Jan Davis (musician)

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Jan Davis (born 1939 in Los Angeles , California, USA; † May 2, 2014 ; actually John Arthur Bird) was an American guitarist , composer , singer and music producer .

Career

Jan Davis is the co-author of the song "All I Have To Give You Is My Love", which was published in 1952 by Dean Martin . At 16 he got a recording contract with Guild, where he released the rockabilly single "She Told Me / Destination Love" in 1958 , on which he sang and played the electric guitar .

From 1961 he published mainly instrumental music with him as the solo guitarist . In 1961 he released three singles, one under his name, one with the band The Ricco-Shays and one with Lou Josie as Jan & Lou. From 1962 he worked with B. Bumble & the Stingers as a guitarist and arranger . He also co-wrote Nautilus, the B-side of the hit single Nut Rocker produced by Kim Fowley (USA # 23, UK # 1) and other B. Bumble & the Stingers recordings. During this time he was also frequently hired as a studio musician , e.g. B. for Dick Dales “ Misirlou ”.

In 1963 he released several singles under his own name, including "Guitar Star / The Unwanted", as well as another single with Lou Josie as The Ho-Dads. In addition to “The Unwanted” and other pieces, he also composed “Fugitive” with Lou Josie, which was released as a single with “Boss Machine” in 1964 (USA # 129) and was covered shortly afterwards by The Ventures (USA # 126). In 1966 he released a single with the band The Routers , and the following year with Buzz Clifford under the band name The Wall of Sound.

After attending a Sabicas concert , he began to play flamenco guitar , using a different mood than usual, first heard on "(International) Love Process," which was released as a single in 1967 and also on the 1969 album Flamenco funk is included. The album combines flamenco with funk , soul and pop and consists of instrumental pieces , half original compositions, the other half arrangements of songs such as " In the Year 2525 " and "Aquarius" from the musical Hair .

"The Unwanted" was in 1970 by Les Humphries newly interpreted . In 1973 Davis became the first male singer to release a version of the song "Piece of My Heart," where he sang and played the electric guitar. In 1975 the album Hot Sauce was released , with Jan Davis as solo guitarist and arrangements by him, René Hall and Ernie Fields, Jr. , and Earl Palmer on drums . Similar to Flamenco Funk , Hot Sauce is a pure instrumental album and consists of half of your own compositions and the other half of arrangements of songs. In 1976, Flamenco USA was released , which followed a similar concept as the two previous albums, but with a higher proportion of original compositions. In 1977 he worked as a singer on the folk album North Mountain Velvet by Jaime Brockett .

In 1985 he was a singer on Jim Queen's bluegrass album All 'Round Fiddle . At the suggestion of René Hall , who also wrote many of the arrangements for Davis' recordings since B. Bumble & the Stingers , there were a number of concerts with Davis as solo guitarist with various orchestras, with Hall also taking part as arranger and conductor .

In 1990, he was on the album Running Sacred of Exene Cervenka involved. "Fugitive" was also covered in 1996 by Laika & The Cosmonauts . The 1997 released EP I Loved You Too Much comprises six rock - and blues - songs in which Davis sang and played electric guitar.

In 2001 the album Concert By The Sea was released , on which nine of the pieces that were played at the concerts with René Hall were rearranged by Davis for two guitars, both played by him. The pieces are a mixture of flamenco, jazz and classical music . Several videos were also released for the album.

In 2002 the albums Diversified Genres and Rock 'N' Flamenco were released , which contain recordings from previous years. In 2004 the albums Boss Guitar were released! The Best of Jan Davis , which includes recordings from 1961 to 1966, including two previously unreleased, and Guitar Legacy: Blast from the Past , which includes recordings from the 1960s and 1970s. In 2007 a recording of "All To Say Goodbye" was released with Barry Gurly and the album Jan Davis: Boss Guitar , which contains recordings from the 1960s.

Discography (selection)

Albums

Studio

  • 1969 Flamenco Funk ( UNI )
  • 1975 Hot Sauce ( Ranwood )
  • 1976 Flamenco USA (Cambria) - Jan Davis & The Flamenco Boogie Band
  • Plays Flamenco Classical Guitar Solos (Cambria)
  • Plays Hits of the 60's (Power)
  • 2000 Rock 'N' Flamenco (Stone Tiger Records) - Jan Davis & The Spain Gang
  • 2001 Concert By The Sea (Stone Tiger Records)
  • 2002 Diversified Genres (Stone Tiger Records)
  • 2004 Guitar Legacy: Blast from the Past (Stone Tiger Records)
  • 2004 Boss Guitar! The Best of Jan Davis ( Sundazed )
  • 2007 Jan Davis: Boss Guitar (Stone Tiger Records)

live

  • Live In A Flamenco Comedy Concert (Triad)
  • Rockin 'with The International Philharmonic Orchestra - Jan Davis & The Flamenco Boogie Band, The International Philharmonic Orchestra
  • Jan Davis In Concert

EP

  • 1997 I Loved You Too Much (Stone Tiger Records)

Singles

  • 1958 She Told Me / Destination Love (Guild)
  • 1961 Sleepless / Damascus ( Rendezvous ) - Jan Davis & The Ricco-Shays
  • 1961 Saber Dance / Hop, Skip And Jump (Rendezvous)
  • 1961 Leaving Town Tomorrow / Echoes of Summer (Rendezvous) - Jan & Lou (Jan Davis & Lou Josie)
  • 1963 Honky / Legends (Imperial) - The Ho-Dads (Jan Davis & Lou Josie )
  • 1963 Malaguena / Hop, Skip And Jump (Rendezvous)
  • 1963 Don't Walk Away / You're Not Welcome Anymore (Rendezvous)
  • 1963 Delicado / Sahara (rendezvous)
  • 1963 Guitar Star / The Unwanted ( A&M )
  • 1964 Watusi Zombie / Pooky (Holiday)
  • 1964 Scramble / Snow Surfin 'Matador ( Smash )
  • 1964 Fugitive / Boss Machine (A&M)
  • 1965 Mystique / More ( Columbia )
  • 1966 The Flight of The Bee - Part 1 / The Flight of The Bee - Part 2 (Chattahoochee)
  • 1966 Lost in Space / Run For Your Life ( White Whale )
  • 1966 The Time Funnel / Walkin 'Back ( RCA Victor ) - Jan Davis & The Routers
  • 1967 Hang On / You Had To Have Your Way (Big Bird / Tower ) - The Wall Of Sound (Jan Davis & Buzz Clifford )
  • 1967 International Love Process - Part 1 / International Love Process - Part 2 (Big Bird / UNI)
  • 1969 Mosaic (Flamenco Funk) / Hornet's Nest (Bear)
  • 1969 Flamenco Funk (Mosaic) / Hornet's Nest (Shamley)
  • 1970 Raunchy / Dark Blue (RCA Victor)
  • 1970 Walk Don't Run (Flamenco) / Flamenco Funk (UNI)
  • 1973 Piece of My Heart / Funky Mud (Triad)
  • 1975 Gypsy Fox / Child Of Jude (Danny's Theme) (Ranwood) - The Jan Davis Guitar
  • 1975 Hot Sauce / Soulmate (Ranwood / Quad-ett) - The Jan Davis Guitar
  • 1978 Flamenco Dance Man (Flamenco Disco) / Bolero (PBR International) - The Jan Davis Guitar with The Flamenco Boogie Band
  • 1978 Flamenco Dance Man / Stringed Action (PBR International) - The Jan Davis Guitar with The Flamenco Boogie Band
  • Pepperstick / Police Woman (Cambria) - Jan Davis & The Flamenco Boogie Band
  • El Macho / Pepperstick (Cambria) - Jan Davis & The Flamenco Boogie Band
  • Prophecy / Funky Symphony (Cambria) - Mike Cushman & Jan Davis
  • The Guitar Player / El Macho (Cambria)
  • (Return of) The Green Hornet / Man from Nowhere ( Little Golden )
  • Maiden Spain / El Lobo (Ranwood)
  • Bolero / Donna De Oro (Cambria)

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Jan Davis Guitar at soundcloud.com.
  2. ↑ The M'lady method at copyrightencyclopedia.com. - "music composed by Jan Davis [pseud. Of John Arthur Bird]", "John Arthur Bird 1939-"
  3. ↑ Jan Davis ( Memento of the original from February 19, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. at soundr.us. - "Jan Davis began playing guitar professionally at the ripe-old age of 16. Born in Hollywood, California, he found himself living in the area of ​​his dreams." ( Hollywood is a district of Los Angeles ).  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.soundr.us
  4. ↑ Jan Davis Guitar - Biography at kickstarter.com. - "He landed a deal with Guild Records and was signed at the ripe-old age of sixteen! Starting with two songs," Destination Love, "written by the famous team, Bob & Dick Sherman of" Mary Poppins "fame! The next song, "She Told Me" was written by the young Jan Davis, who sang his heart out while playing his Fender electric guitar. "
  5. ↑ Jan Davis - She Told Me / Destination Love at 45cat.com. - "Date: Sep 1958"
  6. ↑ Exceptions are e.g. B. the single by Jan & Lou (1961), The Wall of Sound (1967), as well as "Guitar Star" (1963) and "Piece of My Heart" (1973), as well as the EP I Loved You Too Much (1996) .
  7. ↑ Lou Josie at rockabilly.nl. - "As Jan and Lou, Davis and Josie recorded a vocal single in 1961, (" Leaving Town Tomorrow "), for Rendezvous."
  8. ↑ Jan & Lou (RCS Artist Discography) at rcs-discography.com. - "Presumably, Jan Davis and Lou Josie, who co-composed both sides."
  9. ↑ Lou Josie at rockabilly.nl. - "Davis was involved with almost all post-" Nutrocker "recordings by the studio group B. Bumble and the Stingers, where his co-writing credits appear on the label as by" John A. Bird "or simply Bird."
  10. ↑ John A. Bird (2) Discography at discogs.com.
  11. ↑ Biography: Jan Davis Guitar at facebook.com (Jan Davis Facebook page). - "[...] that's Jan Davis yelling at the top of his lungs, with what some called a" Rebel Yell, "heard at the beginning of the song," Miserlou. "Before the record was released, the producers decided the song needed "hooks" to embellish, and asked Jan, along with Bob Roberts to add what they could to improve the sounds. Jan added some rhythm guitar "chanks" and both added handclaps. These "hooks" made all the difference in the finished recording! "
  12. ↑ Lou Josie at rockabilly.nl - "In 1963, Jan and Lou became the Ho-Dads, who had two instrumental releases on Imperial, after that label had been purchased by Liberty Records. In fact, the very first record in Imperial's new 66000 series was by the Ho-Dads ("Honky" / "Legends", 66001). "
  13. ↑ Biography: Jan Davis Guitar at facebook.com (Jan Davis Facebook page). - "After seeing the famous" Sabicas "in concert, Davis made a decision to play his acoustic guitar [...]"
  14. ↑ Jan Davis - Flamenco Funk at discogs.com (photo of the record cover). - "flamenco guitar"
  15. ↑ Jan Davis - Diversified Genres at cdbaby.com. - "[...] his unusual guitar tuning ability, which Jan terms as: Hawaiian tuning."
  16. ↑ Jan Davis - Flamenco Funk at discogs.com (photo of the record cover). - "Jan Davis is the only known guitarist in the entire world who has ORIGINATED his own technique of guitar tuning!"
  17. ↑ The arrangements of the songs "Walk, Don't Run", "Aquarius", "Muddy River", "Bullfight Song" and "In The Year 2525" are also included on the album "Guitar Legacy: Blast from the Past". The original compositions "Flamenco Therapy", "Flamenco Funk", "Flamenco Soul" and "Funky Concerto" are also included on the album Rock 'N' Flamenco .
  18. ↑ On the album Pop Party .
  19. ↑ "Gypsy Fox" is also included on the album Guitar Legacy: Blast from the Past . "Hot Sauce", "Donna De Oro", "Pepperstick", "Theme from Police Woman", "Third Sonata with Funk", "El Macho" and "Bolero" are also included on the Rock 'N' Flamenco album.
  20. ↑ "Malaguena" and "Bolero" are also included on the album Guitar Legacy: Blast from the Past .
  21. ↑ Biography: Jan Davis Guitar at facebook.com (Jan Davis Facebook page). - "Arranger, old friend, and fellow 'B. Bumble & the Stingers' co-writer, Rene Joseph Hall got in touch with Davis and asked if he would be interested in playing solo guitar with an orchestra."
  22. ↑ Jan Davis - Diversified Genres at cdbaby.com. - "His guru was Mr. Rene 'J. Hall, who wrote most of Jan's arrangements, from his early beginning with B. Bumble & The Stingers. Only now it was time to move on. On they did, to the concert circuit. Jan told us, "One of the biggest thrills of my life was playing solo guitar in front of Philharmonic orchestras, and the most memorable was with Rene 'Hall arranging and conducting. [...]" - exact time is missing, René Hall died in 1988
  23. ↑ Jan Davis Discography at discogs.com. - "Management"
  24. ↑ Exene Cervenka - Running Sacred at discogs.com. - "Coordinator [Project Assistance / coordination] - David McLees, Jan Davis"
  25. ↑ On the album Zero Gravity .
  26. ↑ Also contains "Piece of My Heart" from 1973.
  27. ↑ Jan Davis - Gypsy from Andalusia (one of the videos) at vimeo.com.
  28. ↑ On the album Various Artists - The 2nd Smooth Jazz Avenue: The Greatest Moments in the Smooth Jazz History .
personal data
SURNAME Davis, Jan
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Bird, Arthur John (real name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American guitarist, composer and singer
DATE OF BIRTH 1939
PLACE OF BIRTH Los Angeles , California, USA
DATE OF DEATH May 2, 2014