Jesse Ed Davis

[davidbeinct]

Really good article that came up in my news feed this morning. I had heard his name but I confess I knew little about him.

He played with Dylan, Clapton and Lennon: the unsung genius of guitarist Jesse Ed Davis — Guardian US

He was the go-to session guitarist for some of the biggest music stars of all time yet his incredible highs and tragic lows have often been overlooked

apple.news

 

[richardp69]

I'd never heard of him either. Another example of one of the greats few people ever knew about. That's true for many great ones I think.

Interesting article and thanks for sharing.

 

[Canard]

davidbeinct (above) scooped me on this one. I was just about to post a duplicate.

The Guardian article is great and has some wonderful embedded video clips. It is a tribute put out in advance of a new book on Davis by Douglas K. Miller.

Quote:

Miller believes the cream of classic rockers were drawn to Davis, in part, because of the sense of history evident in his work. “Jesse deeply understood the early rock, blues and jazz records that those guys all loved,” he said. “John Lennon was particularly impressed that his guitar style recalled an earlier era at a time when faster, more aggressive guitar players were starting to emerge. Jesse’s style wasn’t simple but it was a little more sensitive. There was more space and room to breathe.”​

My personal Davis fav, Jesse channels Count Basie with Taj Mahal:

 

[walrus]

Great article!

walrus

 

[kitniyatran]

Yeah I loved his playing with Taj Mahal and others. He certainly was a great player. That's nice to see people are trying to focus some attention back on players like him. It's looking like that Rumble documentary is going to be pretty good.

 

[Rocky]

It's looking like that Rumble documentary is going to be pretty good.

It's been out for a few years now. It was on Amazon prime a while ago.

 

[LeFinPepere]

He made an impression on Derek Trucks?? Oh oh....interesting.....

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

He made an impression on Derek Trucks?? Oh oh....interesting.....

And on Duane Allman. Duane's "Statesboro Blues" solo is a cut-and-past of Jesse's.

For the gory details, see:

 

[Teleguy61]

This one cut is enough to establish his reputation--


but he was so much more.
A very sad story, a brilliant musician and excellent guitar player.
Gone way too soon.

 

[spoox]

I saw him with Taj Mahal at a noon concert at UCLA in the spring of '68 although I had no idea who Davis was at the time. Later, because of his connection to Gene Clark I finally became aware of him.

 

[fronobulax]

And on Duane Allman. Duane's "Statesboro Blues" solo is a cut-and-past of Jesse's.

At some point the "solo" is actually an integral part of the song and the expectation is that the solo will be performed as originally "written".

Consider the extremes - jam band and cover band. A jam band never plays the same song twice and if you hear something you recognize it's just the chord progression and groove. A cover band strives to sound like the original recording. The closer you are to the cover band end the better a cut and paste "solo" (from the original) is. Move in the other direction and cut and paste approaches being derogatory.

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

At some point the "solo" is actually an integral part of the song and the expectation is that the solo will be performed as originally "written".

Yes, absolutely! I don't think of anything as integral unless someone is reading sheet music, but it is a legitimate approach. It was great that Taj and Jesse came up with their own version.

Personally, if I wanted to copy the original, I'd copy Blind Willie McTell's — not necessarily the first version, but it's the first recording).

Consider the extremes - jam band and cover band.

And don't forget my extreme: folksinger: Take a song and adapt it your own style. Make it your own.

Any where would you put jazz in the cover continuum?

A jam band never plays the same song twice and if you hear something you recognize it's just the chord progression and groove. A cover band strives to sound like the original recording. The closer you are to the cover band end the better a cut and paste "solo" (from the original) is. Move in the other direction and cut and paste approaches being derogatory.

Well put. Thanks!