Prior to his association with Stevens, Davies co-wrote, sang, and played on two albums: in 1963, with Jon Mark (known then as John Michael Burchell),[1] and in 1968, as a member of the band Sweet Thursday with Mark, keyboardist Nicky Hopkins, Harvey Burns and Brian Odgers, when folk-rock music was still in its infancy.
When their label declared bankruptcy, Davies was invited to join Cat Stevens as a session musician, who was attempting to change his sound and advance in the music world.
Davies' experience, similar tastes in the emerging folk-rock genre, and capabilities with guitar and voice placed him in a pivotal role in Stevens' career, resulting in hit songs and a string of RIAA platinum certified breakthrough albums.
Two such albums, Tea for the Tillerman and Teaser and the Firecat, propelled Stevens to stardom and a stellar musical career, and solidified a friendship between the two men.
In late 2005, when Stevens (now known as Yusuf Islam) returned again to write and perform, he did so with the amicable support of his friend and long-time right-hand man Davies, although nearly three decades had passed, and the two men had followed extremely different paths during the interim.
They recorded their first album, Relax Your Mind, in one day with American producer Shel Talmy, who had worked with bands that include the Who, Chad and Jeremy, the Kinks, Manfred Mann, and Ralph McTell.
The two set about busking in Europe and located an agent who found them a position performing on a Cunard Line ship, sailing sixteen times across the Atlantic.
[2] Davies and Mark reunited in 1968, forming a band with Nicky Hopkins as keyboardist, bass guitarist Brian Odgers, and drummer Harvey Burns, under the name Sweet Thursday.
[9] Initially hired as a session musician on the album Mona Bone Jakon, Davies' more experienced guitar finger-work and backing vocals helped Stevens achieve his new sound.
As his accompanist on Stevens' first tour of the United States, Davies said that the two experienced some stage fright, upon hearing that they'd be opening for Steve Winwood's band, Traffic, at the Fillmore East.
[11] Tea for the Tillerman and Teaser and the Firecat both were platinum albums in the United States, and each produced top charting singles.
Davies also performs with the group Good Men in the Jungle with his former bandmate from their Cat Stevens days, drummer Gerry Conway.
Much of the material was written as early as 1970, but this was just prior to Davies' introduction, backup work, and devoted friendship with Cat Stevens.