I was born Danl William Blackwood (Danl rhymes with channel) in Omaha NE, but grew up in Topeka KS, and from a very young age was interested in music. I started playing guitar in the fourth grade (that would be Sept 1963 - BEFORE the Beatles came to America!). While barely in high school, I started a career in music.

I played with local bands, Stone, The Sin-Say-Shuns, Justus, The Chevelles, and others. After high school (Topeka HS '72), I attended the US Air Force Academy, but left after one year to return to Topeka and music. In 1973, I began an acoustic solo career, but was soon drafted to play with The Sunshine Company. It was in this band I met my first wife Lyn Blackwood, who sang with the group. We toured the nation for about five years with many good memories (including entertaining Bob Hope at one point, but that's another story). After that group broke up, so did the marriage, and I joined a country-rock band Shadetree for about a year - then a dance/show band The Heartland Band for about a year. In 1979 I left Topeka to join a Las Vegas show band, The Upson Downs, which in addition to nationwide touring, headlined the Union Plaza in downtown Vegas and a summer long engagement at their home club in Arnolds Park Iowa (part of a large lake resort in Okoboji).

Then in 1980 I got sick of the road and came back to Topeka. However I couldn't stay away from music. I joined a local group Scatband that went on to tour nationally, and was involved in both audio and video recording, as well as some local theatre. The Scatband had several "sub-groups," one of which was the Scatcatz. In 1984 two of the members of the Scatband left for California, and the Scatcatz entered a phase of recording and pursuing national contracts. However in 1985 having recently remarried and starting a family, I decided to get a "real job" (as my grandmother had always wanted), and ended up moving to Wichita KS in 1986. I started a career in computers. I also got very involved in Contemporary Christian Music, and in 1994 began doing web pages for CCM artist friends (including Whiteheart, Rich Mullins, the Ragamuffin Band, Mitch McVicker, and others). Check out my online scrapbook here - Danl Blackwood's Music Scrapbook. Other than playing guitar in church, my only other music involvement was joining forces with a young CCM artist, Bekah Frees, in May of 1999.

In 2004, after splitting from my second wife, I started "hanging out" in Topeka to get away from the situation in Wichita. While continuing my computer consulting company in Wichita, I started playing guitar at The Celtic Fox in Topeka with Kenny Smith. I eventually joined his band Bridges in March of 2005, and my revived music career was official. For two years I was literally living in both Wichita and Topeka. I continued to perform with Bridges, while at the same time playing bass with a couple other groups, Piper Leigh (from Ark City), Blame It On Harry, and The BLT Band. I had also became very involved in a Wednesday Acoustic Open Mic Nite and the Sunday Nite Electric Jam - both at The Celtic Fox in Topeka.

In October of 2005, a long time dream was realized - the first reunion of the Scatcatz happened at the Sunday Nite Jam. I had been talking with Ric Barron for several months, and after finally contacting Jaisson in KC, we played together for the first time in 20 years. We also decided to do an official Reunion Concert, which was another dream come true on March 4th, 2006 at the Sixth Street Ballroom in Topeka. We played a few more gigs after that, but then I focused my efforts on The BLT Band and the Sunday Night Jam which by then had moved to the Double Duece and then to MacDaddy's. After four years of running the jams, I retired from that and at the same time began visiting with Ric Barron about putting a band together with Jeff Spaulding (BLT Band drummer). Less than a couple months later it became a reality and we call it The Catz.