Brad Davis (musician)
Encyclopedia
Brad Davis is an American
country
/folk
singer-songwriter
and guitarist
. Initially a member of country singer Marty Stuart
's road band, Davis has also performed with Earl Scruggs
, Sam Bush
, Billy Bob Thornton
and several other country and musical acts, in addition to writing songs for artists like Tim McGraw
, Jo-El Sonnier
, Tony Trischka
, and Thornton.
Davis also has a solo music career of his own, with several releases, both instrumental and vocal, and he has released instructional material on guitar playing, particularly the style of flatpicking.
In the late 1980s, Davis was invited to become a member of the Ricky Skaggs
band. Upon arriving in Nashville, he discovered the job had been given to another musician. As he needed to find a way to pay the bills, he found a job as a roving fiddle and guitar minstrel at Opryland USA
.
In 1992, he became a member of Marty Stuart
's road and studio band, the Rock and Roll Cowboys and continued in the band through 2002, touring across the world and appearing in music videos and television shows on CMT and what was then known as TNN
. During this time, he also appeared on Stuart's gold selling album This One's Gonna Hurt You
, the Marty Stuart "Hit Pack", and Stuart's last MCA recording, "The Pilgrim".
After a jam with Stuart at the home of Earl Scruggs in 2001, Brad was inivited to become a member of Scruggs' road band, "Earl Scruggs with Family & Friends", of which he is still a member. Davis appeared on a Grand Ole Opry episode, which aired on CMT, as part of this configuration, to sing "The Ballad of Jed Clampett". Other prominent musicians who have appeared in the Earl Scruggs band include Albert Lee
and Jon Randall
.
By 2002, Stuart had opted for a different sound (and record label), and all members parted ways to work on other projects. During this time, Davis established a musical partnership with Billy Bob Thornton
, more famously known as the actor, in his road band and studio band, which continues to this day. All releases from Thornton, from his first in 2001, "Private Radio", to his latest under the new group, The Boxmasters, self-titled, feature Davis' guitar work and harmony vocals, and he co-wrote, performed on , and produced all tracks on Thorntons' CD, "Beautiful Door" (2007, Universal Records). Davis will tour with Thornton's "Boxmasters" across the United States in the summer of 2008, including TV appearances. He participated in the filming of the music video for the first single, which aired on GAC and CMT.
From 2003 - 2005, he was the guitarist and harmony vocalist in Sam Bush
's road and studio band, and appeared on Bush's "King of My World" in 2005.
His unique playing can be heard on movie soundtracks, including Steven Seagal
’s "Fire Down Below", and Billy Bob Thornton
’s releases "Daddy And Them" and "Waking Up In Reno". He also recorded with Sheryl Crow
, among others, on the Johnny Cash
tribute album "Kindred Spirits", and played guitar on Warren Zevon
’s final Grammy-winning recording, "The Wind".
In addition, he has toured, recorded or written with major artists such as Willie Nelson
, Emmylou Harris
, Pam Tillis
, The Forester Sisters
, Tommy Shaw
(Styx
), David Lee Roth
(Van Halen
), and Sweethearts of the Rodeo
.
wHiTe wAter was a group formed by Davis in 1997. Sam Bush, Marty Stuart, Stuart Duncan, and Roy Huskey Jr. are among those who appear on the group's only release, No Gold On The Highway.
I'm Not Gonna Let My Blues Bring Me Down was released in 2003 on FGM Records. The title track is a duet featuring fellow Texan and former roommate Jon Randall
. "Tell Me Son" from the record features Billy Bob Thornton and Tommy Shaw. Other musicians on the record include Sam Bush, David Grier, John Jorgenson, Rob Ickes, Glen Duncan, and Earl Scruggs.
This World Ain't No Child followed in 2004 on FGM Records. Once again, Sam Bush appears on fiddle, mandolin, and slide mandolin. As this CD was recorded while Davis was a member of Bush's band, members Byron House and Chris Brown also contributed. John Cowan and Béla Fleck, who, with Bush, were part of the New Grass Revival
, also contribute to the record. Additional musical assistance is contributed by Ickes, Jorgenson, Shaw, and Thornton, among others.
Over the years, Davis has had his songs recorded by various country and bluegrass artists, including country star Tim McGraw
("Ain't No Angels"), Grasstowne ("Love You Don't Know"), Jo-El Sonnier
("Can't Give My Heart Away"), Billy Bob Thornton
("Always Countin'", "Beautiful Door"), Hometown News
("All The Time"), and Tony Trischka
("I'm Singing Harmony").
Davis is often cited as the creator of the “double-down up” flatpicking
technique. In fact it is known by many professional musicians especially those who attend the Steve Kaufman Flatpicking camp that he learned it from a fellow musician from the Caribbean . He has been a columnist for Flatpicking Guitar Magazine since 1996 and is currently Takamine’s main guitar clinician, conducting dozens of music store clinics for Takamine Guitars
each year. He has taught at Steve Kaufman’s Flatpick Camp, Nashcamp, Camp Bluegrass, the St. Louis Flatpick Weekend, the Roanoke Bluegrass Weekend, and more.
He has also produced four instructional DVDs for Flatpicking Guitar Magazine, "Flatpick Jam", Volumes 1, 2, & 3 and a book/DVD/CD course called "Flatpicking the Blues". Additionally, he has produced several instructional courses for Mel Bay Publications, including the "Blue Book of Speedpicking", and a series of instructional Ear Training Cds.
He is the musical ambassador for Coffee Fool, a coffee company that is sponsoring both The Boxmasters tour and the Styx
tours in 2008. At the 2008 NAMM trade show in Los Angeles, California, Davis and his band were asked to open for John Mayer
and Phil Keaggy
, and they received a standing ovation.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
country
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
/folk
singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
and guitarist
Guitarist
A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
. Initially a member of country singer Marty Stuart
Marty Stuart
John Martin "Marty" Stuart is an American country music singer-songwriter, known for both his traditional style, and eclectic merging of rockabilly, honky tonk, and traditional country music...
's road band, Davis has also performed with Earl Scruggs
Earl Scruggs
Earl Eugene Scruggs is an American musician noted for perfecting and popularizing a 3-finger banjo-picking style that is a defining characteristic of bluegrass music...
, Sam Bush
Sam Bush
Sam Bush is an American bluegrass mandolin player considered an originator of the Newgrass style.- History :...
, Billy Bob Thornton
Billy Bob Thornton
Billy Bob Thornton is an American actor, screenwriter, director and musician. Thornton gained early recognition as a cast member on the CBS sitcom Hearts Afire and in several early 1990s films including On Deadly Ground and Tombstone...
and several other country and musical acts, in addition to writing songs for artists like Tim McGraw
Tim McGraw
Samuel Timothy "Tim" McGraw is an American country singer and actor. Many of McGraw's albums and singles have topped the country music charts with total album sales in excess of 40 million units in the US, making him the eighth best-selling artist, and the third best-selling country singer, in the...
, Jo-El Sonnier
Jo-El Sonnier
Jo-El Sonnier is an American singer-songwriter and accordionist who performs country music and Cajun music. Originally signed to Mercury Nashville Records, Sonnier charted several minor singles on the Billboard country charts in the late 1970s...
, Tony Trischka
Tony Trischka
Tony Trischka is an American five-string banjo player.-Biography:Tony Trischka was born in Syracuse, New York, and graduated from Syracuse University with a B.A in Fine Arts, and was inspired to play the banjo in 1963, listening to the Kingston Trio's "Charlie and The MTA". Trischka was a...
, and Thornton.
Davis also has a solo music career of his own, with several releases, both instrumental and vocal, and he has released instructional material on guitar playing, particularly the style of flatpicking.
Role as a writer, producer and studio musician
Brad Davis has had plenty of work as a guitarist, harmony vocalist, writer and producer for other music artists and movie soundtracks.In the late 1980s, Davis was invited to become a member of the Ricky Skaggs
Ricky Skaggs
Rickie Lee "Ricky" Skaggs is a country and bluegrass singer, musician, producer, and composer. He primarily plays mandolin; however, he also plays fiddle, guitar, and banjo.-Early career:...
band. Upon arriving in Nashville, he discovered the job had been given to another musician. As he needed to find a way to pay the bills, he found a job as a roving fiddle and guitar minstrel at Opryland USA
Opryland USA
Opryland USA was an amusement park located in suburban Nashville, Tennessee. It operated seasonally from 1972 until 1997...
.
In 1992, he became a member of Marty Stuart
Marty Stuart
John Martin "Marty" Stuart is an American country music singer-songwriter, known for both his traditional style, and eclectic merging of rockabilly, honky tonk, and traditional country music...
's road and studio band, the Rock and Roll Cowboys and continued in the band through 2002, touring across the world and appearing in music videos and television shows on CMT and what was then known as TNN
The Nashville Network
The Nashville Network, usually referred to as TNN, was an American country music-oriented cable television network. Programming included music videos, taped concerts, movies, syndicated programs, and numerous talk shows...
. During this time, he also appeared on Stuart's gold selling album This One's Gonna Hurt You
This One's Gonna Hurt You
-Album:-Singles:-References:*...
, the Marty Stuart "Hit Pack", and Stuart's last MCA recording, "The Pilgrim".
After a jam with Stuart at the home of Earl Scruggs in 2001, Brad was inivited to become a member of Scruggs' road band, "Earl Scruggs with Family & Friends", of which he is still a member. Davis appeared on a Grand Ole Opry episode, which aired on CMT, as part of this configuration, to sing "The Ballad of Jed Clampett". Other prominent musicians who have appeared in the Earl Scruggs band include Albert Lee
Albert Lee
Albert William Lee, born 21 December 1943 in Leominster, Herefordshire, England, is an English guitarist known for his fingerstyle and hybrid picking technique. Lee has worked both in the studio and on tour with some of the most famous musicians which stretch through a very wide of genres...
and Jon Randall
Jon Randall
Jon Randall Stewart is an American country music artist. Signed to RCA Records in 1995, he debuted that year with the album What You Don't Know. A second album for RCA, 1996's Great Day to Be Alive, was recorded but never released...
.
By 2002, Stuart had opted for a different sound (and record label), and all members parted ways to work on other projects. During this time, Davis established a musical partnership with Billy Bob Thornton
Billy Bob Thornton
Billy Bob Thornton is an American actor, screenwriter, director and musician. Thornton gained early recognition as a cast member on the CBS sitcom Hearts Afire and in several early 1990s films including On Deadly Ground and Tombstone...
, more famously known as the actor, in his road band and studio band, which continues to this day. All releases from Thornton, from his first in 2001, "Private Radio", to his latest under the new group, The Boxmasters, self-titled, feature Davis' guitar work and harmony vocals, and he co-wrote, performed on , and produced all tracks on Thorntons' CD, "Beautiful Door" (2007, Universal Records). Davis will tour with Thornton's "Boxmasters" across the United States in the summer of 2008, including TV appearances. He participated in the filming of the music video for the first single, which aired on GAC and CMT.
From 2003 - 2005, he was the guitarist and harmony vocalist in Sam Bush
Sam Bush
Sam Bush is an American bluegrass mandolin player considered an originator of the Newgrass style.- History :...
's road and studio band, and appeared on Bush's "King of My World" in 2005.
His unique playing can be heard on movie soundtracks, including Steven Seagal
Steven Seagal
Steven Frederic Seagal is an American action film star, producer, writer, martial artist, guitarist and reserve deputy sheriff. A 7th-dan black belt in Aikido, Seagal began his adult life as an Aikido instructor in Japan...
’s "Fire Down Below", and Billy Bob Thornton
Billy Bob Thornton
Billy Bob Thornton is an American actor, screenwriter, director and musician. Thornton gained early recognition as a cast member on the CBS sitcom Hearts Afire and in several early 1990s films including On Deadly Ground and Tombstone...
’s releases "Daddy And Them" and "Waking Up In Reno". He also recorded with Sheryl Crow
Sheryl Crow
Sheryl Suzanne Crow is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, musician, and actress. Her music incorporates elements of rock, folk, hip hop, country and pop...
, among others, on the Johnny Cash
Johnny Cash
John R. "Johnny" Cash was an American singer-songwriter, actor, and author, who has been called one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century...
tribute album "Kindred Spirits", and played guitar on Warren Zevon
Warren Zevon
Warren William Zevon was an American rock singer-songwriter and musician noted for including his sometimes sardonic opinions of life in his musical lyrics, composing songs that were sometimes humorous and often had political or historical themes.Zevon's work has often been praised by well-known...
’s final Grammy-winning recording, "The Wind".
In addition, he has toured, recorded or written with major artists such as Willie Nelson
Willie Nelson
Willie Hugh Nelson is an American country music singer-songwriter, as well as an author, poet, actor, and activist. The critical success of the album Shotgun Willie , combined with the critical and commercial success of Red Headed Stranger and Stardust , made Nelson one of the most recognized...
, Emmylou Harris
Emmylou Harris
Emmylou Harris is an American singer-songwriter and musician. In addition to her work as a solo artist and bandleader, both as an interpreter of other composers' works and as a singer-songwriter, she is a sought-after backing vocalist and duet partner, working with numerous other artists including...
, Pam Tillis
Pam Tillis
Pamela Yvonne "Pam" Tillis is an American country music singer-songwriter and actress. She is the daughter of country music singer Mel Tillis....
, The Forester Sisters
The Forester Sisters
The Forester Sisters are an American country music vocal group consisting of sisters Kathy, June, Kim and Christy Forester. The quartet had commercial success in the 1980s, charting fifteen Top Tens on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, including the Number Ones "I Fell in Love Again Last...
, Tommy Shaw
Tommy Shaw
Tommy Roland Shaw is an American guitarist, best known for his work with the rock band Styx. In between his stints with Styx, he has played with the supergroup Damn Yankees and Shaw Blades, and has released several solo albums....
(Styx
Styx (band)
Styx is an American rock band that became famous for its albums from the late 1970s and early 1980s. The Chicago band is known for melding the style of prog-rock with the power of hard rock guitar, strong ballads, and elements of American musical theater....
), David Lee Roth
David Lee Roth
David Lee Roth is an American rock vocalist, songwriter, actor, author, and former radio personality. Roth was ranked nineteenth by Hit Parader on their list of the 100 Greatest Heavy Metal Singers of All Time....
(Van Halen
Van Halen
Van Halen is an American hard rock band formed in Pasadena, California, in 1972. The band has enjoyed success since the release of its debut album, Van Halen, . As of 2007 Van Halen has sold 80 million albums worldwide and has had the most #1 hits on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart...
), and Sweethearts of the Rodeo
Sweethearts of the Rodeo
Sweethearts of the Rodeo is an American country music duo composed of sisters Janis Oliver and Kristine Oliver . The duo recorded for Columbia Records between 1986 and 1991, releasing four albums and twelve singles for the label. In the 1990s, they also recorded two albums for Sugar Hill Records...
.
Solo career
Davis was born and raised in the Dallas, Texas area. He has spent his life performing on stage and touring with bluegrass, country, and rock acts from all over the world.wHiTe wAter was a group formed by Davis in 1997. Sam Bush, Marty Stuart, Stuart Duncan, and Roy Huskey Jr. are among those who appear on the group's only release, No Gold On The Highway.
I'm Not Gonna Let My Blues Bring Me Down was released in 2003 on FGM Records. The title track is a duet featuring fellow Texan and former roommate Jon Randall
Jon Randall
Jon Randall Stewart is an American country music artist. Signed to RCA Records in 1995, he debuted that year with the album What You Don't Know. A second album for RCA, 1996's Great Day to Be Alive, was recorded but never released...
. "Tell Me Son" from the record features Billy Bob Thornton and Tommy Shaw. Other musicians on the record include Sam Bush, David Grier, John Jorgenson, Rob Ickes, Glen Duncan, and Earl Scruggs.
This World Ain't No Child followed in 2004 on FGM Records. Once again, Sam Bush appears on fiddle, mandolin, and slide mandolin. As this CD was recorded while Davis was a member of Bush's band, members Byron House and Chris Brown also contributed. John Cowan and Béla Fleck, who, with Bush, were part of the New Grass Revival
New Grass Revival
New Grass Revival was an American progressive bluegrass band founded in 1971, and composed of Sam Bush, Courtney Johnson, Ebo Walker, Curtis Burch, Butch Robins, John Cowan, Béla Fleck and Pat Flynn. They were active between 1971 and 1989, releasing more than twenty albums as well as six singles....
, also contribute to the record. Additional musical assistance is contributed by Ickes, Jorgenson, Shaw, and Thornton, among others.
Over the years, Davis has had his songs recorded by various country and bluegrass artists, including country star Tim McGraw
Tim McGraw
Samuel Timothy "Tim" McGraw is an American country singer and actor. Many of McGraw's albums and singles have topped the country music charts with total album sales in excess of 40 million units in the US, making him the eighth best-selling artist, and the third best-selling country singer, in the...
("Ain't No Angels"), Grasstowne ("Love You Don't Know"), Jo-El Sonnier
Jo-El Sonnier
Jo-El Sonnier is an American singer-songwriter and accordionist who performs country music and Cajun music. Originally signed to Mercury Nashville Records, Sonnier charted several minor singles on the Billboard country charts in the late 1970s...
("Can't Give My Heart Away"), Billy Bob Thornton
Billy Bob Thornton
Billy Bob Thornton is an American actor, screenwriter, director and musician. Thornton gained early recognition as a cast member on the CBS sitcom Hearts Afire and in several early 1990s films including On Deadly Ground and Tombstone...
("Always Countin'", "Beautiful Door"), Hometown News
Hometown News
Hometown News is an American country music duo composed of singer-songwriters Ron Kingery and Scott Whitehead. Both musicians alternate as lead and background vocalists, in addition to playing guitar, while Kingery also plays the mandolin. Hometown News has recorded two independently-released...
("All The Time"), and Tony Trischka
Tony Trischka
Tony Trischka is an American five-string banjo player.-Biography:Tony Trischka was born in Syracuse, New York, and graduated from Syracuse University with a B.A in Fine Arts, and was inspired to play the banjo in 1963, listening to the Kingston Trio's "Charlie and The MTA". Trischka was a...
("I'm Singing Harmony").
Davis is often cited as the creator of the “double-down up” flatpicking
Flatpicking
Flatpicking is a technique for playing a guitar using a guitar pick held between two or three fingers to strike the strings...
technique. In fact it is known by many professional musicians especially those who attend the Steve Kaufman Flatpicking camp that he learned it from a fellow musician from the Caribbean . He has been a columnist for Flatpicking Guitar Magazine since 1996 and is currently Takamine’s main guitar clinician, conducting dozens of music store clinics for Takamine Guitars
Takamine Guitars
is a Japanese guitar manufacturer based in Nakatsugawa, Gifu, Japan. Takamine is known for its steel-string guitars.The company was founded in May 1962; in 1978 they were one of the first companies to introduce acoustic-electric models, where they pioneered the design of the preamp-equalizer...
each year. He has taught at Steve Kaufman’s Flatpick Camp, Nashcamp, Camp Bluegrass, the St. Louis Flatpick Weekend, the Roanoke Bluegrass Weekend, and more.
He has also produced four instructional DVDs for Flatpicking Guitar Magazine, "Flatpick Jam", Volumes 1, 2, & 3 and a book/DVD/CD course called "Flatpicking the Blues". Additionally, he has produced several instructional courses for Mel Bay Publications, including the "Blue Book of Speedpicking", and a series of instructional Ear Training Cds.
He is the musical ambassador for Coffee Fool, a coffee company that is sponsoring both The Boxmasters tour and the Styx
Styx (band)
Styx is an American rock band that became famous for its albums from the late 1970s and early 1980s. The Chicago band is known for melding the style of prog-rock with the power of hard rock guitar, strong ballads, and elements of American musical theater....
tours in 2008. At the 2008 NAMM trade show in Los Angeles, California, Davis and his band were asked to open for John Mayer
John Mayer
John Clayton Mayer is an American pop rock and blues rock musician, singer-songwriter, recording artist, and music producer. Born in Bridgeport, Connecticut and raised in Fairfield, Connecticut, he attended Berklee College of Music in Boston. He moved to Atlanta in 1997, where he refined his...
and Phil Keaggy
Phil Keaggy
Phil Keaggy is an American acoustic and electric guitarist and vocalist who has released more than 50 albums and contributed to many more recordings in both the contemporary Christian music and mainstream markets...
, and they received a standing ovation.
Discography
- Climbin' Cole Hill (1995)
- No Gold On The Highway by wHiTe wAter (1997)
- I'm Not Gonna Let My Blues Bring Me Down (2003)
- This World Ain't No Child (2004)
- Where The Bluegrass Grows: The Bluegrass Tribute to Tim McGraw (2006, CMH Records)
- The Bluegrass Tribute to Brad Paisley (2007, CMH Records)