Davis was born in
Bentonia, Mississippi and moved to
Memphis, Tennessee in childhood. He became inspired to play guitar at the age of 8, when he heard "
That's All Right" by
Arthur 'Big Boy' Crudup. In 1951, at the age of 13, Davis moved to Detroit, Michigan. There he lived in the predominantly-Black area of the city known as "
Black Bottom" and took guitar lessons from Bosie Gatlin, who taught him how to play
Muddy Waters' song "
Baby, Please Don't Go". Hooker in turn introduced Davis and
Jackie Wilson, who became close friends and collaborated musically throughout their lives. In 1958, Davis was spotted by Henry Booth, The Midnighters continued to draw large audiences at a rate of nearly 300 booking dates a year in the early 1960s. Davis was a flamboyant figure on stage, and he became known for his energetic stage presence, which featured
guitar feedback and was accented with spins and twirls, and
backflips while he played, and he was also known to play his guitar with his teeth. Davis was considered an actual Midnighter alongside the singers, and not just a member of the backing band, because of his ability to play and sing, and also do the group's dance routines. Davis let Jimi play his guitar and gave him some lessons, which was the first time that Hendrix had played an electric guitar. In 1959, Davis also met
blues guitarist
B.B. King, while they were both performing in
Atlanta, Georgia, and they remained close friends until King's death in 2015. In late 1960, while in
Memphis during a stop on their tour,
Elvis Presley dispatched two
state troopers to Crump Stadium where Hank Ballard and The Midnighters were playing at to bring them to his
Graceland mansion for a meetup. Ballard was reluctant at first, and only agreed to go when he saw the rest of the band were going to go without him. The song was ranked No. 246 on ''
Rolling Stone's'' list of
The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time, and was inducted into the
Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999. The track was also sampled by many artists, including
The Chemical Brothers. Davis signed with
A&M Records as Billy "Guitar" Davis in 1969, and released "You Put Me in a Groove" backed with "As I Grow Old", as well as "Stanky (Get Funky)" backed with "I've Tried". Davis got married in 1979, and had two children. In 1974 he moved back to Detroit with the plan of getting out of the music business, and became a trained counselor for underprivileged youth. He effectively retired from playing professionally for nearly nine years, except for occasional gigs and appearances. In 19832,
Sam & Dave called on Davis to put together a band to back them at a concert at
Pine Knob, where they were opening for
James Brown. Brown, who had been a friend of Davis since the 1950s, gave Hank Ballard's phone number to him, and suggested he call Ballard to reunite The Midnighters. In 2001, The Midnighters were among the first to be inducted into the Doo-Wop Hall of Fame, in
Boston, Massachusetts. In 2012, Davis was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, as a member of The Midnighters. A special
subcommittee, appointed by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, addressed the question of recognizing members of pioneering groups that had not been inducted when their front men were inducted. As a result of this committee's decision, The Midnighters were automatically inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame alongside Hank Ballard, who had been inducted in 1990. In 2015, Davis, as a member of Hank Ballard & the Midnighters, was inducted into the
Rhythm and Blues Music Hall of Fame. To celebrate John Lee Hooker's 100th birthday anniversary in 2017, Davis joined drummer
Muruga Booker, P-Funk guitarist
Tony "Strat" Thomas, bassist
John Sauter, and singer Misty Love to form the
Booker Blues All-Stars and released a CD called
Booker Plays Hooker. Davis was introduced to Detroit blues rocker
Eliza Neals by his friend
Barrett Strong, Davis went on to record "At the Crossroads" (feat. Billy Davis) and perform at the 2017
Ann Arbor Blues and Jazz Festival as Neals featured guest. On October 12, 2017, Davis was honored with a "70 over 70" award, for his achievements in advancement of art, at a ceremony that was held at The historic Roostertail restaurant in Detroit, Michigan. where they made it to the semi-finals. He is a key featured musician in the feature-length documentary film,
Paradise Boogie, released in 2018 chronicling the past, present and future of Detroit blues. Davis currently lives in
Southfield, Michigan, On October 19, 2022, Billy Davis and his band played at the Southfield (MI) Public Library event "Jazz & Blues at Your Library". == Selected discography ==