By all indications, 28 year old Davy Knowles should have been a fisherman, a motorcycle racer or a rugby player. However, this Isle of Man native was destined to be a Blues musician, via his father's record collection of Rory Gallagher, Eric Clapton and Robert Johnson. It was the iconic opening riffs of the song: "Sultans Of Swing" by Mark Knopfler of Dire Straits that definitely steered him toward the guitar. A few years past and young Davy went on to form his own Blues/ Rock band; Back Door Slam in 2003 -04, and enjoyed some commercial success as the trio was on the charts with some recorded material, both studio and live. Blues aficionados took note of Knowles expertise on the guitar, vocals and songwriting prowess when the band toured with Gov't Mule. As they say; All good things come to an end, and Back Door Slam broke up. Knowles was determined and stayed on course with his music and is touring this year all over the states. With keen anticipation I looked forward to his appearance at the Clearwater Sea Blues Festival in February of this year. Once he took the stage as a four piece band, it was evident that Davy Knowles is a gifted guitarist, who plays with the experience of someone over twice his age. The 40 minute set primarily covered the material from The Outsider released last year. A new album is due this year and Blues music fans can hardly wait for the new material. I covered the Sea Blues Festival and was shooting in the photographers pit with my trusty Nikon. Enjoy the photographs and please by all means go see Mr. Knowles if you get the opportunity before he returns to the Isle of Man somewhere far away between Ireland and the UK.
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