Nathan Davis' live album really showcases his talent as a musician and a songwriter. This album is a simple recording of guitar and piano that does perfect justice to the incredible experience of seeing Nathan in your local smokey watering-hole. If you haven't heard him before, give Carolina Sky and Still Rock and Roll a listen. This album is a personal favorite and I highly recommend it.
John H., iTunes
Influences
Bruce Springsteen, Edwin McCain, Bruce Hornsby, Guns 'N Roses, Neil Finn, Tony Rice, good bourbon.
Nathan's web site is at http://www.nathan-davis.com.
There are several ways to get CDs. First and easiest, the web site has them. For that, you need a credit card, which is used via Paypal. You do NOT need a Paypal account. You can also use a check through Paypal.
A second way is through CDBaby (here for Nathan Davis Live! and here for Out of My Skin). Obviously, a credit card is required there as well.
And the third way, if you don't want to use a credit card, is to send us a check. Each CD (either Nathan Davis Live! or Out of My Skin) is $15 and that includes postage. Make the check out to David Davis and mail it to:
Davis
145 Rainbow Drive #4592
Livingston, TX 77399
A printable mail order form is available on the web site. Just include a note as to which CDs you want and how many of each. We'll ship them out to you as soon as the check clears. All profit from Nathan's music is going to benefit his daughter's educational fund.
Sounds Like
Moonshine (preferably Char) and Springsteen on the rocks with a splash of regret. Respectfully.
"Brother Man" is the first single from the new CD by Bull City Syndicate. A musical tribute to Nathan, it was written by Nathan's close friend and producer, John Custer, who produced both the new Bull City Syndicate album and "Nathan Davis Live!"
The song features a high powered opening by the Bull City Horns, a primary vocal track done by Steve Baker, and drums by Larry Woodard, Nathan's drummer.
Artist Spotlight at dKaye.com. Please go take a look. It's a terrific review, complete with lots of clips, video and interviews. Our sincere thanks to Donna for doing such a beautiful job with this and helping us promote the music.
Digital downloads of Nathan's music are available now on the web site. To access them, go to the Merchandise page and link there.
Both "The Holly Show" and "Alibi" (long out of print) are available as downloads, so if you don't have a copy, you can get one now.
"The Devil Can't Fly"
Jeremy's Gilchrist's new song, a tribute to Nathan, is available at his web site for listening and as a download. John Henry Trinko and Doug Kwartler helped Jeremy finish this song, and the result is terrific. Be sure to go listen.
Nathan Davis
"I Guess I'm Just a Dreamer..."
"Take all the anger, addiction, despair, revelation, love and redemption that can possibly be packed into the human heart over a lifetime, pour it into gospel piano and raw guitar, lead it with a vocal that can growl, rasp, plead, and roar, and this is the result."
--- Jennifer Layton, from Indie-Music.com
Born as the only child of devout Christian fundamentalists, Nathan Davis was educated in Christian schools, and trained as a classical pianist. He began to write poetry, at first secretly, as a young teenager, about the same time that he began to teach himself to play the guitar.
He wrote his first songs, including the much-acclaimed “Bittersweet,” before he was 17 years old, and began to put together a band and play gigs before he got out of high school.
On his 18th birthday, he left the small town in North Carolina where he was born, and went to St. Louis, MO, where he became a member of the band, End of End, and gained a great deal of real world experience. Returning home, he promptly left again, this time for Atlanta and the Olympics, where he was one of the few kids who actually had a real, paying job there. He soon discovered, though, that he could make more money playing for tips on the street corners.
After the Olympics were over, Nathan began his wandering years. Many days were spent not knowing where he would spend the night. He found himself at one time or another in New Orleans, Memphis, and all ..up and down the southeast, ending up in far flung Alaska for a year or so. A coffee shop owner in Alaska convinced him that he needed to leave the state and go back to his roots, back where he could find a larger audience. She said that he was the most talented person she had ever met.
After coming home to Southern Pines, NC, in 2000, he began experimenting with various band members, from a short-lived funk-rock band called “The Lost Cause,” to an acoustic jam band trio known as “Alibi.” Alibi released a very limited run CD, self-titled, which is out of print at present.
All the while, he was writing songs, lots of them, chronicling a life lived on the highways of America, searching for meaning, sorting out his often conflicting beliefs. Way more than just songs about love gained and lost, Nathan wrestled with the demons of alcohol and drug abuse, and sang about it. He sang about doubt and pain and frustration. He wrote about the unfairness of life.
He has a remarkable style, writing poignant lyrics full of pain, hope, heartbreak, love, despair and strength, always telling his story with passion and honesty. He carries his songs with convincing ease and a powerful depth.
As one journalist said about him, “He did not write music. He didn’t sing it. He transformed himself into it.” His songs are gut-wrenching. He took every emotion he ever felt, turned that emotion into poetry, set the poetry to music and then set it on fire.
In the beginning, he got gigs in local bars and restaurants and found that people wanted him to play songs they were familiar with, cover songs. In order to play, he had to do some of those. However, he picked the covers that he played carefully – songs that reflected how he felt, the struggles that mirrored his life, songs he could feel. And he played them his own way.
Interspersed throughout in those early gigs were his original songs and soon people began to listen to what he was singing about. It wasn’t long until the crowds were beginning to request his songs, not the covers. Not long after that, they were singing along with him.
Recorded live in 2000 at the Jefferson Inn in Southern Pines by Chad Stites , Nathan’s first CD, The Holly Show, completely sold out and is now considered a collector’s item, with people all over the country still searching for the stray copy.
In 2001, Nathan began a collaboration with a talented teenage producer named Grant Walker, a nine-month long project involving many hours of work that became Out of My Skin, a studio album showcasing not only Nathan’s writing and performing abilities, but also his ability to arrange and produce music as well as play multiple instruments well. It went on to become the best selling local artist album at Davis’ hometown Sam Goody music store.
By the fall of 2003, he was performing in Raleigh, NC and the surrounding area, and connected with the very well-known, Grammy-nominated producer, John Custer. The two men instantly formed not only a business relationship, but a friendship, and began working on a studio album, the soon-to-be-released Revolution Lane.
In November of 2003, Chad Stites again recorded Nathan performing at the Six String Café in Cary, NC. That recording, produced by John Custer in early 2005, became Nathan Davis Live! It features the keyboard of John Henry Trinko and bassist Jeff Crawford.
In between all of this, Raleigh-based video producer Roger Flake had been taking hours and hours of video in preparation for a DVD.
By this time, Nathan was back on the road, traveling throughout much of the southeast, and gaining fans wherever he went. In the summer of 2006, he toured South Carolina and Florida for several weeks, to very receptive audiences wherever he went.
In late August, 2006, very suddenly, and tragically, the world lost Nathan Davis.
What we did not lose was the music. It is still here, embodying all the passion and energy he could muster. It is still here, telling the story of his all-too-brief life way better than we can with mere words. The best artists are the ones who truly feel what they create. Nobody felt more than Nathan Davis. Nobody ever told his story better than Nate himself.
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Please note!
The music has not died. Nathan's music will be available forever. We have a large backlog of unpublished material that Nathan recorded. We will be working with his long-time producer, John Custer, to bring this music to the market over the next several years. Proceeds from the sale of Nathan's music will go in their entirety to Cassidy, first in the form of an educational fund, and beyond that, in trust.
"He has written the soundtrack of my life and probably the lives of many other young, spirited individuals who have been broken down. I admire his songwriting immensely."
--- anonymous (from the internet)
The Nathan Davis song "Revolution Lane" was a finalist in the Rock/Alternative category for the very prestigious 2005 USA Songwriting Competition!
The USA Songwriting Competition® is the world's leading international songwriting event that honors songwriters, composers, bands, recording artists everywhere. Winners are selected by a Blue Ribbon committee of music industry judges including record label publishers, producers from Sony Music, Universal Music, Warner, etc.
A recent review:
"The first time I discovered Nathan Davis, I was browsing through many different artists on CDBaby.com, just looking for that special something. Perhaps an artist that blew me out of the water... Not to take away from any of the other artists, but, Nathan is a very unique talent. From the first song, "Face in the crowd," as I listened to him roar like nothing i've heard in a very long time, I was instantly hooked. I bought the album. Very creative in the making of an album that stays with you long after you hear it. I also ended up buying his "Live" album from his web site (nathan-davis.com). I wasn't prepared for the ton of bricks that hit me when I listened to it. Hearing Nathan's incredible range, raw and uncut, was a once in a lifetime experience I get to have over and over. It's THE best live album I've ever heard. His lyrics touch you. His voice captivates you. Nathan has one of those very rare talents where he makes you shut up and listen, all-the-while singing along. He has quickly become one of my favorite artists. Nathan pours his heart and soul out on a piece of paper, then tells you about it..."
i woke up this morning with Still Rock and Roll in my head. i guess i'm living in that song. you'd never believe it man, but i'm having a baby in december. you can bet he or she will know your words one day. i miss you and i'm so thankful for these songs today and every day that i need you. love you, brother.
hope all is well with you guys, Dave & Sally. where have your travels taken you now?
Thank you for the add. I came across the page somehow and I'm so glad I did because I just couldn't stop listening. The lyrics are so beautiful and I know Nathan's memory will always live on through these amazing songs.
It's been almost 2 years and I just started being able to listen to your music again. It hurts, but I missed your voice and love to hear you laugh on the tracks. Brings back great memories. Just wanted to let you know that Nathan Asher & the Infantry are breaking up. They had their farewell show last Friday at the Berkeley. Since you introduced me to them and we went to all their shows together, I just couldn't miss the final show. It was great, you would have enjoyed it. The best part though, in one of the stalls in the girls bathroom in big bold letters it read, DEREK ARNOLD IS A DOG! I can just hear you laughing now! I miss you, but I know you're 'still singing from your grave.'
Hope all is well; been having these really wierd dreams...not bad, but they seem to have soundtracks...Nate's music....It keeps a smile on my face during these dreary days...
I had a great time playing a small music festival in Georgia last weekend. I know it would have been right up Nate's alley. I have a few pics posted from it with more to come soon. Anyway I hope you guys are well and did I miss any NC visits ?
I loved nathan and always will. His music is a constant inspiration to me and i'm sure a million others. I only knesw him for a short time but the impression he made on me is great. every day something happens to me or somebody will say something than reminds me of one of his lyrics or somthing he said in one of his amazing songs. He had such an profound grasp on life, and the lessons we learn on our journey through it. What a true talent he was. I miss him so much, and i know im not the only one.
As I write this Bush has only 283 days left and they can't pass soon enough. Anyway I just was wondering how the road is treating you since I last heard from you. I hope you enjoy the weekend and I may just sit outside listen to some NAthan Davis and enjoy a round or two.
Hi Nate, I miss you. I dreamned about you last night...was watching you play Carolina Sky...but could only see your hands. Are you trying to give me lessons still? I sooo enjoy coming here and listening and am so grateful your family and friends are keeping you alive. :) Somebody needs to come on here and cuss you out. I know you are sick of all this nicey nicey...so KISS MY ASS NATE!! hehe
I think about you often and talk about you a lot. Comforting, fun, vivid memories that are still very real to me. I never had to learn to live without you b/c you're always gonna be here. Okay, enough with all that gay sappy shit...I know you know. I did decide if ever have a son I'll name him Nathan...after Asher, of course - HA! just kidding...after both of you of course. Keepin the legend alive; you live through me.
What an amazing talent! Thank you for sharing his music with me, I am sure I will be back often to listen to his wonderful lyrics and terrific voice. I would have loved to have shared a stage with him. Randy Burns
I find myself listening to this music just about every day lately. I never knew Nathan but I feel a great connection to his music and his story. Thanks again!
I hope you guys are doing well! I also hope the cd will or has arrived safely. I am happy to share the CD Release in NY went well and I am hoping for the same for the one here in Raleigh this saturday. Obviously Nathan is a huge factor in the progress I have made over the years and I am very thankful always for that. Endless resolve is what he had and that it was I try my best to take with me everyday. Stay well.
