Dying young ensures a myth cropping up around a performer’s body of work. It’s something that’s expected at this point, but no less meaningful. Of course, dying in a haze of drugs might add a bit of mystique to it all. But Baby Huey (bka James Ramey) didn’t just struggle with substances, he apparently had a glandular problem that resulted in his swelling to over three hundred pounds. On the sunny side, though, fat soul and funk singers are able to get over. So, there’s that. Hailing from Richmond, Indiana and eventually moving to Chicago, Baby Huey wound up being in the city at the right time for his amalgam of funk, soul and psych to get picked up by none other than Curtis Mayfield in a deal with that performer’s Curtom Records.

Gigging around the city from the early ‘60s on alongside his backing band, the Babysitters, Baby Huey was apparently able to perform for black and white folks on either side of town – the south side of Chicago being perceived as unsafe for lighter skin tones. On the strength of these live shows, Baby Huey attracted Mayfield as well as a variety of other local performers taken with not only the imposing singing, but the imposing man himself. It can’t be said that Baby Huey was a demur fellow – and probably he figured that being as large as he was wouldn’t go over in a white shirt and khaki pants, reportedly resulting in a pretty outrageous wardrobe.

Regardless of his penchant for neon green and the like, by the dawning of the ‘70s Baby Huey had recorded his first full length and tossed it in the can. But while doing all of this, the man also picked up a nasty smack habit and was eventually convinced to enter rehab at the behest of his band mates. It could have worked out, but during the fall of 1970 Baby Huey’s heart gave out and was eventually found dead by his manager. His isn’t the only story of this ilk, but it’s sad nonetheless. What’s worse is the fact that Baby Huey didn’t get the chance to see the release of his own album – The Living Legend would be released during ’71. And while that oddly titled disc wouldn’t immediately impact music, years on the music would be revived by deejays in the burgeoning hip hop scene.

Pretty much everything on The Living Legend seems sample ready. It’s mostly mid paced drumming and big ass bass lines in order to properly support the singer’s impressive vocals. Baby Huey’s been compared to Otis Redding amongst a few other folks. But considering the fact that there’s a nine minute version of Sam Cooke’s “A Change Gonna Come” included – replete with some psych production augmenting Baby Huey’s vocals – that seems like as a good a comparison as any other. Baby Huey’s voice might have had more grit in it, but his life may have as well. No matter who he sounded a bit like, though, this was a performer that should have been as famous as he was big.