Dave Bickler

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Dave Bickler (born ca. 1953) was lead singer of 1970s American rock group Jamestown Massacre, who recorded their debut album not later than 1972. The Jamestown Massacre single "Summer Sun" was a Billboard Top 100 and Easy Listening chart entry in the summer of 1972. Bickler met Jim Peterik while doing commercial jingles in the mid-1970s.

He is best known as a member of Survivor from 1977–1983 and 1993–2000. In addition to his wide vocal range he was noted for his distinctive image, resplendent with trademark beret. Bickler is also the voice behind the Real Men of Genius Bud Light TV and radio commercials. Bickler is a 1971 graduate of Benet Academy in Lisle, Illinois. [1]

Bickler left the band in late 1983 after he developed polyps on his vocal cords and required surgery and voice rest, a condition that would take a year and a half to recuperate from. Bickler was also unhappy about his lack of a bigger payday he felt was owed him for the multiplatinum success the band had from their hit album Eye Of The Tiger released a year earlier. After leaving Survivor, Bickler continued recording with other groups in the Chicago area and doing commercial jingles and ads.

Bickler rejoined Survivor in early 1993 as lead vocalist for a Greatest Hits album on Scotti Bros. featuring two new songs "You Know Who You Are" and "Hungry Years" (which he co-wrote).

Bickler recorded new music with the band in hopes of a new album, but ongoing lawsuits and trademark ownership issues with former singer Jimi Jamison halted the release.

Bickler was fired in early 2000 after a brief string of tour dates. He was replaced once again by Jimi Jamison (who left at the end of 2006 and was immediately replaced by Robin McAuley). Bickler is credited with co-writing 2 songs on the new Survivor album Reach with Frankie Sullivan, "I Don't" and "One More Chance". Bickler also began recording his first solo album in early 2001 and since 2000 has continued his venture in recording commercials and videos for the highly successful Bud Light advertisements. A handful of CDs from the popular Bud Light ads have been released and sold well considering the genre, with over 100,000 copies in its first 3 weeks of release.

Bickler was a part of the group for their first four albums: Survivor, Premonition, Eye of the Tiger and Caught in the Game. Survivor experienced their big breakthrough in 1982, when they were asked by Sylvester Stallone to provide the theme song for his movie Rocky III. Enter "Eye of the Tiger", which soon turned into one of the biggest hits of the band's career. It had an enormous impact on the Billboard charts, soaring to #1 for seven weeks. The song won the band a Grammy Award for Best Rock Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal, was voted "Best New Song" by the People's Choice Awards and received an Academy Award nomination. Thanks to the song's success and another Top 20 single, "American Heartbeat", the album Eye of the Tiger stormed to #2 on the Billboard 200 chart. The song remains a cultural phenomenon. It came in at #18 on the “Top 100 Singles” chart in Billboard's 100th Anniversary issue and it is well over the 300,000 mark on the iTunes Store, where it is currently holding strong at #9 on their “Top Soundtrack” chart.

Bickler also can be heard on other Survivor singles including "Somewhere In America", "Rebel Girl", "Poor Man's Son", "Summer Nights", "The One That Really Matters", "American Heartbeat", "Caught In The Game", and "Ever Since The World Began".