Musical Guest:Davy Knowles & Back Door Slam

Wrapping up Davy Knowles & Back Door Slam week with my favorite of their songs so far, "Tear Down The Walls". One of the things I love about this guy's playing is he phrases things in ways that I'm not sure I've ever heard before or would have thought of. This song is just a barnstorming ride through a tornado. I don't know how else to put it.

The other thing, and I've mentioned it before, is Davy's wisdom to pick a backing band that is equal or better than he is. It's one thing to be a terrifyingly good guitarist and it's one thing to be a stupifyingly good bandleader but the real genius of any great is their willingness to be shown up. Because if you're not willing to have great people on stage with you, even to the point of possibly looking bad by comparison, how do you get better? And how do you give your fans what the absolute best you have the ability to bring them?

Look at, for example, Eric Clapton. Clearly he's God but I've seen video of him get up on stage with B.B. King and almost do nothing but play rhythm guitar (partially because B.B. doesn't play rhythm himself). We all know Clapton can clearly hold his own but you can also quite clearly see that Clapton is learning and admiring. I think that's a bit of what goes on with Knowles and his band in this clip.

Enjoy!

And don't forget to follow Davy on Twitter @davyknowles and check out davyknowles.com

Email me at mnorton1972 or follow me on Twitter @colierrannd