It’s inspiring that Carmel resident Don Keegan’s father, Bob, taught him his first few chords and pitched in to purchase his first guitar over 45 years ago! That was back in the ‘70s when disco was the music to listen and dance to. But Don and his college buddies were “jamming” to The Beatles. And still are!

Mark Bennett and Don, then college buddies, decided to launch a band before they even knew how to play any instruments. Zero formal lessons and four decades later, Don has multiple bands he leads and plays in, from the two-piece Fab Too acoustic band to an eight-piece gig with horns, vocals and everything else that gives them their very hip and diverse vibe.

Get your creative on

As a singer-songwriter, Don writes a lot of tunes and occasionally needs a creative boost, often fueled by getting out in nature, grabbing a walk or hike. He said, “Lots of inspiration out there if you open your eyes.” Crazy how getting out in nature is the prevailing response to generate creativity.

The Hippie Dream is the primary band, and it focuses on classic rock. Great at requests, too. You can catch the group all over town in some form or another. Check out their schedule at The Musical Commune on Facebook and definitely show up at the Carmel International Arts Festival at 11 a.m. Sept. 26 on the main stage. It’s a double-gig day and they will hustle to Tipton to perform at Hippie Fest. FYI, they do some great Neil Young and a few Stones!

I’ve known Don for 15 years and always dig seeing his shows. If you know him or any of their band members, you really admire their creativity and passion to follow their musical dreams. Other members of Keegan’s band include Michelle Thompson, lead vocals, Pete Hils, keyboards, lead guitar, David Hahn, bass, Mark Tarrh, drums, Leslie Gaudreau, vocals, Mark Bennett, lead guitar, vocals and John Scofield, bass, guitar.

Cheers to Bob Keegan and all the other parents giving a boost to their kids to pick up an instrument to pursue the art of music.