DANIEL D.

The skies were cloudy and intermittent drizzle kept falling, and it didn't look promising for the free concert scheduled for Findlay Park, but I felt the pull and Chimo said he would come along, so we grabbed our folding chairs and umbrellas and headed off to enjoy some music. I am so glad we did. Although the crowd was understandably smaller than it usually is, those who came saw the lowcountry represent in a big way. I dare say that it may have been one of, if not the, best concerts I have attended there. All the musicians hailed from Charleston. The opening act was a saxophonist who was pretty good but whose name escapes me now, followed by young guitarist/vocalist Faith Lyn, who did some nice covers and a couple of original pieces, and I really enjoyed them both. But then I was knocked right on my ass. Smooth jazz violinist Daniel D. (Davis) strode to the mike and delivered an awesome performance, opening with a wonderful set of covers of Michael Jackson songs, including an awesome job on "Beat It." Backed by a really good group, the Urban Instrumentalists (I don't know if they were a quickly assembled bunch, but I hope he keeps them together), Daniel played a mix of smooth jazz, pop, and gospel covers that knocked my socks off. I liked every single song, even his rendition of Happy Birthday. In fact, the live performance may have been even better than the studio recording, because the ensemble brought a bit more funkiness to the groove. And his violin was stunningly beautiful, and even more interesting when he pulled it down from his shoulder and played it like a guitar. If you can't tell yet, I really dug this guy's groove and I enthusiastically encourage people to check them out. And I did something I have never done in more than a decade of attending these type of performances...I bought the cd. So that should tell you something. He is on facebook if you want to check him out.