Thomas Maxwell Davis, Jr. (January 14, 1916 – September 18, 1970),[1] was an American rhythm and blues saxophonist, arranger, bandleader and record producer.
After some years playing swing and jazz, he became more involved in the West Coast R&B scene in the mid-1940s, becoming a regular session musician and arranger for the fast-growing independent record labels such as Aladdin.
By 1952, Davis had played on numerous R&B hits by Percy Mayfield, Peppermint Harris, Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown, T-Bone Walker, Amos Milburn, and others.
In 1955, he left Aladdin and joined the Bihari brothers at Modern Records (and its subsidiaries RPM, Crown and Kent) as musical director and a producer.
"Maxwell Davis is an unsung hero of early rhythm and blues," noted the songwriter and producer Mike Stoller.