Davis, Reverend Gary

Reverend Davis, like almost all southern guitar players, used only his thumb and index finger to pick the strings. If queried why he didn’t use more fingers, he would reply, “It wasn’t necessary!” One student, Ernie Hawkins, maintained that he did ninety percent of his playing with just his thumb, and while that may be an exaggeration, his right thumb certainly seemed to have a mind of its own. He could “roll” it, inserting bass...