Since the release of his rockin’ multi-instrumental 2004 sophomore release, JUNE GENERATION, Ray embarked on a life of touring solo from the Midwest to the South where he found the inspiration for LAST GREAT WINTER. Influenced by the Midwest resonator guitar scene, Ray picked up a National steel guitar and eventually landed opening slots for some of his biggest influences, including Chris Smither. Drawing from those performance experiences, Ray left behind the studio band and found his solo groove on LAST GREAT WINTER.

On the album, he weaves his stylistic diversity with unmatched simplicity using only a resonator guitar, his voice, and a stomping foot that blends seamlessly into each song. Jeff reveals with great clarity his unique style that he calls Zen Blues - a style marked by alternate guitar tunings and songs that unsuspectingly shift between thumb-thumping slide-guitar ballads to worldly folk-inspired jams.

Ray even throws in a few surprises, including a bluesy rendition of Bob Dylan’s “Maggie’s Farm” and a catchy version of Woody Guthrie’s timeless anthem “This Land Is Your Land”. Originally a protest song, “This Land Is Your Land” eventually morphed into a childhood sing-along, stripped bare of it’s more controversial verses. But Ray returns this song to its original purpose and gives it new life by altering the melody, changing the rhythm, accentuating the forgotten verses, and even altering the final lines to give new meaning.