James Ramey
| Baby Huey | |
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James Ramey pictured on the cover of his only album, The Baby Huey Story: The Living Legend
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | James Ramey |
| Born |
August 17, 1944 Richmond, Indiana, United States |
| Origin | Chicago, Illinois, United States |
| Died | October 28, 1970 (aged 26) Chicago, Illinois, United States |
| Genres | Funk/R&B/soul/rock |
| Occupation(s) | Singer |
| Years active | 1963–1970 |
| Labels | Curtom |
| Associated acts | The Vets, Baby Huey & the Babysitters, Melvyn "Deacon" Jones, Johnny Ross |
James Ramey (August 17, 1944 – October 28, 1970), better known as Baby Huey, was an American rock and soul singer. He was the frontman for the band Baby Huey & the Babysitters, whose sole LP for Curtom Records in 1971 was influential in the development of hip hop music.
A native of Richmond, Indiana, James was the son of Robert and Ernestine Ramey. He moved to Chicago, Illinois at the age of nineteen, and worked with several local bands as a singer. One, while he was still in high school, was called the Vets. Due to a glandular disorder, Ramey weighed about 350 pounds (160 kg) around this time. His size contributed to his stage presence, but also to health problems. Nevertheless, he made light of his condition, adopting the stage name "Baby Huey" after Paramount Pictures' giant duckling cartoon character of the same name. In 1963, Ramey, organist/trumpeter Melvyn "Deacon" Jones, and guitarist Johnny Ross founded a band called Baby Huey & the Babysitters, which became a popular local act and released several 45 RPM singles. The four songs, "Beg Me", "Monkey Man", "Messin' with the Kid" and "Just Being Careful" were spread over various single releases.
During the late-1960s, the band followed the lead of Sly & the Family Stone and became a psychedelic soul act. Huey began wearing an Afro and donned psychedelic African-inspired robes, and adding sing-song, self-referential rhymes to his live performances. According to his bandmates, Ramey's rhymes were very similar in style to those later popularized by rappers in hip-hop music. The Babysitters were a popular live act, but never took the time out to record an album.
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