Surprise Me Mr. Davis Surprise Me Mr. Davis is an electro-folk band consisting of Nathan Moore and the members of
avant-rock band
The Slip. They formed in 2003 in
Boston while Moore was visiting The Slip at their apartment and the
Blizzard of 2003 hit. When they were snowed in, Moore and The Slip spent the time playing with home recording equipment, the result eventually becoming their self-titled album. During the period in which they were snowed in, the band members would ask each other what they should play on their instruments. The typical answer soon became "Surprise me". Toward the end of the week, Nathan Moore received a message on his cell phone from the voice of an elderly lady with a rich accent saying, "Mister Davis, you're having fun with that recording!" It was a wrong number, but the band decided to merge "Surprise Me." and "Mister Davis", thus making the official band name
Surprise Me Mr. Davis. In the winter of 2004, the band toured for the first time in the Northeast. The clubs they played included the
Tin Cup in
Philadelphia, Savannah's in
Albany, New York, and Eclipse Theater in
Waitsfield, Vermont. In March and April 2005, they again played a
Northeast tour. Later that year in November, they played a California tour, hitting clubs such as The Independent in San Francisco, Sweetwater in
Mill Valley, California, Moe's Alley in Santa Cruz, and Winston's in
San Diego. They have also played
High Sierra Music Festival every year since forming. At the 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010
High Sierra Music Festival, they played surprise late night shows at Camp Harry. Keyboardist
Marco Benevento joined the band in 2009.
2007: In His Own Worlds Moore's seventh solo effort,
In His Own Worlds, was released on Frogville Records on June 27, 2008. "The sharp, introspective lyrics of Nathan Moore draw an instant connection to the great folk singers of the past." -Paste Magazine "Nathan Moore…is one of the greatest songwriters we have and the faucet is always on pouring fresh songs out like water." Aaron Case- Jambase "Moore has a timeless sound that falls easily into place next to those hollowed names that came before him – Seeger, Havens, and Dylan." - AmericanaUK ==Discography==