REV. GARY DAVIS LIVE AT GERDE'S FOLK CITY 1962
Stuart Jefferson | San Diego,Ca | 04/24/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Three discs 53,49,61 minutes each approximately. The sound is good-much better than hoped for when taken from an old reel-to-reel tape recorder almost fifty years ago. Both the vocals and the instruments are clearly defined. The overall sound is immediate and warm,as if you're sitting near the front of the venue. The packaging is a tri-fold cardboard affair with the discs slipped into their respective holders. The notes are short-Grossman talks about the era and Davis.
These tracks were recorded by one of Davis' students (and a guitar player of some repute) Stefan Grossman. Along with the songs,Davis talks once in a while to the audience between some of the tracks. This can be an irritant or will become an integral part of the concert setting,depending on your outlook. To my ears they give a better idea of sitting in that audience on those nights,enjoying a one-of-a-kind experience,from a highly individualistic (and blind since birth) man. Included here are sing-alongs on the last two tracks on disc one,the group "New World Singers" (Gil Turner,Bob Cohen,Happy Traum) accompany Davis. At one point Davis announces that he gives guitar lessons (that a number of better known guitarists took him up on) to the audience,humbly telling the people where his "hut" was located.
Included on these discs are songs he had not yet recorded along with more well known tracks that anyone familiar with Davis will recognize. His many albums (VINTAGE RECORDINGS 1935-1949,HARLEM STREET SINGER,SAY NO TO THE DEVIL,THE GUITAR AND BANJO OF REVEREND GARY DAVIS to name a few) are all filled with gems of both guitar and (sometimes) banjo tunes,along with his harmonica playing,and,of course,his weathered,lived in voice. This set is no different-his guitar is all over this set. This is a very relaxed Gary Davis,feeling at ease entertaining the audience,who listened appreciatively to his many songs,guitar style,and voice. Additionally Davis played the harmonica in his highly rhythmic style,which is a treat to hear.
For anyone who likes Davis (who played well up until his death in 1972) his style of playing (a style that many better known guitarists,including Jorma Kaukonen of Jefferson Airplane/Hot Tuna to name just one,were enthralled with),or that era when older bluesmen were being rediscovered and recorded,for the "blues/folk boom" of the sixties-this is an excellent addition to your musical library. If you're not familiar with Rev. Davis,(who was ordained a minister in 1937) this is a good place to start. For this is music made by an unpretentious,warm,old-fashioned man who loved to make music. It's as simple as that."
Revisit the Best!
Chas. | Santa Barbara, CA | 06/04/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This is not a cheesy repackaging of previous material or a desperate release of bootlegged tapes that should be left in someone's drawer. Stefan Grossman's tapes may be old, but they are golden. I've been a Gary Davis devotee for decades, and over the years have bought most everything available first on vinyl and then on disc, but this is still worth having. The sense of his playing for an attentive audience early on in the days of the Great American Folk Revival makes these three discs all the more special. And there is plenty of material we haven't heard before. The playing and singing are spectacular as always, and the chatting up the audience is all the more fun. Packaging is minimal, and there is no encyclopedic booklet or pictures/posters, but you'll still get your money's worth."
Track Listings (12) - Disc #1