Sugaray Rayford: “In Too Deep” (2022) CD Review

In the last several years, when watching or reading the news, how often have you said to yourself, “That guy has no soul” or “That woman has no soul”? It can be said of nearly the entire Republican Party, and now seems to be true of the Supreme Court. Well, here is one guy with enough soul to combat the whole lot, put things back in some balance. Sugaray Rayford is a singer working in the blues realm. His excellent 2019 release, Somebody Save Me, was nominated for a Grammy for Best Contemporary Blues Album. Like that album, his new release, In Too Deep, features all original material written by Eric Corne. The music is blues. It is soul. And its lyrics reach out to us in a time of uncertainty and ugliness, addressing this twisted reality we’re all experiencing, and doing so with passion and integrity, with humanity and even joy. Albums like this lead me to think that hatred, ignorance, dishonesty, and hypocrisy can be defeated by music. Several doses of funk are injected into the proceedings to make sure things move in just the right way. Because even as these songs address some serious issues, one message that comes across loud and clear is that we have to continue to enjoy life, to enjoy ourselves. Otherwise, what is the bloody point? And this music helps us do just that.

The album opens with “Invisible Soldier,” a song about a soldier suffering from PTSD, something I suspect happens a whole lot more often than most folks are aware. Sugaray Rayford himself was in the Marines for a decade, and the song comes from his own troubles with insomnia. It has a funky groove and some great work on horns. Plus, Sugaray delivers a lively, powerful vocal performance. At times, there is an urgency to his delivery. It’s like he is giving it his all at every moment because, hell, we never know which moment will be our last. There is that sense about his performance. “Am I awake or dreaming/Buried alive or walking dead/Flashbacks that I’m seeing/Leave me numb or seeing red.” That’s followed by “In Too Deep,” the album’s title track, one of many blues numbers that opens with the line “I woke up this morning” (someday I’m going to make a list). This song is about trying to solve one’s problems and finding the task too much to accomplish, in part because of fear. “See, I’ve never been devout/But I’m on my knees/You know, I had a few doubts/Do my eyes deceive/I never had my hand out/Gonna earn my keep/I keep trying to climb out/But I’m in too deep.” It’s a frightening situation, but this rocking blues number gives us some hope. I really like that guitar work in the second half. Eamon Ryland plays guitar on this track, and also on the one that follows it, “No Limit To My Love,” a cool love song with a delicious, slow funk sound.

“Under The Crescent Moon” is a seriously fun song with some catchy elements, taking place in New Orleans. And, hey, how can you dislike any song that refers to This Is Spinal Tap? In this song, he urges us to “Turn it up to eleven and watch it come alive.” Then “Miss Information” features a deliciously funky groove. Its title reminds me of Jim Infantino’s “Little Miss Communication.” This is certainly a song for our times, addressing the state of our nation, but doing so with a great beat. Monette Marino Keita joins the group on percussion for this track. “The soul of humanity/Facing calamity.” This is one of the disc’s best songs. “Intrigued by insanity/Hanging in galleries/Recharging my batteries/Don’t try to flatter me/Can’t put me on salary.” And check out these lines: “Love is the answer/She don’t have no master/Just add in some laughter/The world’s turning faster/Write in your chapters/Change or go backwards.” “Please Take My Hand” is another powerful track, its humming and hand claps calls to mind spirituals. While addressing a history of oppression, it also speaks of the ongoing struggle today. “Testify your truth, yeah/At the voting booth/I bear these scars/And I wear these stars/Ain’t that a man/Ain’t this my land/Please take my hand.”

“One” encourages us to come together to make this a better world. Its opening lines are: “No nations, no tribes/One world’s all we need/All colors, all creeds/Inside of me.” Yeah, it reminds me of John Lennon’s “Imagine,” particularly that first line. “The future is here/The choice is clear/Can you see it/What if mother nature took a stand/And the whole world shut down/Would you promise me the first dance/When they finally cue the band/I want to dance with you/On the day the world closed down.” Obviously the inspiration comes at least in part from the pandemic, and the way it shut down the world. But those lines about dancing seem to me to carry the message of this album, to not give up our joy even when things are bad. That’s followed by “Gonna Lift You Up,” which is fun right from the start, with that fantastic bass line and those horns. “The road ahead looks awful tough/Many miles to go, it may get rough/There will be times when you feel you had enough/There will be times when you want to give up.” Yes, it is a song urging us to continue, even in the face of some ugly odds. And this song does what its title promises. Eric Corne, who wrote the album’s lyrics, plays guitar on this track, along with Rick Holstrom.

On “Golden Lady Of The Canyon,” Sugaray Rayford gets wonderfully smooth and soulful. “Both my lover and companion/Always there to pull me through/Knowing just when to take the scenic route/I don’t know where I’d be or what I’d do/Without you/Here with me.” This track features some nice work on keys. Both Sasha Smith and Drake Munkihaid Shining plays keyboards on this one. “People everywhere, let’s have a good time,” Sugaray Rayford sings at the beginning of the album’s closing track, “United We Stand.” There is something so appealing about this track, about the message and the music. Can we all come together? I have my doubts, but this song makes it seem possible, and certainly desirable. I love Taras Prodaniuk’s work on bass. “All right, everybody, it’s time to get on the dance floor.”

CD Track List

1. Invisible Soldier
2. In Too Deep
3. No Limit To My Love
4. Under The Crescent Moon
5. Miss Information
6. Please Take My Hand
7. One
8. Gonna Lift You Up
9. Golden Lady Of The Canyon
10. United We Stand

In Too Deep is scheduled to be released on March 4, 2022 on Forty Below Records.