A good sized crowd of about 40 people gathered in the Owl Lounge for a crash course in the Delta blues courtesy of Nova Scotia bluesman Morgan Davis, Aug. 11.
He played three solid set of originals, blues classics and obscurities, rising above the chattering crowd, who stopped their talk and applauded politely after each number.
He played three sets on his own, alternating between a standard tuned guitar, an open tuned guitar for several slide powered numbers and a three string guitar made out of a cigar box, which pleasantly surprised those people paying attention.
He had a strong, silky, smooth voice along the lines of Dr. John mixed with Harry Manx and fingerpicked leads and basslines on his guitars as he grinned between solos, getting his guitar to sing “thank you,” the the rousing applause.
His second set began with a Sonny Boy Williamson cover, plus “Canned Heat Blues,” from unsung delta-blues legend Tommy Johnson from 1929 and several Robert Johnson classics including “32-20 Blues,” “When You’ve Got A Good Friend,” and “ Walking Blues.”
He played a Blind Willie McTell song then glared briefly at the chuntering crowd, before getting lost in his music again by playing “Can’t Be Satisfied.”
He ended his second set by getting the audience to shout “what,” to his “Hey,” during a the “Reefer Smoking Man.”
He returned for a brief third set which ended about a quarter after midnight with a smooth version of BB King’s “Rock Me Baby.”
