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Biography
Multi award winning jazz
duo Davis and Dow have chemistry. Soul mates that are two strong halves of one
BIG sound. Davis and Dow tackle jazz and pop standards with a daring sense of
abandon. Their style is deeply rooted in the classic jazz tradition but with a
playfulness that keeps the music fresh and fun. Their arrangements are unique
and inventive, always seeking a new approach to everything they do.
Recognized as one of the finest and most versatile jazz singers of her
generation, Julie Davis is everything from scat-singer to balladeer. She grew up
listening to the music of Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Ella Fitzgerald and
others on her parents extensive vinyl collection. Singing jazz came natural to
Julie from a young age. “A confident singer with a compelling stage presence who
possesses a wry kittenish voice with claws”. “She is a stylist that seeks an
original twist on everything she performs; a risk-taker who’s scatting suggests
she learned in her bassinet”. Now she feels it is her turn to expose newer
generations to a young American art form called jazz.
Kelly Dow is a world-class guitarist who’s primary influences are Joe Pass,
Jimmy Bruno, Django Reinhardt and the modern day European gypsy jazz virtuosos.
He blends Be-Bop, Blues, Flamenco and Classical styles to create a strong
individual sound delivered with sensitivity, power, and creativity. “Simply
orchestral in support”, “Swinging”, “Fat” “Multi-hued” and “Unexpected” are a
few words that critics have used to describe his performance.
They’ve toured Japan, London, and New York, composed and performed original
music for the TV show FoodNation with Bobby Flay, and produced Great Jazz Divas:
a multimedia show that celebrates women, music, and history. Their CD Naked won
Best Jazz Album-Florida Music Awards, and was featured in JazzTimes Magazine’s
2002 year in review issue. D&D were voted Best Jazz Artists-New Times Magazine
and Julie Davis was voted Best Jazz Vocalist-City Link Magazine. Recent
performances include the 2007 Palm Beach Jazz Festival, a Penn State University
tour, and they were awarded a juried showcase at the prestigious Performing Arts
Exchange 2007 in Louisville, KY. Recently Davis and Dow won a two year grant by
the Florida Cultural Arts Division to perform in underserved communities.
“Davis and Dow are the real thing; exciting to hear and watch”. Loverly their
new CD which features Federico Britos on violin with a full ensemble is now
available.
Interview with a Duo 2009
Julie Davis and Kelly Dow sit down for a talk about how they met, what they've
been up to, and what's next.
How
did you two meet?
Kelly: Julie placed an ad in a local music rag stating, "Singer, into Ella and
Sarah, looking for established musicians to form a band." I was doing stints on
cruise ships after college and had decided to take a break from that and stay in
Florida for a while. Julie's was the only jazz ad in between a bunch all putting
together "original heavy metal bands." I called her, and because we are both
from the southwest, we immediately bonded. We met up at a local place that was
supposed to have a jam session that night, but it was a holiday so hardly anyone
showed up except for an inebriated piano player. We asked to sit in, he obliged,
and from the moment we first heard each other we knew we were musical kindred
spirits.
Where did you
learn to play and sing?
Julie: I learned to sing
naturally. I was in church choir and school choir, and always loved to
harmonize. Our house was filled with music--my parents always had a jazz or
swing record on instead of TV. I grew up listening to all the jazz greats: Ella
Fitzgerald, Duke Ellington, Erroll Garner. There was an Ella record, I still
have it. It's called
Ella
Fitzgerald Live at Newport.
There was this one song on it
called "Lemon Drop," one of those Ella Fitzgerald tour de force scat songs. I
used to listen to it over and over again, imitating her phrase by phrase until I
could do the whole song by myself
a cappella.
I actually won a talent competition singing that song in the midst of all these
other people singing and playing rock. It was pretty cool. But that started it
for me. That's how I learned to sing--by listening to all the instruments and
imitating them.
Kelly: I always loved the
guitar, so I started lessons at the local music store from a classical guitar
teacher. When he left there were no other guitar teachers, so I ended up taking
banjo lessons for a short time. I played in local bands in high school, mainly
rock, blues and a little country. Then I attended a guitar conservatory in San
Antonio, Texas, headed by Jackie King and Herb Ellis. The program covered all
styles but the primary emphasis was on jazz. That's where I was introduced to
jazz guitar. After that I went to the University of North Texas and majored in
music--jazz studies. They have an awesome jazz program. It really kicked my
butt. They had such great players there! And not just guitar players--the horn
players and percussionists were all world class. From the students to the
teachers to the artists that would visit and lecture, it was a great experience.
Why
Jazz?
Julie: Jazz is a misnomer for so many things. To me, jazz means freedom of
expression.
Kelly: I see jazz as the Olympics of music genres. You are constantly
improvising, creating new music on the spot. To perform this right you have be
technically proficient on your instrument, have a good knowledge of theory and
harmony, and most important you have to have a good ear and be able to infuse
feeling into the music. So jazz is challenging, creative and fun.
Who are your
influences?
Julie: This is a hard one to answer because when I first started singing, I
mainly listened to singers, like Ella Fitzgerald and Sarah Vaughan, to learn how
to sing. But as I have gotten older, I needed to develop my own style and sound.
So I really enjoy listening to horn players and piano players, like Oscar
Peterson or Eddie Lockjaw Davis (no relation), for ideas. I'm influenced by
everything: Kurt Elling for his poetry and profoundness, and Duke Ellington for
his arranging. I try to learn something from anyone who has a special gift.
Kelly: I feel the same as Julie, and there are definitely different phases. The
usual suspects are there, like Joe Pass, Wes Montgomery, and Johnny Smith. Right
now I'm listening to many of the Gypsy Jazz virtuosos like Jimmy Rosenberg,
Stochelo Rosenberg and Angelo Debarre. On the more modern side of jazz guitar I
like Jimmy Bruno, George Benson and Pat Martino. The players who can do both are
my biggest inspiration--artists like Biréli Lagrène and Andreas Öberg.
Who
are some of the musicians that you have enjoyed performing with?
Kelly: Dr. Lonnie Smith, Ira
Sullivan, Scott Hamilton, Jesse Jones Jr., Eddie Higgins, Bucky Pizzarelli, Ken Peplowski, and
Arron Weinstein-and more recently, Federico Britos and
Dave Hubbard, who are both featured on our new CD,
Loverly.
Who would you
like to play/sing with?
Kelly: Biréli Lagrène, Frank Vignola, Charlie Haden, Howard Alden, John
Pizzerelli,
and all the people I listed as
influences that are still around.
Julie: Wynton Marsalis, Kurt
Elling, Harry Connick jr.
Where has
music taken you?
Julie: From very small towns in the Midwest to Europe, Japan and New York.
Any major accomplishments you are proud of?
Kelly: The new CD,
Loverly.
Developing and producing our show
Great Jazz
Divas. Our previous CD,
Naked.
Being awarded a two year grant on the Florida Touring Roster, which allows us to
bring music and education to underserved communities. Appearing and having our
original music featured on
Food Nation
with Bobby Flay. Really,
we are proud of being able to make a living doing what we love, ever since we
have been together.
What
is the
Great Jazz Divas
Show?
Kelly: This is a show we put together as a loving tribute to the great female
jazz singers of the past, such as Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, Peggy Lee, and
Billie Holiday. It is mainly the duo in concert performing musical selections in
the spirit of these great vocalists. We also have a multi-media component to the
show, with beautiful photographs of the singers projected on the stage. We also
play interview sound-bites of either the singers themselves or famous musicians
and writers discussing their styles and lives. There are so many people doing
impersonation tribute shows today, but this isn't anything like that. We are
being ourselves, and Julie is not trying to sound exactly like they
sounded--that's impossible to do, anyway. We are paying respect, appreciation
and homage to their lives and music. Julie may throw in a turn of a phrase here
and there as a wink to their influence once in awhile, but we aren't doing an
impersonation show at all.
Julie: We've been doing the show for ten years now. That has allowed us to play
small and large stages all over the US. We always get a tremendous response.
Middle school students who have never heard of these artists before say, "Wow, I
never thought I'd like jazz, but I like what you do." And then we have had some
people come up and say, "I remember seeing Ella in a small club in New York." It
feels great to love what you do and see that kind of reaction.
What
are you up to now?
Kelly: Promoting our new CD,
Loverly!
Tell
me more about your new CD,
Loverly.
Julie: Well, it's been two years in the making. We wanted to record the music we
were playing at the time, and about three years ago we really started digging
the music of Django Reinhardt and the Hot Club of France. The swing is so
infectious, and people were really responding to our interpretations of the
music. Since I sing and Django recorded with only a very few singers, we thought
it would bring a new dimension to the music. Kind of like if Ella or Billie were
to sing with Django. Not all the tunes on the CD reflect the Hot Club sound; we
have two duo songs where Kelly plays his seven-string guitar and some group
cuts, one of which features Dave Hubbard on sax. We also throw in an original.
It was such an honor to present jazz violinist Federico Britos on three cuts. He
is an amazing musician. We had such a joyous time making the CD.
Julie and Kelly interview each other
Kelly interviews Julie
What
is "scat" singing?
Nonsensical phrases used in music instead of words. Like "boo beyou do bod doh
doo de." The voice is taking the role of an instrument. Like a horn.
I know
you are influenced by instrumentalists as well as singers. How does an
instrumental artist influence you compared to the way you are influenced by a
singer, say like Ella Fitzgerald?
Ella used her voice like a horn; that's how she learned to sing. So she really
does sound like a horn when she scats. Because I learned to sing by actively
listening, I try to listen to only instrumentalists. They are not as easy to
imitate as singers, so you have to try and develop your own interpretation of
what you hear. I think the human voice is a lot easier to imitate when you are a
singer, so I try not to listen to other singers because that is my nature--to
imitate sounds.
How do
you approach arranging?
When I hear a tune in my head I hear a whole orchestra playing. Sometimes I hear
a quartet or big band or even a singing group. That is how I develop ideas for
the duo. Sometimes I sing the horn part and Kelly is the whole rhythm section,
or we are two horns soloing together. It's fun to use your imagination and come
up with new ideas and sounds from unexpected places. To me, arranging is song
writing. Especially in Jazz music.
Why is
what you do important?
It's important to keep the art alive for future generations. Jazz music is
America's art form. I feel blessed to be a part of that.
It
seems it is always a struggle getting and building an audience for jazz music.
What do you think can be done to cultivate new patrons and new jazz fans?
First, it has to start at home when children are very young. That's where it
started for me. Then, you have the educational system. Music must be placed
higher in our curriculum. These kids are the people who will buy tickets to
concerts and attend cultural events in the future. If we don't nurture our art
form it will die with us, and I don't want to see that happen. I think all
artists must create an educational component to their art, whether it be
painting or dance or music. There is so much more that we can do, but I think
this is a great start.
Thanks, Baby; I love singing with you.
Julie interviews Kelly
What
do you do to develop yourself as a guitar player?
Well, it's the same as the answer to that famous question, "How do you get to
Carnegie Hall?" Practice, practice, practice. It is actually something I love to
do. One key is even if you are playing a scale, always play musically, not
mechanically. Actively listening to all types of music is another very important
daily regimen. I love all aspects of guitar. It is my career and hobby rolled up
in one. I like to dabble in classical, flamenco, and Chet Atkins style as well
as jazz.
Is
there a type of jazz you enjoy playing the most?
Right now, the gypsy jazz style is something I am really into. This is in the
style of Django Reinhardt. It always puts a smile on people's faces and gets
their toes tapping. It requires not only chops, but also much heart and feeling.
What
kinds of guitars do you a) own, and b) want?
For years my main guitar was a Gibson ES-347, which is a great guitar. I also
own two classical models and a Gibson SG. To get the sound of Gypsy Jazz you
have to have a special acoustic guitar, modeled on the 1930's Selmer guitar that
Django played. So for that, I have a Dell'Arte Jimmy Rosenberg model. This is an
unbelievable sounding acoustic instrument. I also have an Eastman Uptown
seven-string arch top. The seventh string really helps give our duo a nice, full
sound. The Eastman is another gem of an instrument. If I hit the lottery it
would be cool to own a Gibson Super 400 that Wes Montgomery played, or something
crazy like that.
How
important is improvisation?
Improvisation is very important. This is at the heart of every jazz performance.
I think keeping it simple, and making sure the music you play feels good and is
in the pocket, is key. You want to tell a story when you solo. Improvising is
spontaneous composing, so you want to be melodic and lyrical. That's the idea,
anyway. You don't want to cram everything you know into every solo--although
sometimes we can't help ourselves!
What
do you believe to be your purpose on Earth?
To play good music with my musical and life soul mate (that's you, Julie) and my
friends, for people who appreciate it. Hopefully, to introduce this wonderful
art to people who, if it hadn't been for us, might have missed out on it. To
live a simple life, and do what I can to protect the environment. An artist's
role is mostly unappreciated in today's society. It is a very important role,
though.
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