A master of the blues in both pen and voice, Percy Mayfield (1920-1984) was one of the most important figures in the R&B scene in the 40s and 50s, writing such classics as “Please Send Me Someone To Love,” “ What A Full I Was” and “Strange Things Happen” for himself as well as a number of hits for other artists like Ray Charles later in his career.
This two disc set features the A and B sides of his singles for labels Gru-V-Tone, Supreme/Swing Time, Speciality, Chess and Imperial among others. His voice is silky smooth all throughout, making a rich contrast to the earthy sounds by his back up bands that included al stars like Marshal Royal/s, Lee Young/dr, Red Callender/b, Jack McVea/ts, Gerald Wiggins/p and Earl Palmer/dr, just to list a few jazzers looking for a few extra studio bucks.
Mayfield is in full bloom from the get-go on the two parter “Jack You Ain’t Nowhere” and his own arias like “Lost Love” and “What A Fool I Was” are rich swooning affairs. Even though it’s been covered by scores of vocalists, his read of “Please Send Me Someone To Love” is still the standard by which others are compared, while “Cry Baby” and “The Big Question” are honey flavored bon mots.
After getting sidelined at the zenith of his popularity by a 1952 auto accident, Mayfield showed little loss in style, with an earthy “I Need Love So Bad” from 1953 and 1957’s “Please Believe Me” exhibiting no break in stride. Things got a bit poppier in the 60s with a pleasant “When Did You Leave Heaven” and “What Must I Do,” but his original mix of taste and smoky atmospheres was never betrayed. A must for fans that want their ballads drenched in blue.