Guy Davis     ... known internationally as a superlative Bluesman and storyteller, Guy Davis’ resonant voice personifies The Blues, whether soulful, jubilant, sexy, troubled or sad. His other instruments include 6- and 12- string guitars, harmonica and banjo, and he draws from a musical reservoir deep, wide and universal. Mr. Davis’ awards for albums and performances are as impressive and varied as his wide-ranging talents. He’s starred in films and television and praised for roles On- and Off-Broadway including drama, musical theatre and the one-man-show he wrote for himself. He's delighted audiences in venues tiny and vast and presented winning theatrical and musical pieces across the creative spectrum. Throughout, he delivers immediacy informed by the enduring commonalities of folklore, literature and history from around the world, especially those reflecting African-American life. In the tradition of his also famous acting and activist parents, Ruby Dee and Ossie Davis, Guy Davis is proudly engaged with the Southern Poverty Law Center’s “Teaching Tolerance” initiative for which he wrote the title track, “I Will Be Your Friend: Songs and Activities for Young Peacemakers”.   He is a lifelong resident of New York City. A comprehensive biography is available on his website.

a Muse in Music

Guy Davis stands with giants in an ancient tradition: slaking appreciative audiences’ thirst for live music in venues of every description, across the planet. “I’m a story teller,” says he. Mr. Davis’ life and his work are both luminous reminders of music’s power to bring people together, expand our minds and loosen our preconceptions, whether it’s in a Canadian hamlet or at home in New York City’s Bronx.

Widely recognized as one of the world’s leading blues singer-songwriters, Guy Davis is justly proud to be in the tradition of troubadours over the centuries and in more recent times from Muddy Waters, Son House, Mississippi John Hurt and countless other “Bluesmen” to Pete Seeger, Woody Guthrie and Bob Dylan. Like them, Mr. Davis plays to nurture, expand and share the universality music.

When off stage, Guy Davis speaks gladly of an “ancient faith” he invented for himself. He invites us all into his vivid word picture: all the earth’s people, the final moment before the very first word -- ever -- was spoken. That great wellspring of life-giving breath is the space he seeks to recreate in every performance.

Obviously, he observes, being the son of famous stage and film stars, and civil rights activists Ruby Dee and Ossie Davis was extraordinarily enriching. But it was when he was a 7 year old kid, sitting in the front row of an auditorium and looking up at a man with a box that had strings on it, that he saw his own future. Music’s magic not only enveloped him then, it impelled him (as it’s done for decades) to live a life “on the road”.

One need only sneak a peek at his audiences to see the spell Mr. Davis and his Blues cast: hypnotic rhythms, mesmerizing lyricism and Mr. Davis’ splendidly versatile big voice. Some come to hear his recordings come to life, others for the thrill of hearing brand new music Mr. Davis enjoys debuting on tour. Or maybe they’re drawn back by a memory of an earlier gig, full of tales of love and loss leavened by Guy Davis’ gentle humor. Or simply for the joy of being part of the electric connection between the star and people on the other side of the lights, an eerie arithmetic in which one and one makes all.

The Blues probably began in the Mississippi Delta, in the 1930s, with Robert Johnson (who died at 27) and in 1993, Guy Davis brought him to life, on stage, in “Trick the Devil”. He firmly believes Mr. Johnson deserves the credit given him for creating the iconic blues song “Crossroads”, and more. A lot more. Mr. Davis keenly observes that the song’s story neither starts nor ends at any particular crossroads. Rather, it holds a special place among authentic Blues’ musics exploration of the universal: will any one of us make the Faustian bargain with the Devils we meet traveling life’s highways, bargaining away one’s soul for our dearest wish?

First, last and foremost, Mr. Davis embraces the richness of his storytelling role. The ones he brings to life are as readily told by the strings of his 6- and 12-string guitars, harmonica and banjo as with words and melodic lines. He delivers them with an engaging passion, gets folks together and keeps the music alive. The Blues do the rest.