Brian Davison's Every Which Way

Following the breakup of The Nice earlier in the year, drummer Brian Davison assembled a band under the moniker Every Which Way and recorded an eponymous album for Charisma. A key member of the group was Graham Bell, previously the singer for English psych act Skip Bifferty. Not only did Bell contribute vocals, guitar and keyboards, but he also wrote most of of the material for the album. The opening track, “All in Time,” credited to Maria Niforos (Davison’s then-wife), cops a Traffic-esque vibe; like Lee Jackson’s contemporaneous work, Every Which Way is also a mellow affair. “What You Like” features the rhythm of Davison and bassist Alan Cartwright; although the group’s namesake, Davison’s role as drummer is strictly providing the music’s solid foundation. The epic “The Light” rides a slow burning stoner groove, with excellent solo guitar from John Headley and reeds from Geoffrey Peach. The second side’s “Bed Ain’t What It Used to Be” is a simple tune, accented by Bell’s soulful voice. “Castle Sand” adds flute and invokes a King Crimson feeling, while the effervescent “Go Placidly” was the album’s single. Despite such a strong showing by all, the album sank without a trace, and that was it for Every Which Way. Headley was next in the Newcastle-based Last Exit (with Sting) while Cartwright would end up in Procol Harum. Bell was off to Bell + Arc and a solo album for Charisma, and later would participate in the orchestral version of Tommy. Davison’s next stint was reuniting with Jackson in Refugee. After working with Gong and Roy Harper in the mid-70s, he eventually became a drum instructor at Bideford College in Devon.