Jazz Articles about Richard Davis

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Andrew Hill: Point Of Departure

by Greg Simmons
January 8, 2012

The folks at Music Matters have been reissuing classic Blue Note albums of the 1950s and 1960s at an aggressive clip, and have been careful to include virtually every style of music the label recorded, including some of its more challenging material. Pianist Andrew Hill's Point of Departure (1964) will never be mistaken for light cocktail jazz, but it's inclusion in this reissue series displays Music Matters' commitment to more adventurous material. In 1964, the term avant-garde could ...

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Eric Dolphy: Out To Lunch! - 45 rpm Reissue

by Matt Marshall
October 2, 2009

Eric Dolphy Out To Lunch! Blue Note / Music Matters 2009 (1964)

Few jazz fans still need an introduction to reed player Eric Dolphy's 1964 masterpiece, Out to Lunch!. It's an album people tend to come to fairly early on in their love affair with the music (assuming, that is, the affair started after the early 1960s), and serves as a meeting ground for a wide scope of fans, be they stalwarts of bop, ...

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Richard Davis: There He Bows

by A. Henkin
April 8, 2005

When initially contacting legendary bassist Richard Davis for this profile, the response was a simple “Call at six am your time any day." Since Davis has been based in Wisconsin since the '70s, this meant for him a talk at five in the morning. A far cry from the stereotypical jazz musician who didn't know there were two 8 o'clocks in a day, Davis needs all the time he can get for his various activities. Besides performances and recordings, he ...

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Phil Upchurch: Feeling Blue

by David Rickert
June 7, 2004

In 1967 many aspiring musicians picked up the guitar as their instrument of choice, but most were interested in becoming the next Bob Dylan rather than the next Wes Montgomery. It’s understandable, then, that Phil Upchurch’s debut as a leader got lost in the shuffle. At this point he had worked as a sideman with some of the best artists in the rhythm and blues field, like Otis Rush and B.B. King, and would later follow the fusion movement with ...

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Richard Davis: The Bassist

by Craig Jolley
July 1, 2001

One of the world's most respected and beloved bassists Richard Davis left the grind of New York to teach at the University of Wisconsin in the late 70's. This CD is subtitled Homage to Diversity, an appropriate description for Davis' music and for his all-embracing approach to life.As the primary soloist Davis plays arco (bowed) bass on most tunes. In contrast to the generally high-energy feel of his previous records he concentrates mainly on melodic variation. The deep, ...

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Richard Davis: Forest Flowers

by Todd S. Jenkins
March 1, 2001

Continuing a pattern that’s becoming all too common with 32 Jazz reissues, this set is a heavily flawed collection of performances by a generally fine bassist. The label heads seem to rummage through the dusty closets of name artists, seeking out weak sessions that probably wouldn’t see the light of day again if the performers weren’t famous for better works. Such is the case with Forest Flowers, culled from three lesser Richard Davis sets from the 70s.

Davis is a ...

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Richard Davis: Forest Flowers

by Glenn Astarita
October 1, 2000

Most jazz aficionados should be familiar with the artistry of bassist Richard Davis who over the years has performed with the best and brightest, spanning multiple genres. Davis is also a preeminent bowed bassist and with Forest Flowers, “32 Jazz” sees good reason to re-release material Davis recorded during the mid to late 70’s, as these works represent sessions that were originally issued on the now defunct “Muse” label. Here, we find Davis performing with bassist Bill Lee, trumpeter Marvin ...