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Spudman
November 19th, 2011, 07:26 AM
From Nick D'Virgilio.
http://www.ndvmusic.com/

The time has come.

It is very hard for me to write this, but as all good things come to an end at
sometime or another, unfortunately I have to tell you all that my time with
Spock's Beard has come to a close.

As you may or may not know, for almost 2 years now I have been working for
Cirque Du Soleil on the touring show TOTEM. Traveling a bit of the globe with my
family on an adventure that has been great, but also very tough. Great because I
am finally able to fully support my family with this very unstable life I chose
as a musician, but also very tough because this job has made it hard to do other
things and the main thing is Spock's Beard.

For the first time in 20 years I had to miss shows when the band played a few
festivals this past summer. Needless to say it was very, very strange not being
there. I have been trying to land a permanent resident show for next year which
would leave me a little more time to tour with SB but that has not happened yet
and I don't know when exactly that will happen. I recently signed for another
year with Cirque because I cannot just get up and quit until something else can
takes its place. I am sure you all understand that I have to take care of my
main responsibility and that is my family. Spock's Beard has never been the main
money maker for me, or any of the other guys in the band. We have always had to
do other things to supplement our incomes and for me now the other thing just
happens to be Cirque.

The Spock's guys want to keep moving forward and it is just Murphy's Law for SB
that everyone else is totally available to tour at the moment and I am not. For
many years, I was available for anything but we couldn't tour as much as we
wanted because of other schedules. Now with my job it doesn't look like I am
going to be available anytime soon. I totally understand where the guys are
coming from, wanting to tour and make new albums and I have too much respect for
them and SB to say that they cannot keep going without me. The guys are eager to
keep the ball rolling, and as hard as that is to imagine without me I give them
my blessing fully and wish them nothing but the best in whatever they do.

I have had the best time and have made some of the best music of my career with
Dave, Al, Ryo, and Neal and will take those memories with me for the rest of my
life.

This is not to say that I will never play with the guys again. If all of the
stars align in future and I can do something I surely will but for now the guys
will be going on without me and I humbly ask all of you SB fans that have been
nothing short of amazing, to keep the flame burning for them.

SO for my future, even with the crazy schedule of my Cirque job I have still
been able to release a new solo EP "PIECES" recently and even did some solo
shows. Those things are easier for me to do because I can do those within the
areas that I am living at the time and I am planning on many more solo gigs in
the future so keep an eye and ear out for those announcements. I will be going
back to London at the beginning of 2012 with Cirque and during that time I will
be able to get back down to Rob Aubrey's studio to do some more sessions with
the great BIG BIG TRAIN and even try and finish a project that got started a
number of years ago now called "PULSE" with Mike Holmes of IQ fame. I am also
writing a lot for more solo music of my own.

Thank you to my family. Your support has been my rock for many years now, I know
that will always be there and I am so thankful for that.

Thank you to all of the great guys who have crewed for SB over the years and
have gone way beyond the call of duty to get us on and off stage. Especially
Rob, Olly, and Tommy. I will for sure miss touring with you guys.

Thank you to the promoters and venues that have opened up their stages to us.

Thank you Jimmy Keegan for holding down the fort while I was up front and kickin
*** for SB over the years.

Thank you to all of my amazing endorsement companies.

In closing, THANK YOU to all of the Spock's Beard fans out there who have given
us so much amazing and heart felt support over the years. We could not have done
it without you all. It has been an amazing journey for me and I will never ever
forget the great times we have shared together.

It's time for a change…

Nick

Tig
November 19th, 2011, 08:57 AM
Damn that pointy-eared Nick!

I wonder how they'll sound without him, and what about song writing?

Spudman
November 19th, 2011, 02:51 PM
Damn that pointy-eared Nick!

I wonder how they'll sound without him, and what about song writing?

For sure. He's a huge part of the equation. I have Alan Morse's album and one of Ryo Okumoto's and they are pretty good, but Nick has always been the strong vocal personality even before Neal Morse left the band. I don't think they'll throw in the towel though. They did some gigs a few months ago with Ted Leonard singing from Enchant. Enchant hasn't been up to much so maybe they'll do something in the studio with him. They still have Jimmy Keegan on drums so no worries there. I'm curious to see where this will go.

Spudman
November 21st, 2011, 11:29 PM
JUST ANNOUNCED TODAY.

Announcing....Spock’s Beard has a new recording and touring lineup!

To keep bringing you the finest Prog Rock, we’ve brought on board the amazing vocalist/guitarist Ted Leonard (Enchant, Thought Chamber) and Jimmy Keegan (Santana, John Waite), who’s been our tour drummer for close to 10 years now. If you know these guys, you know they’re world class. They bring exciting new energy and creativity to the party.
We regret that Nick D’Virgilio, a founding member of the band, good friend and incredible talent is unable to continue with us due to his other commitments. Please continue to support him, check out his new solo CD “Pieces,” go see him with Cirque du Soleil and follow whatever other madness he's up to. He’s awesome. We wish him the best of luck and the success he deserves. We wouldn’t be here without NDV!


Look for a new live Spock’s Beard DVD and extensive European tour in early 2012, followed by our 11th studio release sometime in the summer. We’re energized and excited, and will be posting updates and sound samples as we progress.
Thank you for continuing to support us through the years and changes. We stay committed to bringing you the finest in Prog Rock and taking it into the future.
http://spocksbeard.com/images/sb11_group01a.jpg
More info and pics at SpocksBeard.com (http://www.spocksbeard.com/)

Tig
November 22nd, 2011, 12:17 AM
Done with class!


We regret that Nick D’Virgilio, a founding member of the band, good friend and incredible talent is unable to continue with us due to his other commitments. Please continue to support him, check out his new solo CD “Pieces,” go see him with Cirque du Soleil and follow whatever other madness he's up to. He’s awesome. We wish him the best of luck and the success he deserves. We wouldn’t be here without NDV!

Spudman
November 22nd, 2011, 09:24 AM
Done with class!

Absolutely! I'm sure Nick would love to be able to do both but Cirque has him living in Toronto with his family and the Beard is on the West Coast. There will probably be some reunions in the future. It would be great if Neal Morse would also reunite for an album and tour at the same time...if it ever happens.