Spencer Davis, the two-time United Kingdom chart-topper and guitarist for the 1960s rock band bearing his name, has died of pneumonia at the age of 81, his booking agent confirmed.
From “Gimme Some Lovin'” and “I’m a Man” to “Somebody Help Me” and “Keep on Running,” The Spencer Davis Group helped popularize the distinctly United States' sounds of blues and R&B in the U.K., The Guardian reported.
Very sad news - RIP Spencer Davies, the Swansea-born chart-topper who had hits with Gimme Some Lovin' and Keep on Running:
— Mark Rees (@reviewwales) October 20, 2020
"The multi-instrumentalist star of The Spencer Davis Group which had two No 1 hits in the mid-60s, has died. He was 81."https://t.co/nJFP61oRaG pic.twitter.com/9zPq4mTqPq
Formed in Birmingham in 1963, the band also featured Pete York, Muff Winwood and launched the career of vocalist Steve Winwood, who was only 15 when Davis discovered him and went on to form Traffic in 1967, The New York Times reported.
Davis, who played rhythm guitar, co-wrote the group’s biggest hit, “Gimme Some Lovin,'” and lent his baritone occasionally on lead vocals, the Times reported.
According to The Guardian, Davis and his bandmates disbanded the group in 1969, partially re-formed for two years in the mid-1970s, and again in 2006, when Davis resumed international touring with the band.
Spencer Davis will be remembered for a lot more than discovering Steve Winwood. He and a handful of others created British blues.A great musician & executive. He exemplified the notion that a nice guy can survive in a 3 chord world.. RIP pic.twitter.com/R6fBpU5zbl
— Michael Des Barres (@MDesbarres) October 20, 2020
Born Spencer David Nelson Davies in Swansea, Wales, on July 17, 1939, Davis formed his first band, The Saints, with Bill Perks, who later joined The Rolling Stones as Bill Wyman.
Alongside contemporaries such as The Dave Clark Five and The Kinks, The Spencer Davis Group embraced the flourishing “beat” scene of the mid-1960s and were dubbed “Brum beat” to distinguish them from the London and Liverpool scenes, The Guardian reported.
In the 1970s, Davis poured himself into his label, Island Records, and helped develop artists such as Bob Marley and Robert Palmer, as well as Winwood’s solo career, the outlet reported.
In the beginning of his career, Spencer Davis formed a musical and personal relationship with Christine Perfect, who later found fame in Fleetwood Mac as Christine McVie.
— Eric Alper 🎧 (@ThatEricAlper) October 20, 2020
Then he found a teenage Steve Winwood. What an eye for talent. pic.twitter.com/u1RNHMJgqd
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