Steve Davis Project

Steve Wynn went from the lower reaches of the Los Angeles underground music scene to major critical acclaim practically overnight with the release of the Dream Syndicate's debut album, The Days of Wine and Roses, in 1982. It proved to be the first act in a long and fascinating career in which Wynn matured into one of the canniest songwriters in rock, penning smart, flinty lyrics that told perceptive tales of human behavior both noble and otherwise, married to tough, engaging melodies full of muscular guitar work…

Rock fans had been waiting for a Steve Winwood solo album for more than a decade, as he made his way through such bands as the Spencer Davis Group and Traffic. When Winwood finally delivered with this LP, just about everybody was disappointed. Traffic had finally petered out three years before, but Winwood, using such former members as Jim Capaldi and Rebop Kwaku Baah, failed to project a strong individual identity outside the group. That great voice was singing the songs, that talented guitarist/keyboardist was playing them, and that excellent songwriter had composed them, but nothing here was memorable, and the long-awaited debut proved a bust.

From jazz and soul to rock and country, the blues are the bedrock and a uniting feature for much of the popular music originating in the United Sates. The simple and repetitive structures are easy to grasp and perform, making the blues extremely approachable. Under the command of brilliant writers like the legendary Lead Belly, the blues maintains a unique place between high art and common expression.