Ray Jones adds to Australia's country revival with stellar new album, "Sleeping Rough"
Review by Austin Sher
Freshly released in 2020, Ray Jones has officially shared his brand new country record, Sleeping Rough. We absolutely love what we heard and think you will too! Read along with us for our thoughts on the record, in addition to a background on the artist as well.
Shared earlier this year, Ray Jones is part of Australia’s country music revival, and we’re thrilled to see and hear that he’s leading the charge with such beauty. Being directly influenced by the Americana movement, Ray is trying and succeeding in producing his own kind of country. According to Ray, the album was produced and recorded by Australian country great Bill Chambers, who also co-wrote three of the songs on the album. Specifically the song, “Sleeping Rough” is dedicated to and about homelessness, but the rest of the album is in regards to a personal journey that Ray has gone through throughout his lifetime.
Throughout the entirety of the record, it becomes almost instantly apparent that Ray is taking you along for a soul-fuelled journey through sharing his original music and the stories behind them. The artist quickly proves that as talented as he is instrumentally, he also doubles as a storyteller. Truly, listening closely to the lyrics aside from the actual music, you’re hearing an artist being their most truthful self. There’s nothing more opening than hearing a solo artist singer and songwriter bare their soul in the form of music.
Instrumentally speaking though, Sleeping Rough features all you could ever want. Gliding acoustic guitars with lovely finger picking sections, perfectly timed harmonicas, and the soft essence and delivery of Ray’s vocals. Together, they make for a seriously wonderful listen wrapped up in about 45 minutes of greatness. The revival that is happening in Australia right now, specifically in country music, is something that the world should be paying closer attention to.
What else is there to say at this point, besides letting the reader know that this is the record you need to be listening to and the artist you need to be following. The purity conveyed in the record is just so beautiful, so let us just say we’re highly recommending and encouraging you all to give it a spin.
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