Tim Davis

Drummer Tim Davis was playing with a band in Madison, WI, in the mid-'60s when a friend from the University of Wisconsin, guitarist/singer Steve Miller, asked him to try forming a blues band with him and another friend, James "Curly" Cooke, in San Francisco. Thus was born what was then known as the Steve Miller Blues Band in 1966. Davis stuck with Miller through those difficult early days -- when there wasn't much paid work or money -- through early appearances supporting Chuck Berry on his Fillmore West live album and at the Monterey Pop Festival. They landed a recording contract soon after, and Davis was the band's drummer and percussionist (and also contributed backing vocals) on their first five albums, including Brave New World and Number 5. He also managed to work in some playing with the Jefferson Airplane, most notably on the Crown of Creation sessions, during this period. He later played with Ben Sidran, in addition to cutting his own album, Pipe Dream -- featuring contributions from Cooke and the Grateful Dead's Donna Jean Godchaux -- in 1972. ~ Bruce Eder, Rovi