In a time when Nashville strives to manufacture crossover artists who can appeal to both country and rock audiences, the multi-talented, Florida born and raised performer RICHARD JAYMES has been doing the hybrid thing naturally and effortlessly since launching his original first band, Soko—short for Southern Comfort.
Finally embracing his destiny as a solo artist, Jaymes is a seriously multi-tasking musical force of nature who wrote, recorded and produced all 10 tracks on his debut album Dollar And A Dream at his home studio. From Cuban and Cherokee descent, Jaymes talents are as diverse as his background. On the CD, he played guitars, keyboards, banjo and percussion—and did the dynamic mix himself after a few attempts at having veteran mixers go at it. As a songwriter, he is unafraid to speak his mind and address important issues in these crazy times.
While he could have played it safe by introducing the world to his music with one of the romantic-minded tracks on the collection, the singers opening salvo is the bold and rocking title track, Dollar and A Dream, the CDs first single, which addresses all the key issues of the current economic crisis: the Wall Street meltdown, corporate greed, high deficits, government bailouts and living beyond our means.
The lyrical edginess Jaymes brings to his songs is complemented throughout the 10-track recording with a loose, raw and rootsy musical vibe. What I like about Dollar and A Dream, he says, is that its not squeaky clean on the production side, its not perfect and slickly polished, and its accessible, but not in a tidy little creative box. He continues: What Ive always loved about the blues and other roots music is that its okay to let little mistakes go, and those become part of the joy and charm of the recording. That goes for my vocals, too. Ive always loved artists like Janis Joplin, where its not the technical perfection but the raw soul of how you sing the song that matters.
Jaymes has been sharing that raw soul over the years with numerous fans of his two bands, Soko—which was signed with Big Beat/Atlantic—and, in recent years, the southern rock outfit Prey For Green, which he launched while living in Virginia before settling in his home state of Florida.
