JAMIE DAVIS' musical exposure began at the start of a time when the creativity of musical variety and styles were quickly broadening. His father's Pentecostal Church provided Jamie with a primary focus of spiritual music. By the time he was in elementary school, Jamie started singing in the church choir and soon after, began performing as it's soloist. Even at so young an age, Jamie was an ardent lover and keen student of numerous collections of music. Being gifted with such a rich baritone voice, Jamie's family allowed him every opportunity to make full use of it. By age 13, a band composed mostly of extended family members and friends was formed. The band afforded him opportunities to experiment with such secular forms as spiritually tamed ballads and some early rhythm and blues.

Jamie's musical tastes were being deepened and broadened under the influences of older siblings, especially a sister who introduced him to jazz and had him listening to the 'soul' sounds and stylings of such artists as Otis Redding, Ray Charles, Al Green and Lou Rawls. These singers formed the basis for the next step of his progressing interest; the 'soul'-centered jazz of those years being played by Milt Jackson, Horace Silver and especially Jimmy Smith. Jamie took in the live performances of these and many other jazz musicians during his frequent visits to New York, while still in his teens. Consequently, by the time he was 16, Jamie had already included swing ballads, rhythm and blues and 'soul' music he was regularly performing as a member of a band throughout his high school years in Mansfield, Ohio.

At Ohio State University, Jamie majored in music and became a member of the 'Chamber Players,' a group which performed a variety of classical choral music sung in varied languages. The singing of liturgical music in Latin, of compositions in French by Rameau and songs in German by Bach, Schuman and Mahler, obliged Jamie to make use of his rich, full bass-baritone voice. The university experience added one more dimension to his diverse, enlarging musical education.

In the U.S. Army, Jamie became a member of 'Government Issue,' an elite group of singers in Special Services, who mostly toured military bases performing, in solo and in chorus, a broad variety of songs: standard hits, swing ballads, show tunes, and some light jazz and blues. These experiences allowed him to work on high baritone timbre and range, to refine his phrasing, and to experiment with vastly different musical forms.

Later, Jamie returned to Ohio where he became a member of the 13 piece band that played in colleges, clubs and other venues throughout the Ohio area. To advance his professionalism, he then moved to New York to study under the renowned Harlem vocal coach, Edward Boatner, whose training exercises helped in refining Jamie's range, diction and phrasing. During those New York years, he also went to the famous Sigma Sounds Studio in Philadelphia for the practice and experience of recording rhythm and blue tapes with the backing of the MSFB Studio Orchestra.

In 1975, Jamie arrived in the San Francisco Bay Area, where he continued in his career by forming two groups simultaneously -- 'Jamco' a rhythm and blues band and the 'Jamie Davis Quartet' -- which together allowed him to exploit the wide range of his vocal talent. With another rhythm and blues group, 'Paradise,' he also sang at various places on their tour of the western states. Over the years up to the present, working under independent contract, Jamie has performed scores of 'casuals' appearing with such renowned musicians as Milt Jackson, Eddie Henderson, Dave Lieberman, Melba Moore, Allen Smith, Vernon Alley and Pharoah Saunders.

Jamie's full deep baritone served him in another setting when he was asked to voice the narration for 'A Time to Remember,' a docudrama which won the 1997 Black American Independent Filmmakers Award.

Two European tours in 1998 included performances in Paris, Sicily, Rome, Genoa, Venice and Milan, where he recorded a CD as the featured singer of the group 'Higher Standards.' His overwhelming and satisfying European success compelled Jamie to accept another invitation to tour in Europe in early August of 1999.

Because of his steady accomplishments over the years in the San Francisco area jazz scene, Jamie Davis was invited to appear in the prestigious 'Bay Area's Giants of Jazz' photograph, a 1999 event inspired by the acclaimed, historical 'A Great Day in Harlem' photo of 1952.

The Count Basie Orchestra acquired Jamie's talent in January of 2000 where he toured and performed worldwide from small private venues to grand jazz festivals.  

His first solo CD, 'It's All About Love', was released in late February 2002 with rave reviews. 'It's All About Love' features all beautiful love ballads, which is Jamie's forté. The second CD/DVD for Jamie 'It's A Good Thing' recorded in April 2005 on Unity-Music and brought together Shelly Berg, Woody Woodruff, Greg Errico, musicians from the Count Basie Orchestra, Chuck Findley and is the dream of Unity-Music MD, Sam Beler. 'It's A Good Thing' has achieved rewarding reviews and brought Jamie to the attention of BBC/iTV presenter Sir Michael Parkinson. 'Parky' then invited Jamie to perform at the Cheltenham and Edinburgh Jazz Festivals in the UK with the BBC Big Band. Both performances were recorded by the BBC for Radio2. On the digital radio station TheJazz.com, 'It's A Good Thing' has been featured as 'CD of the week' 12/10/07.

Back in the recording studio in 2007 and 'Vibe Over Perfection' will be released early 2008 with tunes receiving the big band, Jamie Davis sound. In 2008 Jamie will be flying high on British Airways, Scandinavian Airways, BMI and Aer Lingus in-flight entertainment programs.

As Jamie says, "We are trying to make this music more available to people."

MJF Debut!

	Sunday Night - September 21, 2008 / 7:30pm
	Garden Stage