David Vest (born November 2, 1943) is an American blues piano player and songwriter from

Huntsville, Alabama Huntsville is the List of municipalities in Alabama, most populous city in the U.S. state of Alabama. The population of the city is estimated to be 241,114 in 2024, making it the List of United States cities by population, 100th-most populous ...

, United States. Vest is currently signed to the Canadian Independent label, Cordova Bay Records, and lives in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.

History

Vest was born in 1943, and grew up in

Birmingham, Alabama Birmingham ( ) is a city in the north central region of Alabama, United States. It is the county seat of Jefferson County, Alabama, Jefferson County. The population was 200,733 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List ...

, United States. He learned to a play on a used piano his grandmother had delivered to their house in West End, a few blocks away from Ensley's

Tuxedo Junction "Tuxedo Junction" is a popular big band song recorded by Glenn Miller and His Orchestra, becoming a No. 1 hit in 1940. The music was written by Erskine Hawkins, Bill Johnson, and Julian Dash and the lyrics by Buddy Feyne. The song was introduce ...

. He played his first paying gig at the age of 14. He has worked professionally as a pianist from the age of 15, since 1957. In the 1960s Vest played seven nights a week at Pappy's Club with Jerry Woodard and The Esquires. On New Year's Day 1962 he opened for

Roy Orbison Roy Kelton Orbison (April 23, 1936 – December 6, 1988) was an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist known for his distinctive and powerful voice, complex song structures, and dark, emotional ballads. Orbison's most successful periods were ...

. He backed

Big Joe Turner Joseph Vernon "Big Joe" Turner Jr. (May 18, 1911 – November 24, 1985) was an American blues shouter from Kansas City, Missouri. According to songwriter Doc Pomus, "Rock and roll would have never happened without him". Turner's greatest fa ...

in the 1960s and later toured with Jimmy T99 Nelson,

Floyd Dixon Floyd Dixon (February 8, 1929 – July 26, 2006) was an American rhythm-and-blues pianist and singer. Life and career Dixon was born in Marshall, Texas. Some sources give his birth name as Jay Riggins Jr., although Dixon himself stated that F ...

, and Lavelle White, as well as the rockabilly group Bill Black's Combo. David Vest was also the co-leader of the

Paul deLay Paul Joseph deLay (January 31, 1952 – March 7, 2007) was an American blues vocalist and harmonicist. Life and career Paul deLay was born in Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. st ...

Band. He currently lives in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, with his wife.

Awards and achievements

David Vest was voted 2012 Maple Blues Keyboard/Piano Player of the Year by The Toronto Blues Society. His 2012 album ''East Meets Vest'', was also nominated for Maple Blues Recording Of The Year. Vest has received five Muddy Awards from the Cascade Blues Association, including the Best Keyboard Player. He has also played piano on Bill Johnson's JUNO-nominated album ''Still Blue'' and on

David Gogo David Gogo (born March 18, 1969), is a Canadian blues guitarist, singer-songwriter and bandleader who is currently signed to the independent Cordova Bay Records label. He was formerly signed to EMI Records. Between 1994 and 2024, he released 16 s ...

's 2014 JUNO-nominated record ''Come On Down''. His 2014 album ''Roadhouse Revelation'' charted on the !earshot ( NCRA) national Top 50 at number 24 on the week of June 10, 2014. The release also charted at number one on the Roots Music Report Chart.

Solo discography

* 2003 ''Way Down Here'' (Ark-O-Matic) * 2005 ''Serve Me Right to Shuffle'' (Ark-O-Matic) * 2010 ''Rock A While'' (Ark-O-Matic) * 2012 ''East Meets Vest'' (Ark-O-Matic) * 2014 ''Roadhouse Revelation'' ( Cordova Bay Records)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vest, David 1943 births Living people Musicians from Huntsville, Alabama Musicians from Birmingham, Alabama Songwriters from Alabama American blues pianists