the song. He ...
(formerly of
The Marshall Tucker Band
The Marshall Tucker Band is an American rock band from Spartanburg, South Carolina. Noted for incorporating blues, country and jazz into an eclectic sound, the Marshall Tucker Band helped establish the Southern rock genre in the early 1970s. Wh ...
), John Townsend (
Sanford-Townsend Band), John McKnight, Jack Hall (
Wet Willie
Wet Willie is an American southern rock band from Mobile, Alabama. Their best-known song, " Keep On Smilin'", reached No. 10 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart in August 1974. Several other of the group's songs also appeared on the single ...
), and Taylor Caldwell.
In 2007 Toler performed on
Jason Black's ''Mind Over Matter'' album. Two years later, Toler once again teamed up with John Townsend to form the Toler/Townsend Band. Their self-titled album was released in 2009 on the European Blues Boulevard/music avenue label. The Toler/Townsend Band CD was later released in the United States by Garage Door Records.
In 2011, Toler formed the Toler–Tucci Band, which was scheduled to release its debut album, ''Doc's Hideaway'', in August 2012. Verceal Whitaker of
The Platters
The Platters are an American vocal group formed in 1952. They are one of the most successful vocal groups of the early rock and roll era. Their distinctive sound bridges the pre-rock Tin Pan Alley tradition and the new burgeoning genre. The act ...
was the featured vocalist on that project.
Personal life
Toler had battled
amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as motor neuron disease (MND) or—in the United States—Lou Gehrig's disease (LGD), is a rare, Terminal illness, terminal neurodegenerative disease, neurodegenerative disorder that results i ...
(ALS) and died in
Sarasota, Florida
Sarasota () is a city in and the county seat of Sarasota County, Florida, United States. It is located in Southwest Florida, the southern end of the Tampa Bay area, and north of Fort Myers, Florida, Fort Myers and Punta Gorda, Florida, Punta Gord ...
on February 25, 2013.
He was 64.
References
External links
Official website
*
Toler/Townsend BandMusic Legends Interview with Dan Toler
{{DEFAULTSORT:Toler, Dan
1948 births
2013 deaths
American rock guitarists
American male guitarists
The Allman Brothers Band members
Deaths from motor neuron disease in Florida
People from Connersville, Indiana
Guitarists from Indiana
20th-century American guitarists