BETTY DAVIS Issue #32

Betty Davis

By Dan Nishimoto
Published: June 1st, 2007 | 12:00am

In a small town outside Pittsburgh lives a Godmother. She is a reserved lady but has been compared to outlandish pop icons, like Madonna and Prince, by pop icons, like Santana and Rick James. She keeps close to herself, but once shaped Miles Davis’ turn to fusion during her brief marriage to him. She maintains an anonymous life, but the New York Times proclaimed her “several years ahead of her time” nearly 30 years ago.

Betty Davis’ 1973 self-titled debut, re-released by Light in the Attic, is a testament to her singular vision. The relatively inexperienced singer-songwriter confidently leads a mind-bottling cast of Bay Area talent, including Sly & the Family Stone and Santana members. While the band boils and bruises funk-rawk, Davis’ speak-sing-shout holds constant as she flicks and licks around each groove. “Anti-Love Song” sums up her defiance as she coos, “I know you could have me climbin’ walls / So, that’s why I don’t want to love you.”

Davis was denied her share of the pie, but time works in favor of today’s fans. Complete with bonus tracks and Oliver “O-Dub” Wang’s (soul-sides.com) extensive liner notes, these re-releases shed unprecedented light on a trailblazer for independent artists, funk soldiers, and liberated women. With the perspective still so fresh and the music so pungent, Betty Davis remains peerless and essential.