Dave was born April 16, 1943, in Dulwich, England and raised in south London. After a tenure with Savoy Brown in the early seventies, he and fellow members Tony Stevens and Roger Earl left to form Foghat, with Rod Price added on lead guitar. Foghat was a radio staple in the 70s and 80s, producing such hits as Fool For The City, Slow Ride and I Just Wanna Make Love To You, but was best known for their energetic live shows. The 1977 album Foghat Live, which peaked at No. 11 on The Billboard 200, went double-platinum.

Dave was first diagnosed with cancer in 1998 after a tumor was found in his kidney and was removed. He had since undergone extensive chemotheraphy treatments, touring briefly with Foghat in support of their most recent release, 1998's Road Cases.

Dave was survived by his wife Linda (who passed away December 2, 2000), his son Jason, daughters Lucy and Leila, and one grandchild. A private service was held on Thursday, February 10, 2000 for immediate family only with band members as pall bearers (at Dave’s request).