Search - Percy Mayfield :: Live

Almost forgotten hero

T. Bekken | Austmarka Norway | 03/02/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The late Percy Mayfield wrote hit songs for Ray Charles, and he was a minor star of his own during the 1950s. He faded from sight, however, though he never stopped performing. Due to a car accident, he also had health problems which set back his career. These live recordings from the early 1980s prove that Mayfield never ever lost his touch as a singer. On these numbers, mostly slow, dark blues, he comes through as one of the most powerful storytellers the blues ever heard. His quiet, deep, rich voice virtually overpowers the listener, and his songs are masterpieces of loneliness and long lost love. Still, his warm humorous chuckle is never far away. The audience is right in Mayfield's palm here, and as a home listener, you are not likely to lag far behind... Mayfield is definitely ripe for major rediscovery, and this cd really needs to be heard."