DAVY KNOWLES & BACK DOOR SLAM
''COMING UP FOR AIR''
JUNE 16 2009
48:31
1 /Coming Up for Air
Davy Knowles/4:36
2 /Riverbed
Davy Knowles/3:38
3 /Mistakes
Davy Knowles/4:15
4 /Hear Me Lord
George Harrison/6:03
5 /Amber's Song
Davy Knowles/3:12
6 /Tear Down the Walls
Davy Knowles/5:01
7 /You Can't Take This Back
Peter Frampton / Davy Knowles/4:52
8 /Country Girl
Davy Knowles/4:28
9 /Keep on Searching
Peter Frampton / Davy Knowles/5:06
10 /Saving Myself
Davy Knowles / Gary Nicholson/3:11
11 /Taste of Danger Feat. Jonatha Brooke
Jonatha Brooke/4:09
Jonatha Brooke/Guitar (Acoustic), Vocals
Christy DeHaven/Vocals (Background)
Christine Collister/Vocals (Background)
Peter Frampton/Bass, Guitar, Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Rhythm), Vocals, Vocals (Background)
Steve Gadd/Drums
Gil Goldstein/Accordion
Davy KnowlesGuitar, Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Electric), Guitar (Rhythm), Guitar (Tenor), Guitars, Mandolin, National Steel Guitar, Vocals
Fritz Lewak/Drums
Christian McBride/Bass (Upright)
Kevin McCormick/Bass
Joe Sample/Hammond B3, Organ (Hammond)
Benmont Tench/Hammond B3, Organ (Hammond), Wurlitzer
REVIEW
by Jonathan Widran
Perfectly acknowledging the whirlwind that inevitably happens when you're heir apparent to a litany of great bluesmen at the not-so-tender-anymore age of 22, Davy Knowles chooses an album title that sums up what it's like to follow the frenzy with another great gust of compelling songs and exciting studio activity. It's hard to tell the Isle of Man singer/guitarist's story without dropping some classic rock names, since he and his band, Back Door Slam, have played concerts with everyone from the Who to Buddy Guy and George Thorogood and toured with Kid Rock, Lynyrd Skynyrd, and Gov't Mule. While many wanted to share stages with this powerful vocalist and brilliant axeman, one legend went a step further. Harking back to his blues-rock roots in Humble Pie, Peter Frampton makes Coming Up for Air his first foray into producing another artist's entire project. The set gets off to a welcome start, simmering then explosive, with the Clapton meets Skynyrd-flavored midtempo title track and the poignant story-song "Riverbed," which are both potential old-school anthem jam-rockers. While Knowles wrote these and a batch of other originals himself, his collaborations are noteworthy. He wrote the sparse, raw ballad "Saving Myself," a low-key ode to lending a helping hand, with Nashville songwriter/guitarist Gary Nicholson, and runs the gamut from sensual and slow-burning to feisty and rocking on his two cuts penned with Frampton, the moody, emotionally searing "You Can't Take This Back" and punchier, blistering guitar-driven "Keep on Searching" (which features Frampton on rhythm and lead guitars and backing vocals). Duetting brilliantly with Jonatha Brooke on her wistful, harmony-driven "Taste of Danger," Knowles also shows a penchant for the jazzier side of the blues, inviting Christian McBride (upright bass) and Joe Sample (Hammond B-3) along for the ride. Perfectly tying past and present together and bridging the generations between Frampton and his contemporary equivalent in Knowles is a sizzling cover of George Harrison's "Hear Me Lord," a choir-infused prayer-anthem whose choir punctuates the message as everything builds to a scorching guitar battle -- as Frampton comes alive and passes the torch to the new generation. Anecdotally, Frampton also played on the original Harrison track from All Things Must Pass. Blues-rock fans of all generations will love this brilliant second studio outing from Knowles and his slammin' Back Door Slam.
BIOGRAPHY
by Mark Deming
British blues-rockers Back Door Slam boast a tough, streetwise sound that recalls veteran U.K. blues players such as Eric Clapton, Peter Green, and John Mayall, though these young guitar slingers represent a new generation -- when bassist Adam Jones joined the group in 2006, guitarist and singer Davy Knowles and drummer Ross Doyle were all of 20 years old, while Jones himself was just 19. The members of Back Door Slam grew up in the tiny seaside community of the Isle of Man, and Knowles decided he wanted to be a guitar player at the age of 11, when he heard "Sultans of Swing" by Dire Straits on the radio while riding in the car with his father. After borrowing his father's acoustic guitar, Knowles began teaching himself to play and digging into his dad's old records, which led him to discover the sounds of the golden age of British blues, while later he began embracing the music's American roots (the name comes from a song by latter-day blues guitarist Robert Cray). After mastering the rudiments of live performing with a handful of local bands, Knowles joined forces with Ross Doyle, bassist Jamie Armstrong, and rhythm guitarist Brian Garvey to form Back Door Slam in 2003. After Garvey died in an auto accident in 2004, the band stripped itself down to a power trio and began earning a potent reputation playing clubs and festivals as well as opening for acts ranging from Don McLean to the Who. In 2006, Jamie Armstrong left the band and Jones arrived to solidify Back Door Slam's lineup. In 2007, Back Door Slam recorded their debut album, Roll Away, and headed to the United States for a concert tour that included appearances at the Lollapalooza and Austin City Limits music festivals. Tour dates with Kid Rock followed in 2008.
''COMING UP FOR AIR''
JUNE 16 2009
48:31
1 /Coming Up for Air
Davy Knowles/4:36
2 /Riverbed
Davy Knowles/3:38
3 /Mistakes
Davy Knowles/4:15
4 /Hear Me Lord
George Harrison/6:03
5 /Amber's Song
Davy Knowles/3:12
6 /Tear Down the Walls
Davy Knowles/5:01
7 /You Can't Take This Back
Peter Frampton / Davy Knowles/4:52
8 /Country Girl
Davy Knowles/4:28
9 /Keep on Searching
Peter Frampton / Davy Knowles/5:06
10 /Saving Myself
Davy Knowles / Gary Nicholson/3:11
11 /Taste of Danger Feat. Jonatha Brooke
Jonatha Brooke/4:09
Jonatha Brooke/Guitar (Acoustic), Vocals
Christy DeHaven/Vocals (Background)
Christine Collister/Vocals (Background)
Peter Frampton/Bass, Guitar, Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Rhythm), Vocals, Vocals (Background)
Steve Gadd/Drums
Gil Goldstein/Accordion
Davy KnowlesGuitar, Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Electric), Guitar (Rhythm), Guitar (Tenor), Guitars, Mandolin, National Steel Guitar, Vocals
Fritz Lewak/Drums
Christian McBride/Bass (Upright)
Kevin McCormick/Bass
Joe Sample/Hammond B3, Organ (Hammond)
Benmont Tench/Hammond B3, Organ (Hammond), Wurlitzer
REVIEW
by Jonathan Widran
Perfectly acknowledging the whirlwind that inevitably happens when you're heir apparent to a litany of great bluesmen at the not-so-tender-anymore age of 22, Davy Knowles chooses an album title that sums up what it's like to follow the frenzy with another great gust of compelling songs and exciting studio activity. It's hard to tell the Isle of Man singer/guitarist's story without dropping some classic rock names, since he and his band, Back Door Slam, have played concerts with everyone from the Who to Buddy Guy and George Thorogood and toured with Kid Rock, Lynyrd Skynyrd, and Gov't Mule. While many wanted to share stages with this powerful vocalist and brilliant axeman, one legend went a step further. Harking back to his blues-rock roots in Humble Pie, Peter Frampton makes Coming Up for Air his first foray into producing another artist's entire project. The set gets off to a welcome start, simmering then explosive, with the Clapton meets Skynyrd-flavored midtempo title track and the poignant story-song "Riverbed," which are both potential old-school anthem jam-rockers. While Knowles wrote these and a batch of other originals himself, his collaborations are noteworthy. He wrote the sparse, raw ballad "Saving Myself," a low-key ode to lending a helping hand, with Nashville songwriter/guitarist Gary Nicholson, and runs the gamut from sensual and slow-burning to feisty and rocking on his two cuts penned with Frampton, the moody, emotionally searing "You Can't Take This Back" and punchier, blistering guitar-driven "Keep on Searching" (which features Frampton on rhythm and lead guitars and backing vocals). Duetting brilliantly with Jonatha Brooke on her wistful, harmony-driven "Taste of Danger," Knowles also shows a penchant for the jazzier side of the blues, inviting Christian McBride (upright bass) and Joe Sample (Hammond B-3) along for the ride. Perfectly tying past and present together and bridging the generations between Frampton and his contemporary equivalent in Knowles is a sizzling cover of George Harrison's "Hear Me Lord," a choir-infused prayer-anthem whose choir punctuates the message as everything builds to a scorching guitar battle -- as Frampton comes alive and passes the torch to the new generation. Anecdotally, Frampton also played on the original Harrison track from All Things Must Pass. Blues-rock fans of all generations will love this brilliant second studio outing from Knowles and his slammin' Back Door Slam.
BIOGRAPHY
by Mark Deming
British blues-rockers Back Door Slam boast a tough, streetwise sound that recalls veteran U.K. blues players such as Eric Clapton, Peter Green, and John Mayall, though these young guitar slingers represent a new generation -- when bassist Adam Jones joined the group in 2006, guitarist and singer Davy Knowles and drummer Ross Doyle were all of 20 years old, while Jones himself was just 19. The members of Back Door Slam grew up in the tiny seaside community of the Isle of Man, and Knowles decided he wanted to be a guitar player at the age of 11, when he heard "Sultans of Swing" by Dire Straits on the radio while riding in the car with his father. After borrowing his father's acoustic guitar, Knowles began teaching himself to play and digging into his dad's old records, which led him to discover the sounds of the golden age of British blues, while later he began embracing the music's American roots (the name comes from a song by latter-day blues guitarist Robert Cray). After mastering the rudiments of live performing with a handful of local bands, Knowles joined forces with Ross Doyle, bassist Jamie Armstrong, and rhythm guitarist Brian Garvey to form Back Door Slam in 2003. After Garvey died in an auto accident in 2004, the band stripped itself down to a power trio and began earning a potent reputation playing clubs and festivals as well as opening for acts ranging from Don McLean to the Who. In 2006, Jamie Armstrong left the band and Jones arrived to solidify Back Door Slam's lineup. In 2007, Back Door Slam recorded their debut album, Roll Away, and headed to the United States for a concert tour that included appearances at the Lollapalooza and Austin City Limits music festivals. Tour dates with Kid Rock followed in 2008.
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