Major Works
- Can I Change my Mind”
- “Turn Back the Hands of Time”
- “I Had it all the Time”
- “Without You in My Life”
- “It’s all in the Game”
- “Home wrecker”
- “Turning Point”
- “Love and Touch”
- “Let’s Be Closer Together”
- “I Can’t Go on this Way”
- “In the Mood”
- “Can’t You Tell It’s Me”
- “I Just Can’t Keep On Going”
- “Tyrone Davis”
- “Something Good”
- “Sexy Thing”
- “Man of Stone”
- “Pacifier”
- “Flashin Back”
- “Come on Over”
- “I’ll Always Love You”
- “Something’s Mighty Wrong”
- “Complications”
- “The Tyrone Davis Story”
- “In The Mood”
Tyrone Davis died February 9, 2005, at 66. Chicago soul great suffers complications from stroke. Read his obituary here.
Tyrone Davis: A Biography
Tiffany Reese, SHS Researcher
by Tiffany Reese (SHS)
Tyrone Davis was born on May 4,1938 in Greenville, Mississippi. At the age of fourteen, Davis moved to Michigan to live with his father (Stiles). Davis’s father was a minister in Saginaw, Michigan. While living in Michigan, Davis worked as a valet for Freddie King. Freddie King was a blues man. While doing this kind of work, he became friends with soul blues singer Otis Clay. In 1959 Davis moved to Chicago, Illinois. This is the place Davis started his own career solo career in 1962 (Santelli, 117). Davis’s early mentors were Bobby “Blue” Bland, and Little Milton (Stiles).
Davis was discovered by a pianist named Harold Burrage. Burrage discovered Davis when he saw Davis performing in various night clubs (Colin, 1086). When Davis performed in the sixties, he performed under the name “Tyrone the Wonder Boy.”
In 1968 Davis signed with Dakar Records. He recorded a song named “Can I Change My Mind?’ This song gave Davis his fame. After this song Davis began making even more big hits. In 1970 Davis’s song “Turn Back the Hands of Time,” made it to number one on R&B charts, and it was number three on pop charts. The song “Turning Point” was a number one hit in 1975.
Davis soon got interested in the disco era. His disco song “Give It Up (Turn It Loose)” was number two on R&B charts in 1976. In 1977 Davis changed over and signed with Columbia records (Santelli, 117).
Davis is also a ladies’ man. Many women enjoyed his singing. The women around him gave him lots of popularity. Davis is a great soul entertainer who has spent the past thirty years performing on the “Chitin Circuit.”. Most of Davis’s songs are about love and relationships. In 1998 Davis was given a prestigious R&B Foundation award for his lifetime of works (Stiles). Today Davis is still a great R&B Blues singer, and many people still love him (Barnes&Mobile).
Timeline
- May 4, 1938 Day of birth of Tyrone Davis in Greenville, Mississippi
- 1959- Tyrone Davis settled in Chicago at the age of nineteen.
- 1959- Tyrone Davis worked as a valet for blues man Freddie King
- 1960- Tyrone Davis performed under the name Tyrone, the Wonder Boy.
- 1962- Beginning of Tyrone Davis’s career.
- 1968- Tyrone Davis signed with Dakar Records.
- 1968- Tyrone Davis first record “Can I Change My Mind?”
- 1970- Tyrone Davis began recording singles.
- 1976- Tyrone Davis’s record “Give It Up (Turn It Lose)” was number 2 on R&B charts.
- 1977- Tyrone Davis signed with Columbia Records.
- 1980- Tyrone Davis continued playing one-nighters on the chitlin circuit.
- 1998- Tyrone Davis was the final act at the Bayfront Blues Festival.
- 1998- Tyrone Davis was awarded the prestigious R&B Foundation Pioneer Foundation award for his lifetime of works.
- 2005–Died of stroke complications.
Related Websites
- R&B Singer Tyrone Davis Dead at 66. All About Jazz, 2005.
- Biography & Interview on The History Makers
Bibliography
- Davis, Tyrone.” Santelli, Robert. The Big Book of Blues. New York: Penguin Books, 1995.117
- “Davis, Tyrone.” Lark Colin, ed. The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music. New York: Stockton Press, 1995.1086.
- Stiles, Ray. “Tyrone Davis” [online] Available http://www.mnblues.com. 1998.
- “Tyrone Davis” [online] Available http://allmusic.com/. All-Music Guide 1999. Search on Tyrone Davis