Ray Sawyer

Ray Sawyer (February 1, 1937 – December 31, 2018) was an American percussionist and vocalist known for his work with the 1970s rock band Dr. Hook. Though primarily a backing vocalist and occasional percussionist on congas or maracas, he sang lead on their hit song "The Cover of Rolling Stone" and was a recognizable presence in the band owing to the eyepatch and cowboy hat he wore. He was also the uncle of Wild Fire vocalist Zack Sawyer.

Sawyer was born in Chickasaw, Alabama, and started playing guitar at age eleven, with Hank Williams, Smiley Lewis, and Huey Smith as his influences. Sawyer played in his first band when he was fourteen years old, as their drummer. His first professional band came when he was seventeen, again as their drummer. Sawyer worked regularly in New Orleans in his early years as a musician, where he got to know Dr. John. Sawyer was in many other bands as a drummer, most of which "didn’t have a name".

Sawyer performed in clubs as a singer, and in 1960 signed to Sandy Records, based in Mobile, Alabama. He released two singles in 1960 and 1962.

Sawyer was the vocalist in The Chocolate Papers, a band with George Cummings and Billy Francis. They moved to Union City, New Jersey in 1968, and met vocalist/guitarist/bassist Dennis Locorriere, and then changed their name to Dr. Hook. Their name was a reference to Captain Hook, and because of Sawyer's eye patch, fans thought Sawyer was "Dr. Hook".

Sawyer was a backup vocalist on the band's breakthrough hit, "Sylvia's Mother," as well as many of the Medicine Show's earlier songs. He also released a self-titled solo album on Capitol Records in 1976. Eventually, by the late 1970s, as the band found commercial success, Sawyer stepped back into a backing vocalist role behind Dennis Locorriere, occasionally playing another instrument (for example, on "Better Love Next Time," one of the band's later hits, he can be seen with a prominent bongo part). Sawyer left the band in 1983, allegedly because he was no longer happy with the band's direction.

Biography summary from English Wikipedia, photograph via Wikimedia Commons.