The Raw Nerve got its start as a bribe of sorts.
Attendees at the Lincoln District Dental Association’s 1989 holiday party were invited to stay for the paid band’s performance and — at their first break – also enjoy an all-dental rock and soul horn band.
The group, then made up of six dentists, had a good time. So they continued playing together, eventually landing paid gigs.
Last month, the band – known as The Raw Nerve — was inducted into the Nebraska Performing Arts Hall of Fame.
Of the band’s now nine members, four are dentists. Three of the four — Bruce Bavitz, DMD, Bob Schoettger, DDS, and Jim Jenkins, DDS — are faculty at the UNMC College of Dentistry. Drs. Schoettger and Jenkins and the fourth dentist in the group, Steve Pejsar, DDS, are graduates from the UNMC College of Dentistry.
Being named to the Nebraska Hall of Fame is an honor, the three UNMC faculty (and founding band) members said.
The band plays mostly covers — hits from Chicago, Steely Dan, ZZ Top and Billy Joel. Occasionally they add newer songs, recently introducing two by Bruno Mars into their set list.
And the band has leaned into its dentistry theme.
Before deciding on the name The Raw Nerve, they considered other dental puns, such as Plaque Sabbath, Mannheim Steam Molar, Gums and Roses, Pink Fluoride and Perio Speedwagon.
One original number, dubbed the “Periodontal Polka,” is particularly popular at dental conventions. The initial lyrics are, “I don’t want her, you can have her, she’s got gum disease.”
“It brings the house down every time,” Dr. Bavitz said.
Dr. Jenkins plays a guitar shaped like a molar. He calls it the “Molarcaster,” a play on Stratocaster guitars. It even has a few gold fillings from getting dinged up through years of gigs.
That original Christmas party performance was going to be a “one and done” deal, Dr. Jenkins said.
“Then we thought, ‘Well, we want to play again,’” he said. “It led to another job and another.”
The band has booked dental meetings across the country. They’ve traveled to Washington, Alaska, Florida, California, West Virginia and Missouri, among other states.
Recently, they’ve started playing regularly at Zoo Bar in Lincoln. They’ve drawn a good turnout, including lots of dental students, Bavitz said.
Other members of the band include faculty from jazz studies programs and members of the Lincoln Symphony.
“We are garage-band dentists doing this on the weekends,” Dr. Bavitz said. “We get these guys joining us, and it gives me chills when they play.”
The musical odyssey is proof – although admittedly a bit of an outlier – that dentistry careers can go in many different directions, Dr. Jenkins said.
“Your career can be what you want it to be — teaching, researching, practicing,” he said. “I’ll always thank UNMC for my career in dentistry. And being able to rock out with my guys, that’s pretty great, too.”
Dr. Schoettger said that UNMC wants its dental students to be broadly developed, noting that they don’t have to concentrate only on science.
“You can be a music minor or major and still get prerequisites to apply to dental school,” he said. “You can still utilize these joys and talents.”