About the Author

Ian Zack is a New York-based journalist whose work has appeared in the New York Times, Forbes, and Acoustic Guitar. He worked as a concert booker for one of the oldest folk venues in New York, the Good Coffeehouse, where he got to know some of Davis's students.

Reviews

Winner of the 2016 Association for Recorded Sound Collections Award for Excellence in Historical Research in Recorded Blues, Gospel, Soul, or R&B--Winner of the 2016 Association for Recorded Sound Collections Award for Excellence in Historical Research in Recorded Blues, Gospel, Soul, or R&B

"Say No to the Devil is the definitive biography of Gary Davis; it's comprehensive, balanced, scholarly, generously illustrated, carefully annotated, and . . . well written. Unmissable."-- "Blues & Rhythm"

"Davis was a complex and difficult man, and it is to Zack's great credit that this comes through, along with the obvious admiration so many young musicians had for 'the Rev.' Say No to the Devil provides plenty of material to interest fans and newcomers alike."--Elijah Wald

"Very well-researched. . . . The sheer number of sources Zack consults and cites lends the book authority. . . . As the first book-length study of Davis, [Say No to the Devil] is welcome."-- "Choice" (10/7/2015 12:00:00 AM)

"Zack has plumbed the depths of this fascinating, complex character . . . to cover the long career of a blind bluesman who honed his trade at rent parties, chitlin'-circuit dives, and hootnanies, influencing a generation of folk and blues guitarists. . . . For those unfamiliar with this blues great, or folk-blues buffs ready to immerse themselves once again in his legend, Say No to the Devil is a tuneful read."-- "Acoustic Guitar" (4/6/2015 12:00:00 AM)

One of the Best Music Books of 2015
"Zack, in the first full biography of [the Rev. Gary Davis], follows the story from his early, poverty-ridden childhood in the South, his early days as a bluesman, his move to New York and his calling to be a preacher, and his later 'discovery' through the folk boom and the students he taught who carried on his legacy. Zack had access to many of those students and others who knew Davis, lending greater insight into a man who fought the devil perhaps because he was really so much like him. . . . A well-written work."--Chris Heim, host and producer, KMUW's Global Village (12/28/2015 12:00:00 AM)