rev gary davis...

 The REVEREND GARY DAVIS in Harlem, 1954. Davis was a phenomenal, singular musician that played a wide variety of music, a unique virtuoso on the guitar, and a fiery gospel shouter. He played his own sanctified songs, ragtime, blues, marches, play-party, and old popular songs. His approach was contrapuntal, and fluid, and dynamic; nobody played like him. He was born very poor and blind in 1896 in Laurens, South Carolina, and was the only child of eight that survived into adulthood. He taught himself guitar and as a young man in Durham, North Carolina. There, he taught Blind Boy Fuller how to play guitar; you can clearly hear echoes of the Rev. in his style.

Rev. Davis first recorded for J.B Long with ARC Records in 1935, on a National guitar, as BLIND GARY, including blistering, astounding blues, which he left behind for gospel. He became an ordained Baptist preacher in 1937, and in the early 40's, he moved to New York. He made his living by busking and teaching guitar, eventually capturing the imagination of folk blues musicians of the 1960's and taught a host of greats including Stefan Grossman, Woody Mann, Roy Book Binder, Bob Weir, David Bromberg, Ernie Hawkins, and many others. Rev. Davis was really in a category all his own, and his influence is still felt throughout the world.

"Harlem Street Singer" is a wonderful documentary about Rev. Davis. by Woody Mann and Trevor Laurence. "Say No to The Devil" by Ian Zack, and "Oh What a Beautiful City" by Robert Tilling are great books. Stefan Grossman has recorded and transcribed many of his pieces, he is a lifelong, huge champion of the Reverend. Roy Book Binder has a thousand stories. Peter, Paul and Mary did Rev. Davis' monumental "If I Had My Way." on their million selling albums.

WORLD'S #1 SOURCE of new Nationals: www.catfishkeith.com/national-guitars/

Photo by John Cohen of the New Lost City Ramblers.