Cyril Davies

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Cyril Davies (born January 23, 1932 in Denham , England , † January 7, 1964 in London) was a British blues musician . He sang and played 12-string guitar , but is best known for playing harmonica . Together with Alexis Korner and John Mayall, Davies is considered one of the fathers of European blues. His career came to an abrupt end with his untimely death.

Life

Davies grew up in Denham and worked as a car mechanic before moving to London. There he first played banjo with Steve Lanes Southern Stompers . Increasingly a blues fan, since 1955 he and Alexis Korner ran the London Blues and Barrelhouse Club , which was previously a skiffle club - according to Alexis Korner's statements, the skiffle club was always full, but only three people came on the first night of the blues club -; nevertheless it became the nucleus of the British blues movement. Davies and Korner also played together as a duo. With Korner, Davies founded the band Blues Incorporated in 1961 , from which a number of well-known blues and rock musicians and bands emerged. In the London borough of Ealing they ran the Ealing Club , where the blues scene met and played together. Blues Incorporated often played at the club; the opening act was none other than the Yardbirds or the Rolling Stones , who were still unknown at the time and who made their first appearances through Davies and Korner.

In 1963 Davies left Blues Incorporated and founded the Cyril Davies' All Stars . Korner wanted to bring a brass section into the band and move more towards jazz , an unacceptable step for blues purist Davies. Graham Bond's successor was Blues Incorporated. Davies recorded with Blues Incorporated, apart from a few singles, only the studio album R&B from the Marquee , which is considered the first European blues record . With the All Stars he released just two singles before his death. Most of the All Stars had been Screaming Lord Sutch's band .

In early 1964, Cyril Davies died of leukemia . Long John Baldry continued the band under the name Hoochie Coochie Men .

Discography

  • The Legendary Cyril Davies (1957)
  • Alexis Korner And Cyril Davies (1957-61)
  • Cyril Davies (1962)
  • R&B from the Marquee (1962)
  • The Sound of Cyril Davies ; EP (1964)
  • Dealing With The Devil : Immediate Blues, Vol. 2 (1992)
  • Stroll On (1992)

literature

  • Stambler, Irwin: The Encyclopedia Of Pop, Rock And Soul . 3rd revised edition, New York City, New York: St. Martin's Press, 1989, pp. 162f - ISBN 0-312-02573-4

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Davies, Cyril
BRIEF DESCRIPTION British blues musician
DATE OF BIRTH January 23, 1932
PLACE OF BIRTH Denham , England
DATE OF DEATH January 7, 1964
Place of death London