It's the Birthday of Rev. Gary Davis

Reverend Gary Davis, also Blind Gary Davis, was born on April 30, 1896 and he passed away on May 5, 1972. He was a blues and gospel singer and guitarist. His guitar playing was a unique finger-picking style that influenced many other artists.

In his prime of life, which is to say the late '20s, the Reverend Gary Davis was one of the two most renowned practitioners of the East Coast school of ragtime guitar; 35 years later, despite two decades spent playing on the streets of Harlem in New York, he was still one of the giants in his field, playing before thousands of people at a time, and an inspiration to dozens of modern guitarist/singers including Bob Dylan, Taj Mahal, Donovan, Grateful Dead, Wizz Jones, Keb Mo, Ollabelle and Resurrection Band among others; and Jorma Kaukonen, David Bromberg, and Ry Cooder, who studied with Davis.

Harlem Street Singer




Rev. Gary Davis @SqueezeMyLemon
Rev. Gary Davis @Amazon.com