For 20 years, Dave Glover has been one of the most distinct voices in St. Louis talk radio. Starting on 97.1 FM Talk and making the move to KMOX earlier this year, the veteran broadcaster is unafraid to tackle any topic with his trademark humor. While he may not be known for his sartorial savvy, he also is an avid racing fan, worked as a lawyer and served as frontman of the Dave Glover Band for almost two decades.
How has the change to KMOX been?
I’ve realized just how not busy I’ve been for the last 20 years. I loved 97.1. I was the first original talent at the station, but I didn’t have a minute of training in radio. We found lightning in a bottle, and my bosses took a hands-off approach and gave me plenty of room to run. I just came in and did whatever I wanted to. KMOX is a different animal. They have rules. I can’t get lost in thought and meander. It has to be rapid fire, and I’m loving it.
When did you know you had something?
I thought I was going to get fired at 97.1 about six months in. I would have been fired a month in, but I was a lawyer, and they were afraid of me. I was doing a legal call-in show when they sent me to Saint Louis University for Spring Fest. It was my first time doing an outdoor live show, and they set me up in the wrong place. I decided to just do the show how I wanted. On the drive back, Jeff Allen called me and asked if I could do it like that every day.
Tell me about the band.
I met the guys when they came on my show in 2001. They were fans and wanted to get together and jam. It was one of the best things to ever happen to me. We played as many gigs in town as we could, from crowds of thousands to dive bars. It was absolutely 100% fun with zero drama.
Dead or alive, who is the one musician you would want to sit in with?
I’m such a Beatles fan. By some quirk of nature, if I try to sound like John Lennon, I do, so the Dave Glover Band made its bones playing a lot of Beatles music. My dream would be to meet John Lennon and just sit down with a couple of guitars.
Who is the one entertainer that has a open invitation to The Dave Glover Show?
If I could get him to open up, I would love to talk to David Letterman. I find him a fascinating, tragic figure, and I would love to do a real in depth interview with him.
What is your drink of choice?
Red wine. I’m a wino. Pretty much every night, I have glass with a Kit-Kat or Butterfinger because I’m a hoosier.
Your favorite thing in your closet that is not a pair of jeans?
I read an article about how Einstein wore the same outfit everyday so he didn’t have to expend any brain power on what he was going to wear. I’ve adopted that. I wear jeans, Lucky brand T-shirts and either Doc Martens or Birkenstocks. I don’t own a suit, and I have one blazer that I’ll wear to fancy things. That’s it.
What is one clothing item you want to come back in style?
My mom’s house is like a time capsule, so every time I visit, I go searching. The other day I found my red parachute pants from a band I played with in 1983. They didn’t fit, but I’m only about 10 pounds away.
You wouldn’t be caught dead wearing what?
A sweater tied around my shoulders.
Your four favorite places to eat in St. Louis?
Paul Manno’s, Capital Grille, Little Saigon, and Pantera’s Pizza in O’Fallon, Missouri.
Best kept secret to take a visitor in St. Louis?
There is a steakhouse in a bowling alley in St. Charles called Tubby’s where you can get an $8 steak that would make Geoff Dill at Capital Grille blush.
You’re a talk radio guy, but you love which sport?
It wasn’t my best sport as an athlete, but I absolutely loved playing basketball. I was like that guy from Hoosiers. My dad built me a post that was 9-feet tall. I could hit it from anywhere, but I got into seventh grade, and the hoops were 10-foot plexiglass.
Who in St. Louis have you always thought was cool from distance?
As an aggregate, I was so intimidated by the KMOX newsroom. We’d have to go back to Studio C and record some times, and I would straight up hope no one noticed me. I felt like the kid coming from detention into the calculus class. My first week on the air, I blatantly bribed them with food and brought catering every day. It worked, and now, they like me. I had all the respect and fear in the world for those people.
What is the best thing about your show?
You can probably guess it, but we really love each other. We’re like a family, especially with the fighting. We love and care about each other, but we also know where everyone’s button is and will push them. If you listen and feel like you’re listening to a bunch of friends, it’s because you are. I think that’s the magic of the show. I do not have the skillset to do anything else. I could not do a solo show. I’m successful 100% because of the human beings who sit in chairs next to me.