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If ever a guitarist deserved to be chosen the ultimate designated hitter on that instrument, it should be Jesse Ed Davis. Think about this: when George Harrison was organizing the Concert for Bangladesh benefit, he chose Davis to play just in case a wobbly Eric Clapton didn’t come through. Of course Clapton did, but Davis still ended up onstage right next to all the other stars, probably causing a lot of people to wonder about the tall man with long straight black hair holding that blazing Fender guitar. George Harrison was a very smart man, because Davis had a way of making his guitar become a human voice, playing with such a warm urgency that it was like his Stratocaster was talking to us: laughing, crying and generally carrying on. The Oklahoma Native American first made his name in Taj Mahal’s ‘60s band, but when he started recording his own albums Jesse Ed Davis made it abundantly clear he was very much his own man. His first two solo releases featured the cream of the Los Angeles musician scene, but never quite got over. Switching labels, Davis pulled out all the stops on Keep Me Comin’, yet he still couldn’t get past being known as a sideman. There is a whole mess of fine refried Southern blues-rock on this reissue, including the instrumental “Natural Anthem” that really is just that. Inside these grooves is the soul of a man who died much too young, living out his last years hanging around Hamburger Square near the Venice, California pier, but proving that when it came to the guitar, no one ever made it speak sweeter or with more fiery finesse. Ever.
