Little Sammy Davis
"I ain’t lyin’."
Little Sammy Davis is one of the last, great living Delta bluesmen. Born in
1928 in Wynona Mississippi, Sammy took up the harmonica by the age of 7. In no
time he was entertaining on street corners and traveling medicine shows all
over the south. Sammy left Mississippi on the back of a chicken truck and
eventually ended up in Florida. He joined up with many blues greats, including
Earl Hooker,
Pinetop Perkins,
Ike Turner, and
Albert King.
For awhile, Sammy played in a band with both
Earl Hooker and
Albert King.
All totaled, Sammy spent nine years on the road playing with
Earl Hooker.
When Sammy finally parted ways with
Earl Hooker,
he headed to Chicago where he played constantly and shared the stage with many
greats, including
Muddy Waters,
Little Walter, and
Jimmy Reed.
During that time, Sammy would often be called to front
Little Walter’s
band, "The Mighty Aces" when
Little Walter
couldn’t show for a gig. Sammy married and by the late 1960’s he and his wife
settled in the Hudson Valley region of New York State. In 1970, Sammy’s world
was rocked when his wife passed away suddenly. Sammy faded from sight, put
down his harp, and wouldn’t be seen or heard from for twenty years. Around
1990, the rumors of an amazing bluesman playing harmonica in a Poughkeepsie
barbershop reached the attention of WVKR radio personality Doug Price. As
Price began spinning some of Sammy’s old records at the station, the hunt was
on to find the lost bluesman. At the same time, Sammy began showing up at
blues clubs where he was spotted by drummer Brad Scribner. Brad, along with
guitar playing brother Fred were members of the band "Midnight Slim".
The three musicians bonded and the newly formed group, "Little Sammy
Davis and Midnight Slim" began playing gigs and supplying background
tracks for New York radio’s long running, "Imus in the Morning Show".
Following their first appearance on "Imus in the Morning", Sammy and
the band earned high praise from the New York Daily News and became the
official "House Band" for the Imus show. Playing everything from
Delta and Chicago blues, to gems from Ray Charles and James Brown, "Little
Sammy Davis and Midnight Slim" became one of Imus’ favorite and most
frequent guests—often being the object of the "I-Man’s" humor and
ire. In 1996, Little Sammy Davis released "I Ain’t Lyin’" on Delmark
Records. The critically acclaimed album was nominated for a W.C. Handy award,
received the "Comeback Artist of the Year" award from Living Blues
magazine, and received the "Little Walter Lifetime Achievement Award".
In 2000, their second album, "Ten Years and Forty Days" was released
on their own label, Fat Fritz Records. In 2002, movie director, Arlen
Tarlofskey chose Little Sammy Davis and Midnight Slim as the subject for a
documentary, "Little Sammy Davis" which received critical accolades
and appeared at film festivals around the world.
(quoted from Little Sammy Davis' page at myspace.com)
Visit Little Sammy Davis' page at myspace.com.
Visit also these related Sites:
Biographical Information on Little Sammy Davis
Little Sammy Davis biography at delafont.com.
Little Sammy Davis biography at gracenote.com.
Little Sammy Davis biography by Douglas A. Price.
Little Sammy Davis Videos
harp with Little Sammy Davis. Runtime 01:36.
Little Sammy Davis and Fred Scribner. Runtime 02:21.
little sammy davis and Fred Scribner. Runtime 03:03.
Little Sammy Davis and Fred Scribner.
Little Sammy Davis plays nine below zero. Runtime 05:55.
Little sammy Davis Fred Scribner /Junior Walkers Shotgun. Runtime 05:16.
gotta go by Little Walter performed by Little Sammy Davis. Runtime 03:47.
Little Sammy and Midnite Slim scratch my back. Runtime 06:32.
Little Sammy Davis Live at B2k 01. Runtime 29:30.
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