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THE BIG MACHINE: Ex-Burdon DAVID DAVENPORT'S NEW SOLO CD By Robert E. Martin Fans of The Burdons - that Bay City musical staple that has filled the mid-Michigan diet for exuberant Rock 'n Roll music for over two decades now - will remember the name of David Davenport. As keyboardist, vocalist, and songwriter, Dave added a balanced and divergent element into the original music and harmonious sound that defined one of our area's most beloved groups. After leaving The Burdons in 1991, Dave moved to Bloomington, Illinois to become a computer programmer. But the lure of music was never far behind, finding Davenport working in community theatre and co-founding a successful Blues Band entitled Lorrie Ann & the Three D's, which opened for major artists such as Lonnie Brooks and Joanna Connor throughout Illinois. Throughout the past decade, however, Davenport also dedicated himself towards constructing a solo project, the results of which can be heard on his new CD, entitled The Big Machine. Consisting of 10 songs written over the span of his lifetime, the combined endeavor is a showcase of songwriting talent, touching upon a cornucopia of different musical styles. "One song, Walk in the Woods, I wrote 32 years ago when I was 13," explains Davenport. "And a major reason for this project was to put some of these babies to rest. I've written a bunch of new songs, but I wanted to close the book on the ones written that have been hanging around." Assisted by bassist Michael Hill and drummer Gary Erwin (both former members of Lorrie Ann), along with a string of guest performances, the onus is nonetheless on David Davenport's song structures, which run the gamut from ballads, rock, pop, blues, and even Latin flavors. Kicking off with Transition Man, a song about women that seek men as 'friends, but never lovers', this opening track is a solid foray into the type of spinning, exhilarating sound that defined much of The Burdons earlier work. Yet on tracks such as The Big Machine, the focus shifts entirely into an almost spoken verse-line that is reinforced by a wall of harmonized Gospel-type backing-vocals that sends shivers directly up the spine. "One thing I've learned through the years about performing original tunes is that when you do them live, many times they suck," laughs Davenport. "With The Burdons I discovered that the songs that were thrown together people really enjoyed, yet the ones you spent a lot of time on often didn't go over. So in essence, the songs on The Big Machine are ones that have survived over the years and really held up over time." "I've never been much for writing in one particular style," continues David. "I've done it specifically for bands, but many of these songs reflect my evolution through music." "My earliest memories of music are listening to things like Dionne Warwick and Harry Belafonte, then moving to The Beatles and The Doors, then moving into Blues and Jazz in the '70s, until Elvis Costello turned me around totally in the '80s. So I've been in punk rock bands, power pop bands, blues bands, and enjoy all that stuff, only feel that it often invades what I want to do." With The Big Machine, David Davenport has crystallized the multi-faceted layers of influence into a disparate musical journey through his past that also defines his present by focusing through the singular vision of his character. One of the better albums I've heard this year, the CD can be purchased on the Internet at cdbaby.com and also at cdstreet.com.
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