Washita Love Child
The Rise of Indigenous Rock Star Jesse Ed Davis
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No one played like Jesse Ed Davis. One of the most sought-after guitarists of the late 1960s and '70s, Davis appeared alongside the era's greatest stars--John Lennon and Mick Jagger, B.B. King and Bob Dylan--and contributed to dozens of major releases, including numerous top-ten albums and singles, and records by artists as distinct as Johnny Cash, Taj Mahal, and Cher. But Davis, whose name has nearly disappeared from the annals of rock and roll history, was more than just the most versatile session guitarist of the decade. A multitalented musician who paired bright flourishes with soulful melodies, Davis transformed our idea of what rock music could be and, crucially, who could make it. At a time when few other Indigenous artists appeared on concert stages, radio waves, or record store walls, in a century often depicted as a period of decline for Native Americans, Davis and his Kiowa, Comanche, Cheyenne, Seminole, and Mvskoke relatives demonstrated new possibilities for Native people. Weaving together more than a hundred interviews with Davis's bandmates, family members, friends, and peers--among them Jackson Browne, Bonnie Raitt, and Robbie Robertson--Washita Love Child powerfully reconstructs Davis's extraordinary life and career, taking us from his childhood in Oklahoma to his first major gig backing rockabilly star Conway Twitty, and from his dramatic performance at George Harrison's 1971 Concert for Bangladesh to his years with John Trudell and the Grafitti Man band. In Davis's story, a post-Beatles Lennon especially emerges as a kindred soul and creative partner. Yet Davis never fully recovered from Lennon's sudden passing, meeting his own tragic demise just eight years later. With a foreword by former poet laureate Joy Harjo, who collaborated with Davis near the end of his life, Washita Love Child thoroughly and finally restores the "red dirt boogie brother" to his rightful place in rock history, cementing his legacy for generations to come.
About this Author
A professor of history at Oklahoma State University and a former working musician, Douglas Miller specializes in twentieth-century Native American history. He is the author of Indians on the Move: Native American Mobility and Urbanization in the Twentieth Century. He lives in Stillwater, Oklahoma.
Joy Harjo is a member of the Mvskoke Nation. She is the author of several poetry collections, memoirs, children's books, and music albums. She is the recipient of many awards for her creative work, including a National Humanities Medal. She lives in Oklahoma.
Reviews
"Revered by fellow musicians, Davis has remained a cult figure, despite an extraordinary résumé: He played on some of Bob Dylan's most enduring records, worked closely with multiple Beatles, anchored the band at the Concert for Bangladesh and shaped classic albums by Rod Stewart, Harry Nilsson and Neil Diamond, among others. A complex character who didn't fit Native American stereotypes or the typical notions of a rock 'n' roller, in the decades since his 1988 death at 43, he's remained something of an enigma.... That should change with the publication of th[is] biography."
"With a foreword by the one and only Joy Harjo, this richly detailed biography restores Jesse Ed Davis, a groundbreaking Kiowa-Comanche guitarist, to his rightful place in rock history. From collaborating with legends like John Lennon to redefining what Indigenous artistry could mean, Davis's story is one of musical genius and cultural defiance. With insights from family and peers, it's a love letter to his legacy and the possibilities he unlocked for Native artists."
"Miller conducted scores of original interviews for the book, while using a treasure trove of archival materials, some provided by Davis' own family. Throughout, his admiration and love for Davis and his music are evident, though his writing is honest about the darker episodes and behavior of his subject."
"A definitive biography of one of the great unsung rock heroes of the 1970s. . . . Miller, an Oklahoma State University history professor and a former musician, is well suited to the subject; the research, he makes clear, was a labor of love. A vivid, well-rounded portrait of an overlooked major talent."
"The sought-after musician, appreciated for his sensitive and spacious style, has a list of credits comprising over 100 classic albums, supporting the likes of Jackson Browne, Rod Stewart, George Harrison, Bob Dylan, and John Lennon...Still, most people have never heard of him. Washita Love Child represents a welcome correction. Miller, a historian specializing in Native American history, emphasizes Davis' Comanche, Seminole, Muskogee, Cheyenne, and Kiowa heritage, adding valuable context to this comprehensive biography."
"Known as the 'red dirt boogie brother,' Jesse Ed Davis may be the most talented, influential guitarist you think you've never heard of (listen to his guitar work on songs like Jackson Browne's Doctor My Eyes). Of Kiowa, Comanche, Cheyenne, Seminole, and Mvskoke heritage, Davis was also the most influential Indigenous musician of his time. He died at an untimely age, but this biography, that explores his status as the musician's musician, does an excellent job of restoring him to his rightful place in the annals of rock's greats."
"For fans of Jesse Ed, this book has been a long time coming. It finally gives the iconic, almost mythological musician a voice and humanity that many of us have been curious about for years. Like Jim Thorpe before him, Jesse helped move the dial when it came to how the outside world has viewed Native people. From his early life in Oklahoma to touring as a young guitar player, to playing sessions in LA to his own solo career--he started a movement in Indigenous art that continues today--Jesse is one of the original threads."
"Jesse Ed Davis was a real musician's musician, a subtle and sensitive player in service of whatever song he contributed to. While it might not require another musician or historian of Native American history to tell this story, we can be thankful that Douglas K. Miller is both, as he tells Davis's story with depth and context."
"For those of us musicians and fans, [Jesse Ed's] sound and the way he approached his solos and rhythm playing was just so unique. He had great chops, great ability, but his soul is what I loved....He was just one of the most original, and soulful, and cool guitar players."
"The fact that [Jesse] Ed came out of Oklahoma and went through all of these different amazing musicians, and proved himself over and over and over again, is a phenomenal story.... It's his origins and his rise that are so phenomenal, and it's his individual story."
"Jesse was the genius of the red dirt Tulsa sound, the shuffle blues that supercharged rock music. Pondering the sad demise of his meteoric career, we resort to stereotypes of the 'doomed midcentury Indian' with narrowing horizons. But Douglas K. Miller dismantles the stereotype by narrating the complex, epic sweep of the Native Americans' progress, and one musician's triumphs within it. Jesse Ed Davis emerges as a tragic star, leading a diverse generation into a new century."
"That the Indigenous guitarist, songwriter, singer, and producer Jesse Ed Davis is not more well known, especially given the number and quality of his collaborations with some of rock's most luminous icons, is something of a mystery. Douglas K. Miller's book aims to change that, and it's a welcome effort."
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