Ronald J. "Spanky" Davis (March 6, 1943 – October 23, 2014) was an American

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a majo ...

trumpeter.

Career

Davis worked with

Charlie Palmieri Carlos Manuel "Charlie" Palmieri (November 21, 1927 – September 12, 1988) was an American bandleader and musical director of salsa music. He was known as the "Giant of the Keyboards". Early years Palmieri's parents migrated to New York from P ...

(1979), Sam Jones (1979–82),

Machito Machito (born Francisco Raúl Gutiérrez Grillo, December 3, 1909 – April 15, 1984) was a Latin jazz musician who helped refine Afro-Cuban jazz and create both Cubop and salsa music. Ginell, Richard S. ''Biography''. Allmusic, 2011/ref> He w ...

(1980–81), and

Benny Goodman Benjamin David Goodman (May 30, 1909 – June 13, 1986) was an American clarinetist and bandleader known as the "King of Swing". From 1936 until the mid-1940s, Goodman led one of the most popular swing big bands in the United States. His conce ...

(1982–83). He toured Ireland with

Al Cohn Al Cohn (November 24, 1925 – February 15, 1988) was an American jazz saxophonist, arranger and composer. He came to prominence in the band of clarinetist Woody Herman and was known for his longtime musical partnership with fellow saxophonist ...

in 1983-84, then played with

Bob Haggart Robert Sherwood Haggart (March 13, 1914 – December 2, 1998) was an American dixieland jazz double bass player, composer, and arranger. Although he is associated with dixieland, he was one of the finest rhythm bassists of the Swing Era. Music ...

in 1984-85. Concurrently, he led the house band at Jimmy Ryan's in New York City from 1980, following

Roy Eldridge David Roy Eldridge (January 30, 1911 – February 26, 1989), nicknamed "Little Jazz", was an American jazz trumpeter. His sophisticated use of harmony, including the use of tritone substitutions, his virtuosic solos exhibiting a departure from ...

in this position. Jimmy Ryan's closed in 1983, but Davis continued to lead this band in other performances as Jimmy Ryan's All-Stars; this ensemble continued to be active into the late 1990s and counted among its sidemen

Ted Sturgis Ted "Mohawk" Sturgis (25 April 1913 – 18 October 1995) was an American jazz bassist. Life and career Born in Cape Charles, Virginia, Sturgis started his music studies on piano at age five. He also played alto saxophone, guitar and drums in addi ...

Joe Muranyi Joseph P. Muranyi (January 14, 1928 – April 20, 2012) was an American jazz clarinetist, producer and critic. Muranyi studied with Lennie Tristano but was primarily interested in early jazz styles such as Dixieland and swing. After playing in ...

, and

Eddie Locke Eddie Locke (August 2, 1930 – September 7, 2009) was an American jazz drummer. Eddie Locke was a part of the fertile and vibrant Detroit jazz scene during the 1940s and 1950s, which brought forth many great musicians including the Jones bro ...

. Davis led a quartet with Locke,

Richard Wyands Richard Francis Wyands (July 2, 1928 – September 25, 2019) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and arranger, best known for his work as a side-man. Early life Wyands was born in Oakland, California, on July 2, 1928 and grew up in Berkeley. ...

, and Murray Wall from 1986, in addition to playing with the

Savoy Sultans The Savoy Sultans was the name of two related 20th-century American jazz ensembles. Savoy Sultans (1937–1946) The original Savoy Sultans were formed by saxophonist Al Cooper, and played at the Savoy Ballroom from 1937 to 1946. This small swing j ...

from 1984-91. In the mid-1980s he did work with Arvell Shaw as part of Armstrong Legacy. He played as a sideman with

Buck Clayton Wilbur Dorsey "Buck" Clayton (November 12, 1911 – December 8, 1991) was an American jazz trumpeter who was a member of Count Basie's orchestra. His principal influence was Louis Armstrong, first hearing the record "Confessin' That I Love You" ...

from 1986 to 1992 and toured with

Buddy Tate George Holmes "Buddy" Tate (February 22, 1913 – February 10, 2001) was an American jazz saxophonist and clarinetist. Biography Tate was born in Sherman, Texas, United States, and first played the alto saxophone. According to the website All ...

between 1986 and 1990; he also accompanied

Ruth Brown Ruth Alston Brown (; January 12, 1928 – November 17, 2006) was an American singer-songwriter and actress, sometimes referred to as the " Queen of R&B". She was noted for bringing a pop music style to R&B music in a series of hit songs for At ...

in 1989,

Annie Ross Annabelle McCauley Allan Short (25 July 193021 July 2020), known professionally as Annie Ross, was a British-American singer and actress, best known as a member of the jazz vocal trio Lambert, Hendricks & Ross. Early life Ross was born in Su ...

in 1991–92 and Frank Sinatra in 1991–93. From 1997 he played in

Chuck Folds Chuck Folds is a musician living in North Carolina. He is the younger brother of the piano playing pop/ rock star Ben Folds. Chuck has played bass in a number of bands since the late 1980s, including Bus Stop with Evan Olson, Britt " Snuzz" Uzzell, ...

's group at Sweet Basil in New York.

Discography

* Dan Barrett, Rebecca Kilgore, ''Being a Bear'' (Arbors, 2000) *

, ''Blues On Broadway'' (Fantasy, 1989) *

, ''A Swingin' Dream'' (Stash, 1989) *

Joey DeFrancesco Joey DeFrancesco (April 10, 1971August 25, 2022) was an American jazz organist, trumpeter, saxophonist, and occasional singer. He released more than 30 albums under his own name, and recorded extensively as a sideman with such leading jazz perfo ...

, '' Where Were You?'' (Columbia, 1990) *

, ''Remember Doc Cheatham'' (Arbors, 2000) *

Panama Francis David Albert "Panama" Francis (December 21, 1918 – November 13, 2001) was an American swing jazz drummer who played on numerous hit recordings in the 1950s. Early life Francis was born in Miami, Florida, on December 21, 1918. His father was H ...

, ''Everything Swings'' (Squatty Roo, 2016) * Sam Jones, '' Something New'' (Interplay, 1979) * Walt Levinsky, ''A Big Band Tribute to Benny Goodman'' (Kenzo, 1989) * Dick Meldonian- Sonny Igoe, ''The Jersey Swing Concerts'' (Progressive, 1982) * Dick Meldonian-Sonny Igoe, ''Plays Gene Roland Music'' (Progressive, 1983) *

Butch Miles Butch Miles (born Charles J. Thorton, Jr. on July 4, 1944) is an American jazz drummer. He has played with the Count Basie Orchestra, Dave Brubeck, Ella Fitzgerald, Sammy Davis Jr., Frank Sinatra, Lena Horne and Tony Bennett Career Miles, w ...

, ''Introducing the Ivory Coast Suite'' (Dreamstreet, 1986)

References

*Gary W. Kennedy, "Spanky Davis". '' Grove Jazz'' online. {{DEFAULTSORT:Davis, Spanky American jazz trumpeters American male trumpeters Musicians from Indianapolis 2014 deaths 1943 births American male jazz musicians Savoy Sultans members