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• Cavo scores sacred spot of opening for Daughtry

HUNTINGTON -- Say the name Daughtry and your thoughts immediately go to Chris Daughtry, the band's namesake.

It's easy to do considering he has become the hope for "American Idol" contestants everywhere as the most successful non-winner in the show's history.

In fact, according to Nielsen Soundscan, by the time 2009 is over, Daughtry will rank only behind Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood as the best-selling "Idol" contestants ever in total album sales.

But while he may have been the focal point of the band's debut effort, Daughtry is now a true rock band. And starting with its latest CD, "Leave This Town," it is setting out to prove it.

Daughtry, bassist Josh Paul, drummer Joey Barnes and guitarists Brian Craddock and Josh Steely, will hit the stage Saturday, Nov. 14, at the Big Sandy Superstore Arena as part of a 36-city U.S. arena tour. Theory of a DeadMan and Cavo offer support for the tour which launched Oct. 19 and will end Dec. 20.

Tickets are $31.50 and $41.50 and are available at the arena box office, all Ticketmaster outlets or charge by phone at 800-745-3000.

One of the first ways you notice that Daughtry is now a true band is that all five members are featured on the "Town" CD cover, while only Chris Daughtry was featured on the cover of the band's debut, "Daughtry," which has now sold more than 4.5 million copies. Of course, there's a good reason for that. The band wasn't a part of "Daughtry." Because there was such a rush to get the CD released, Chris Daughtry recorded with session musicians and the actual band members were chosen later through auditions. But the guys bonded fairly quickly.

"From the very first show, it felt like I'd known these guys all my life," Chris Daughtry said in an RCA news release.

However the quick turnaround meant that the band members were playing songs they had no part in creating. But Barnes said that Chris Daughtry helped make that transition easier by allowing the guys to play with the original arrangements.

"To bond as a band, we really needed to own those songs which meant letting our personalities come through," Barnes said. "To Chris' credit he gave us the freedom to be ourselves, which is what brought us together as a band."

Paul agrees.

"This is Chris' band, but he never makes it feel like it's his band," he said. "It's a collaborative effort, and we all have a voice in the music. This band really is something special."

"Leave This Town" shows the band's cohesiveness as each song comes off as a group effort and not just Chris Daughtry singing with some random musicians. Although Chris Daughtry wrote or co-wrote all 12 tracks on the CD, you can hear each member of the band putting his own unique stamp on each one.

"The album is special because it's our first together as a band," Chris Daughtry said. "We poured our hearts into these songs to make the record we've always dreamed about. Not to take anything away from the debut but this record really feels like my first. It's the sound of a new beginning."

The album's title comes from a line in the song "September," which Chris Daughtry co-wrote with Steely.

"Every time I hear that song it takes me back to my summers in Lasker (N.C)," he said. "I loved growing up there, but I knew I'd have to leave to make something of my life."

Chris Daughtry said the theme of the album is really about how where we've been determines where we're going.

"Places change just like people change," he said. "Sometimes the best thing you can do is leave."

"Town" debuted at number one on the Billboard album chart and sold more than half a million copies in its first five weeks on the charts.

"To have people respond the way they have is extremely gratifying, but even more humbling," he said.

Now the guys get to share the new songs, as well as some of the older favorites, with the fans on this current tour.

"We dreamed about how it would feel playing these songs to packed arenas and we're excited to get our chance," Chris Daughtry said. "We have a great show planned and we can't wait to share it with our fans."

Courtesy of Max Vadukul/RCA

The rock band Daughtry, made up of (left to right) Josh Paul, Joey Barnes, Chris Daughtry, Josh Steely and Brian Craddock will perform Saturday, Nov. 14, at the Big Sandy Superstore Arena.

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