Valvulado: Brian Davison - The NICE Drummer

Brian Davison (25 May 1942 – 15 April 2008), nicknamed "Blinky", was a British drummer, best known for his work in The Nice. He was born in Leicester and died in Horns Cross, Bideford, Devon. In the late 1950s, Davison played drums in various skiffle groups in and around the youth clubs in north-west London, especially around Baker Street. He rose to prominence drumming in the 1960s in Mark Leeman Five and then progressive rock group Shinn with keyboard player Don Shinn and bassist Paul Newton (later with Uriah Heep) and finally The Nice with keyboardist Keith Emerson, guitarist David O'List and bassist Lee Jackson.

After the breakup of The Nice, Davison formed a short-lived band called Brian Davison's Every Which Way featuring ex-Skip Bifferty lead singer Graham Bell. The band broke up after one album. He then joined Jackson and keyboardist Patrick Moraz in Refugee. Refugee released one album, Refugee on Charisma Records, with music was composed by Moraz with lyrics from Jackson. An archival live album recorded at Newcastle City Hall (a soundboard recording, taken from Davison's private collection) was released in 2007. Jackson subsequently played in Gong before leaving the music business for a period.

In 2002 he and his bandmates Jackson and Emerson resurfaced to reform The Nice and, together with guitarist Dave Kilminster, performed a four-date reunion tour. A three-disk box-set album, Vivacitas, recorded at Glasgow Royal Concert Hall, was released in September 2003.

Davison taught drumming to pupils at Bideford College. He died on 15 April 2008 at his home in Horns Cross near Bideford in Devon.

Brian Davison's Every Which Way (1970)