The John Davies Band

From left: Thomas Jones, Valda-Anne Shadbolt, John G Davies, Amyee Karaitiana-Jones, Max Easey.

From left: Thomas Jones, Valda-Anne Shadbolt, John G Davies, Amyee Karaitiana-Jones, Max Easey.

Let’s Ride music video. Animation by Elayne Chan

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John Davies and his band are a multi genre sound crossing folk with blues, rock and country.

With penetrating lyrics in both English and Māori when combined, sound large and cinematic. John Davies wrote his first song at age 11 as a musical accompaniment to poetry and performance. During his 50-year long career in performing arts and for 10 year as part of Red Mole Enterprises, music and song writing have always been part of storytelling and theatre.

Career highlights include performing at the infamous Folk City New York, Theatre of the New City, off off Broadway, the Red Mole production of Last Days of Mankind, and solo performance Te Tupua – The Goblin to name a few.

John met Valda, Aymee, Max and Thomas during the time he was curriculum leader of an undergraduate degree in acting for stage and screen at UNITEC. They began the band in 2015 with songs written to the poems of New Zealand poet and Red Mole founder Alan Brunton. They performed at fundraisers, benefit concerts and club gigs. In June 2020 they went with producer Stephen Small to Parachute Studios to record debut album Let’s Ride, made up of 7 songs by John and 5 co-written with Alan Brunton.