Next up in the spring concert series ‘Live at Studio 64’ on April 21 is the incredible bluesman/raconteur, Guy Davis. This solo performance by one of North America’s blues greats is not to be missed.

Davis is a guitarist, banjo player and actor, born in New York in 1952 to actors Ruby Dee and Ossie Davis. A self-taught guitarist, he learned by observing other musicians and, so the legend goes, from a nine-fingered, finger-picking guitarist he once met on a train. The five-stringed banjo he learned at a summer camp from Pete Seeger’s brother.

Although he grew up in New York, Davis heard stories about life in the southern states from his grandparents and these stories inspired his interest in the blues.

He has performed as an actor in films and on stage, including the leading role in the 1984 film Beat Street and the Broadway musical Mulebone, which featured the music of Taj Mahal. He has written award-winning plays and short stories as well as musical scores for film and television.

Guy Davis has made 16 notable albums since 1978. Stomp Down Rider, recorded at a live performance in 1995, topped charts all across the United States. His next album, Call Down the Thunder in 1996, was also names a Top 10 album of the year. The accolades continued, including Blues Album of the Year (1998) for You Don’t Know My Mind, and the W.C. Handy award for Best Acoustic Blues Album (2003) for Chocolate to the Bone.

He has garnered many other awards, too many to mention here, as well as much critical acclaim. Said critic Charles Young in a Playboy review of You Don’t Know My Mind, “Davis reminds you that blues started as dance music. This is blues made for humming along, stomping your foot, feeling righteous in the face of oppression and expressing gratitude to your baby for greasing your skillet.”

More recently, along with Warren Beatty, Elton John, and composer John Williams, Davis was awarded a medal by the President of the United States at the Kennedy Centre Awards.

So what is this world famous musician who has appeared on the cover of international music magazines doing in Kimberley? Well, this April Guy Davis is on a solo tour of B.C. and Alberta, ending up in the Territories, a tour that includes Kimberley and Fernie.

The Kimberley performance is the second in the ‘Live at Studio 64’ spring concert series which kicked off March 21 with the sold out Lovebullies concert.

Advance tickets for Guy Davis are selling fast so get yours soon. They are $22 KAC-C64 members, $24 non-members, and can be purchased online at snapd.eastkootenay.com or at Centre 64 (250-427-4919 or [email protected]).

Advance ticket holders can receive a 10% discount at five participating Kimberley restaurants on the night of the show. The restaurants are named on the tickets. If the show is not sold out tickets at the door are $26.

The Studio 64 wine & beer bar will be open at 7.30 p.m. and the concert will start at 8 p.m. It promises to be a unique evening of original music and stories for blues fans of all ages.

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