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Steve Solmonson has rhythm and drive
Some may know Steve Solmonson as a Mid-County Coop fuel delivery driver, but music is his major claim to fame.
“ I’ ve been in a lot of bands,” Solmonson said.
The group from his
Steve Solmonson Fuel Delivery Driver
college days, The Young Raiders, was recently inducted into the Kansas Music Hall of Fame.
Solmonson is also well known as a member of The Daisy Dillman Band, which is still together after more than 30 years.
“ We used to tour the whole country, but now, we just play part time for fun,” Solmonson said.
In the early 1970s, Solmonson had been part of Blackwood, a precursor to The Daisy Dillman Band. After a few years, some of the members got together to start a new group.
When deciding what to name the band, one of the members reached for a book written by Daisy Dillman, a relative of bass player Steve Seamans.
“ Someone said, how about The Daisy Dillman band? And everybody said,‘ no, no, that stinks’,” Solmonson recalled.“ But, a few days later, it wound its way into our heads.” Fame and travel They started off playing at local clubs, but soon attracted national attention.
In 1978, the talented group scored Minnesota Music Awards for best band, best vocal group, and best violinist. They also released an album with United Artists Records.
“ We played with a lot of big names,” Solmonson said. The band has appeared with Brooks and Dunn, Clint Black, Diamond Rio, Alabama, Chuck Berry, and many other famous artists.
“ One of the coolest memories was
when we were touring, and Charlie Daniels stopped by to visit,” Solmonson said.“ He sat down in our tour bus and just talked. It was like he was your grandpa.”
In 1981, The Daisy Dillman Band released its second national album with RCA Records, and also cracked the top 50 on Billboard’ s“ Hot 100.”
In 2006, the band was inducted into the Minnesota Rock and Country Hall of Fame.
The group is widely admired for its unique blend of country and rock and roll, with a thunderous rhythm section and sweet vocals.
Each member has an instrumental specialty, but many also act as lead singers.
Anyone who’ d like to hear Solmonson’ s music can listen to a sampling on his website, www. daisydillman. com. This summer, he’ ll also be performing in a few shows.
“ We do mostly original songs,” Solmonson said.
Songwriting inspiration can strike at any moment, but some times are more convenient than others.
“ One time, I had an idea for a song while I was in a deer stand,” Solmonson laughed.“ It was literally 18 degrees below zero, and the deer weren’ t coming out. They were smarter than I was.”
Since he didn’ t have a pen or paper along, Solmonson had to memorize the song. Later, when he got back to his truck, he wrote it down right away so he wouldn’ t forget.
Mid-County Coop fuel delivery driver Steve Solmonson does vocals and guitar for the Daisy Dillman Band. Shown here performing on the Winstock stage in 2006.
“ The song is called‘ Radio,’ and it’ s about living on the road,” Solmonson said, adding that it will be featured on his website soon. On the road Solmonson knows a lot about being on the road, not only from his band travels, but also from his fuel delivery experience.
He started driving for Mayer Distributing in Long Lake more than a decade ago. In 2008, when Mid County Coop became the owner of the fuel portion, Solmonson expanded his territory.
“ I start in Cologne, and I’ d say that the seven-county metro area is my stomping ground,” he said.
Many of his stops are for longtime clients.
“ My customers know me, and I know them,” Solmonson said. He especially enjoys serving the elderly people, who look forward to his visit.
“ It’ s a good job, and the people I work with are great,” he said.“ What else could I wish for?”