Drummer extraordinaire Rayford Griffin’s long awaited first CD as a leader is destined to have a ruthless impact. Los Angeles-based Rayford Griffin is always in high demand for studio and touring gigs worldwide for jazz and r&b royalty, but here he employs his distinctive drumming magic on his own behalf, surrounded by legends: Branford Marsalis, George Duke, Stanley Clarke, Dwight Sills, Gerald Albright, and Everette Harp. Rayford emerges from the drum riser to showcase his writing, arranging, drumming and singing gifts on this brilliant debut CD. The title track Rebirth of the Cool features Rayford singing lead, a richly harmonic surprise. The first single, In Your Eyes, is a song of melodic beauty and radio-friendly panache, featuring Dwight Sills on guitar. Check this out, and you will agree: Rayford is, indeed, “The Cool.”