Davis Rogan

Take the enthusiasm and playfulness of early New Orleans rhythm and blues, add to that the bright yet cynical wit of Ben Folds Five, the rock meets jazz sensibilities of early Steely Dan, and the mocking humor that runs through the works of Professor Longhair, Allen Toussaint, Earl King and Ernie K Doe, and you begin to describe the music of Davis Rogan.“…channeling Brian Wilson, Al Kooper, Frank Zappa, NRBQ and the Bonzo Dog Band alongside Fats Domino and Eddie Bo.” John Swensen“…it’s classic New Orleans R & B in spirit but everything from Charlie Parker to Sun Ra, from Todd Rundgren to the White Stripes, in execution” OffBeat Magazine review of “The Once and Future DJ”“Davis Rogan is an idiot savant. Though I think they just call them savants now. I'm a big fan.” Sarah SilvermanDavis is a fifth generation New Orleanian who was raised in Carrollton and now resides in the Treme. He took piano lessons from Jon Cleary, Ed Frank, and Tom McDermott, began his broadcast career on WTUL at the age of 10, and was a DJ at WWOZ for 13 years.He first came to prominence in the New Orleans music scene with his eight piece funk group ALL THAT, for which he was lead singer, band leader, principal songwriter, arranger and producer. With three albums to their credit, including one on Rounder Records co-produced with Scott Billington. The band toured extensively in North America and Canada, performed at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival multiple times and sold over 10,000 records in the US and Japan. His latest CD, The Once and Future DJ is a departure from big band hip hop and funk and a return to Davis’ R & B roots. Fellow New Orleans musicians from Ani DiFranco, to Philip Frazier and Kermit Ruffins, agree it is his best work yet. The CD was completed shortly before Katrina, and the masters had to be rescued from the flood.Post-Katrina, Davis Rogan has been very busy. He was an Artist in Residence at the Royal Abbaye de Fontevraud in the Loire Valley, France, from July – October 2006. Upon returning, he has been the piano coach for Brad Pitt and other actors in the Paramount Pictures Feature Film, The Curious Case of Benjamin Buttons.Davis is also currently working as a script consultant for a new project being developed by David Simon, the award winning executive producer of HBO’s The Wire. This project revolves around the lives of New Orleans musicians, including Davis, Donald Harrison, Kermit Ruffins and others. A pilot is tentatively scheduled to begin shooting in New Orleans in 2008. Davis also placed a song in the first episode of The Wire’s final season, which airs in January 2008.