Richard Davis (born April 15, 1930) is an American jazz bassist. Among his best-known contributions to the albums of others are Eric Dolphy's '' Out to Lunch!'', Andrew Hill's '' Point of Departure'', and

Van Morrison Sir George Ivan Morrison (born 31 August 1945), known professionally as Van Morrison, is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist whose recording career spans seven decades. He has won two Grammy Awards. As a teenager in t ...

's ''

Astral Weeks ''Astral Weeks'' is the second studio album by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison. It was recorded at Century Sound Studios in New York during September and October 1968, and released in November of the same year by Warner Bros. Rec ...

'', of which critic

Greil Marcus Greil Marcus (born June 19, 1945) is an American author, music journalist and cultural critic. He is notable for producing scholarly and literary essays that place rock music in a broader framework of culture and politics. Biography Marcus wa ...

wrote (in ''The Rolling Stone Illustrated History of Rock and Roll''), "Richard Davis provided the greatest bass ever heard on a rock album."

Music career

Born in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...

, United States, Davis began his musical career with his brothers, singing bass in his family's vocal trio. He studied

double bass The double bass (), also known simply as the bass () (or by other names), is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed (or plucked) string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra (excluding unorthodox additions such as the octobass). Similar i ...

in high school with his music theory teacher and band director, Walter Dyett. He was a member of Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestras (then known as the Youth Orchestra of Greater Chicago) and played in the orchestra's first performance at Chicago's Orchestra Hall on November 14, 1947. After high school, he studied double bass with Rudolf Fahsbender of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra while attending

VanderCook College of Music VanderCook College of Music is a private music school in Chicago, Illinois. It is the only college in the United States solely specializing in the training of music educators. Students may pursue a Bachelor of Music in Education (B.M.Ed.), Maste ...

. After college, Davis performed in dance bands. The connections he made led him to pianist

Don Shirley Donald Walbridge Shirley (January 29, 1927 – April 6, 2013) was an American classical and jazz pianist and composer. He recorded many albums for Cadence Records during the 1950s and 1960s, experimenting with jazz with a classical influenc ...

. In 1954, he and Shirley moved to New York City and performed together until 1956, when Davis began playing with the Sauter-Finegan Orchestra. In 1957, he became part of Sarah Vaughan's rhythm section, touring and recording with her until 1960. During the 1960s, Davis was in demand in a variety of musical circles. He worked with many of the small jazz groups of the time, including those led by Eric Dolphy,

Jaki Byard John Arthur "Jaki" Byard (; June 15, 1922 – February 11, 1999) was an American jazz multi-instrumentalist, composer, and arranger. Mainly a pianist, he also played tenor and alto saxophones, among several other instruments. He was known for hi ...

, Booker Ervin, Andrew Hill,

Elvin Jones Elvin Ray Jones (September 9, 1927 – May 18, 2004) was an American jazz drummer of the post-bop era. Most famously a member of John Coltrane's quartet, with whom he recorded from late 1960 to late 1965, Jones appeared on such widely celebrate ...

, and

Cal Tjader Callen Radcliffe Tjader Jr. ( ; July 16, 1925 – May 5, 1982) was an American Latin Jazz musician, known as the most successful non-Latino Latin musician. He explored other jazz idioms, even as he continued to perform music of Afro-Jazz, ...

. From 1966 to 1972, he was a member of The Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra. He has also played with

Don Sebesky Don Sebesky (born December 10, 1937) is an American arranger, jazz trombonist, and keyboardist. Biography Sebesky trained in trombone at the Manhattan School of Music; in his early career, he played with Kai Winding, Claude Thornhill, Tommy D ...

Oliver Nelson Oliver Edward Nelson (June 4, 1932 – October 28, 1975) was an American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, arranger, composer, and bandleader. His 1961 Impulse! album ''The Blues and the Abstract Truth'' (1961) is regarded as one of the most signifi ...

, Frank Sinatra,

Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Davis adopted a variety of musi ...

Dexter Gordon Dexter Gordon (February 27, 1923 – April 25, 1990) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist, composer, bandleader, and actor. He was among the most influential early bebop musicians, which included other greats such as Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gi ...

, Joe Henderson and Ahmad Jamal. Davis recorded with pop and rock musicians in the 1970s, appearing on

Laura Nyro Laura Nyro ( ; born Laura Nigro; October 18, 1947 – April 8, 1997) was an American songwriter, singer, and pianist. She achieved critical acclaim with her own recordings, particularly the albums ''Eli and the Thirteenth Confession'' (1968 ...

's ''

Smile A smile is a facial expression formed primarily by flexing the muscles at the sides of the mouth. Some smiles include a contraction of the muscles at the corner of the eyes, an action known as a Duchenne smile. Among humans, a smile expresses ...

'',

's ''

'' (for which Davis also served as ''de facto'' bandleader during the recording sessions), and Bruce Springsteen's '' Greetings From Asbury Park, N.J.'' and ''

Born to Run ''Born to Run'' is the third studio album by American singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen, released on August 25, 1975, by Columbia Records. As his effort to break into the mainstream, the album was a commercial success, peaking at number three ...

''. During his career he performed classical music with conductors Igor Stravinsky, Leonard Bernstein, Pierre Boulez,

Leopold Stokowski Leopold Anthony Stokowski (18 April 1882 – 13 September 1977) was a British conductor. One of the leading conductors of the early and mid-20th century, he is best known for his long association with the Philadelphia Orchestra and his appear ...

, and

Gunther Schuller Gunther Alexander Schuller (November 22, 1925June 21, 2015) was an American composer, conductor, horn player, author, historian, educator, publisher, and jazz musician. Biography and works Early years Schuller was born in Queens, New York City ...

. After living in New York City for 23 years, he moved to Wisconsin in 1977 and became a professor at the

University of Wisconsin–Madison A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United Stat ...

, teaching bass, jazz history, and improvisation. His former students include William Parker, David Ephross, Sandor Ostlund, Hans Sturm, Alex Kalfayan, Ryan Maxwell and Karl E. H. Seigfried.

Awards and honors

* Best Bassist, '' Downbeat'' International Critics' Poll (1967–74) * NEA Jazz Master (2014)

Discography

* '' Heavy Sounds'' (Impulse!, 1967) with

* '' Muses for Richard Davis'' (MPS, 1969) * ''

The Philosophy of the Spiritual ''The Philosophy of the Spiritual'' is an album by bassist Richard Davis recorded in 1971 and released on the Cobblestone label. The album was reissued in 1975 on the Muse label as ''With Understanding''.Epistrophy & Now's the Time'' (Muse, 1972) * '' Dealin''' (Muse, 1973) * '' As One'' (Muse, 1976) * '' Fancy Free'' (Galaxy, 1977) * '' Divine Gemini'' (SteepleChase, 1978) with

Walt Dickerson Walter Roland Dickerson (April 16, 1928 – May 15, 2008) was an American jazz vibraphone player, most associated with the post-bop idiom. Biography Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, Walt Dickerson graduated from Morgan State U ...

* '' Harvest'' (Muse, 1977

979 Year 979 ( CMLXXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * March 24 – Second Battle of Pankaleia: An Ibero-Byzantine expeditionary ...

* '' Way Out West'' (Muse, 1977 980 * '' Tenderness'' (SteepleChase, 1977

985 Year 985 ( CMLXXXV) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * Summer – Henry II (the Wrangler) is restored as duke of Bavaria by Empress Theoph ...

with Walt Dickerson * '' Persia My Dear'' (DIW, 1987) * '' Body and Soul'' (Enja, 1989 991 with

Archie Shepp Archie Shepp (born May 24, 1937) is an American jazz saxophonist, educator and playwright who since the 1960s has played a central part in the development of avant-garde jazz. Biography Early life Shepp was born in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, but ...

* '' The Bassist: Homage to Diversity'' (Palmetto, 2001)

References

External links

Official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Davis, Richard 1930 births Living people Male double-bassists Hard bop double-bassists Jazz fusion double-bassists Mainstream jazz double-bassists Musicians from New York City Musicians from Madison, Wisconsin Post-bop double-bassists University of Wisconsin–Madison faculty Muse Records artists Impulse! Records artists Palmetto Records artists Galaxy Records artists Cobblestone Records artists American jazz double-bassists American classical double-bassists Jazz musicians from New York (state) Classical musicians from New York (state) Classical musicians from Wisconsin 21st-century double-bassists 21st-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians Mingus Dynasty (band) members The Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra members Creative Construction Company members Orchestra U.S.A. members