Walter Davis

Walter Davis

Walter Davis (March 1, 1911 or 1912 – October 22, 1963) was an American blues singer, pianist, and songwriter who was one of the most prolific blues recording artists from the early 1930s to the early 1950s. He was unrelated to the jazz pianist Walter Davis, Jr. Davis had a rich singing voice that was as expressive as the best of the Delta blues vocalists. His best-known recording, a version of the train blues standard "Sunnyland Blues", released in 1931, is more notable for the warmth and poignancy of his singing than for his piano playing. His best-known songs included "Come Back Baby", "Ashes in My Whiskey" and "Blue Blues". Davis was sometimes billed as "Hooker Joe".

Birth and Death Data: Born March 1, 1912 (Grenada), Died October 22, 1963 (St. Louis)

Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1929 - 1947

Roles Represented in DAHR: vocalist, composer, piano, lyricist

= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.

Recordings (Results 51-75 of 200 records)

Company	Matrix No.	Size	First Recording Date	Title	Primary Performer	Description	Role
Victor	BS-85486	10-in.	2/25/1935	Lay around on your DBA	Walter Davis	Male vocal solo, with piano	lyricist, composer, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist
Victor	BS-91429	10-in.	7/28/1935	Dentist blues	Walter Davis	Male vocal solo, with piano and guitar	composer, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist
Victor	BS-91430	10-in.	7/28/1935	Root man blues	Walter Davis	Male vocal solo, with piano and guitar	composer, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist
Victor	BS-91431	10-in.	7/28/1935	Pearly May	Walter Davis	Male vocal solo, with piano and guitar	composer, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist
Victor	BS-91432	10-in.	7/28/1935	What have I done wrong?	Walter Davis	Male vocal solo, with piano and guitar	composer, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist
Victor	BS-91433	10-in.	7/28/1935	I can tell by the way you smell	Walter Davis	Male vocal solo, with piano and guitar	composer, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist
Victor	BS-91434	10-in.	7/28/1935	Santa Claus	Walter Davis	Male vocal solo, with piano and guitar	composer, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist
Victor	BS-96234	10-in.	10/31/1935	Moonlight is my spread	Walter Davis	Male vocal solo, with guitar and piano	composer, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist
Victor	BS-96235	10-in.	10/31/1935	Don't the clouds look lonesome	Walter Davis	Male vocal solo ("blues singer"), with guitar and piano	composer, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist
Victor	BS-96236	10-in.	10/31/1935	Katy blues	Walter Davis	Male vocal solo ("blues singer"), with guitar and piano	composer, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist
Victor	BS-96237	10-in.	10/31/1935	Ashes in my whiskey	Walter Davis	Male vocal solo ("blues singer"), with guitar and piano	composer, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist
Victor	BS-96238	10-in.	10/31/1935	Blues at midnight	Walter Davis	Male vocal solo ("blues singer"), with guitar and piano	composer, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist
Victor	BS-96239	10-in.	10/31/1935	Can't get along with you	Walter Davis	Male vocal solo ("blues singer"), with guitar and piano	composer, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist
Victor	BS-100332	10-in.	4/3/1936	Feel myself sinkin' down	Walter Davis	Male vocal solo, with piano	composer, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist
Victor	BS-100333	10-in.	4/3/1936	Just wondering	Walter Davis	Male vocal solo, with piano	lyricist, composer, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist
Victor	BS-100334	10-in.	4/3/1936	Fallin' rain	Walter Davis	Male vocal solo, with piano	lyricist, composer, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist
Victor	BS-100335	10-in.	4/3/1936	Well diggin' papa	Walter Davis	Male vocal solo, with piano	lyricist, composer, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist
Victor	BS-100336	10-in.	4/3/1936	Carpenter man	Walter Davis	Male vocal solo, with piano	lyricist, composer, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist
Victor	BS-100337	10-in.	4/3/1936	Jacksonville	Walter Davis	Male vocal solo, with piano	composer, lyricist, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist
Victor	BS-100338	10-in.	4/3/1936	Jacksonville	Walter Davis	Male vocal solo, with piano	composer, lyricist, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist
Victor	BS-100339	10-in.	4/3/1936	Think you need a shot	Walter Davis	Male vocal solo, with piano	lyricist, composer, instrumentalist, piano, vocalist
Victor	BS-07641	10-in.	5/5/1937	Angel child	Walter Davis	Male vocal solo, with guitar and piano	composer, vocalist
Victor	BS-07642	10-in.	5/5/1937	Fifth Avenue	Walter Davis	Male vocal solo, with guitar and piano	composer, vocalist
Victor	BS-07643	10-in.	5/5/1937	I ain't got changing clothes	Walter Davis	Male vocal solo, with guitar and piano	composer, vocalist
Victor	BS-07644	10-in.	5/5/1937	West Coast blues	Walter Davis	Male vocal solo, with guitar and piano	composer, vocalist

(Results 51-75 of 200 records)

Citation

Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Davis, Walter," accessed November 22, 2024, https://adpprod2.library.ucsb.edu/names/107423.

Davis, Walter. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved November 22, 2024, from https://adpprod2.library.ucsb.edu/names/107423.

"Davis, Walter." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 22 November 2024.

DAHR Persistent Identifier

URI: https://adpprod2.library.ucsb.edu/names/107423

External Sources

Wikipedia: Walter Davis

Discogs: Walter Davis

Allmusic: Walter Davis

Linked Open Data Sources

LCNAR: Davis, Walter, 1912-1963 - http://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n96045843

Wikidata: Walter Davis - http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q1481905

VIAF: http://viaf.org/viaf/19871670

MusicBrainz: Walter Davis - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/2cc09627-ac51-46e1-bc1f-92e49ace09d5

Wikipedia content provided under the terms of the Creative Commons BY-SA license

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