It was when I was sitting peacefully enjoying the live music being played by senior, experienced musicians that suddenly, a familiar figure stood in front of me and greeted me with a smile that reflected “the Davidson smile” which was long lost to us. His father, Godfrey Davidson, in the early years was a fiery drummer with an elastic swing that could switch from rhythm to rhythm with absolute ease. Grahame who migrated to Sydney, Australia is on a different track. It was the harmonica and the blues that drew him for stage performances. He shared with me his experience in music here and abroad.
Q: Your father was a well known drummer in our music industry. What was the magnet that drew you away from becoming a drummer and more into being a guitarist, vocalist, and a harmonica player?
A: As you mention my dad, Godfrey Davidson was a well known jazz drummer in Ceylon/Sri Lanka, but, I was too young to appreciate jazz at the time. In my younger days, I was mostly attracted to the “tune/melody” of a song rather than the beat. I grew up in the 70’s and 80’s which was influenced by blues based rock and roll from bands such as the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Cream, Simon and Garfunkel, and the Little River Band.
All these bands composed songs that included a lot of guitar riffs and solos. I always gravitated towards vocals and guitar solos. In the early 90’s, I had a stint as a disc jockey in a popular night club (the Library) in Colombo, and I played tunes that had a heavy blues and rhythm and blues feel.
One night, a well known Sri Lankan drummer, Aruna Siriwardhana happened to be in the night club and he complimented me for playing the “blues” at a dance venue. I thanked him and said that I just feel drawn to that type of music to which he replied “you’ve got the blues”.
It was then that I knew I had the “bug” for the blues. As I got older I started to read and research to find out what influenced the great music of the 60’s, 70’s, and 80’s. And the more I read the more I learnt about how blues influenced a lot of modern music. I also found out that the key instruments used in blues music together with vocals were the guitar and harmonica. So, this was what drew me to these two instruments aside from vocals. Vocals came naturally to me as I used to be in school and church choirs from very young days.
Q: Were you quite young when you moved into being a musician, and what about academic studies?
A: In my late teens, I played a bit of folk music, but mostly for fun around friends and family. I remember the struggles musicians of my dad’s era went through, and so, I decided to focus on my studies and career. I completed my marketing studies, and built a career in sales and marketing in Sri Lanka and overseas (Qatar, Singapore, Australia).
Q: Did you play as a sideman here in Sri Lanka after college days, and what was the band you played with if at all?
A: I did not play in a commercial band in Sri Lanka after I left college. That is mostly because I was involved in Christian gospel music for a few organisations. I used to play at Christian concerts, churches, and rallies. I first started playing commercial music for a band in Qatar about three decades ago.
Q: We in Sri Lanka lost you to Australian music lovers. We understand you fronted a band in Sydney. Can you elaborate on that?
A: Yes. After I hung up the radio microphone in Sydney, I formed an acoustic/electric blues band called The Hillside Blues Band. The band consisted of Noritaka Suga from Japan on guitar, Larry Bautista from Philippines on bass, and me on vocals, guitar and harmonica. We always also had a guest harmonica player as a fourth member. We met during “jams” around Sydney and were bound together by the common passion we had for the great “Southern sound”.
We played a lot of tunes that had a delta blues flavour. Our influence came from the Mississippi delta region. We mostly played cover tunes from artists such as Robert Johnson, Lead Belly, Ray Charles, BB King, JJ Cale, Eric Clapton, and a bit of jazzy blues of Miles Davis and Gershwin. The band is no longer in existence, but I do play the occasional solo gigs and jams around my local town in Sydney.
Q: What spurred you to blow the blues harmonica, were you influenced by musicians such as Stevie Wonder or Bob Dylan to name a few, and do you display an ultra modern blues style that can be instantly recognised as Grahame’s style?
A: The first harmonica played that hooked me in was the great Belgian jazz harmonica player Toots Thielemans. He is every harmonica player’s idol. When I started playing harmonica more seriously, I kept listening to the old school blues harmonica players such as Sonny Boy Williamson II, Junior Wells, James Cotton, Paul Butterfield, Jimmy Reed, Sonny Terry and modern players like Adam Gussow. And Stevie Wonder and Bob Dylan are always there in the mix. I play the diatonic harmonica which is commonly used in blues and country music. There is also the chromatic harmonica which is used in jazz music by Toots Thielemans and Stevie Wonder.
Q: We also know that you were a radio presenter in Sydney with “the Soul Train” radio program. The subject is interesting, and could you enlighten us further?
A: Since I was a young lad, radio has had a huge influence in my life and musical journey. I grew up listening to Radio Ceylon (now SLBC). I went on to become a relief announcer on radio in Sri Lanka (SLBC and Yes FM). After I moved to Sydney, I decided to re-kindle my passion for radio. I joined a popular local radio station (Alive 90.5 FM). Initially, I did the traffic and weather announcements and the occasional “fill-in” for regular presenters. Then, I got the break to host my own radio show which I titled “The Soul Train”.
The Soul Train also became one of the official publicists for the world famous “Byron Bay Blues Fest”. During my association with this event, I featured and interviewed artists who performed at the event. Some included Grammy winning musicians, Charles Neville (Neville Brothers), Bobby Rush, Joe Louis Walker and Seth Lakeman. After eight memorable years (during the Covid-19 pandemic), I decided to call it a day on radio in Sydney.
Q: You are now on holiday in Sri Lanka. Did you have opportunities to play with our musicians?
A: I am truly encouraged by the new musical talent in Sri Lanka. I see there are young musicians who are developing their own styles and also maintaining the blues and jazz traditions. I did get the opportunity to stand in with the harmonica with the talented Jerome Speldewinde’s band at a couple of venues in Colombo which was cool.
