Sugaray Rayford Somebody Save Me Vinyl

At 6’5” and 300 pounds, this cigar chompin’ ex-Marine with a voice like a delta hurricane and a magnetic personality, holds court in any room he enters. Possessing an old school vocal style that echoes Muddy Waters, Otis Redding and Teddy Pendergrass, Rayford is also a stellar dancer with moves reminiscent of the Legendary James Brown. Somebody Save Me is an album that slides gracefully between the new blues of Gary Clarke Jr. and Fantastic Negrito and the vintage Daptones soul of the late Charles Bradley and Sharon Jones, bringing a fresh take to classic sounds.

The album was written and produced by Forty Below Records founder Eric Corne. A number of mainstays from Corne productions feature strongly here including guitarist Rick Holmstrom (Mavis Staples), bassist Taras Prodaniuk (Dwight Yoakam) and the horn section from Late Night with Conan O’Brien.

The album is packed with adventurous instrumentation; like the John Barry (James Bond) inspired bridge of Angels and Devils; the wobbly 1950s inspired keyboard solo and lush strings of the tle track, recorded with The Section Quartet (Ryan Adams, Father John Misty); and the choir, bubbling keyboards and horns of The Revelator which seamlessly blends blues, soul and jazz with a hint of reggae.