If a collection of the greatest liner notes ever written were published in book form, Arthur Davis would be a good choice to write the introduction. Not only has the man written an untold number of liner notes himself, his specialty seems to be greatest-hits packages, some of them comprehensive enough to be considered career retrospectives. The range of artists who Davis has written about runs from Joan Armatrading, a sensitive and sophisticated British singer/songwriter, to Hank Williams, Jr., a callous and raunchy American country-rock proliferator.
One of the more extensive examples of Davis' work in music journalism is Quote Unquote, a slim but interesting volume originally published by Paragon in 1994. The book examines the relationship between the media and the Beatles during the height of the British Invasion craze, much of the text fashioned out of direct quotes from members of the band. While he has written liner notes for albums featuring prolific bassist Art Davis, the two men are not related. Likewise, this writer should not be confused with two film directors named Arthur Davis, one of whom created the violent exploitation film entitled Brutes and Savages and the other a member of the brilliant Warner Bros. cartoon factory of the '40s.
