As leader and co-founder of western swing band Asleep At The Wheel, Ray Benson has helped keep that sound alive in the United States for over 50 years, but that does not stop him from experimenting with other genres.

The 73 year-old American multi-instrumentalist incorporates reggae grooves on Ray Benson Swingin’ And Skankin’, a 10-song album scheduled for release on August 30 by Tafari Music, a company owned by Gary “Dr Dread” Himelfarb of RAS Records fame.

It contains western swing/reggae interpretations of Easy Snappin’, originally done by Theophilus Beckford in 1959, Boogie in My Bones by Laurel Aitken, The Wailers’ Put it On and On The Road Again, the 1980 country standard by Willie Nelson.

Most of the recording sessions for Swingin’ And Skankin’ took place at Anchor studios in Kingston, with former Asleep At The Wheel and Bob Dylan bassist Tony Garnier among the musicians playing on the tracks.

Drummer Sly Dunbar, keyboardist Robbie Lyn, guitarists Steve Golding and Dwight PInkney ensured the project had an authentic Jamaican flavour.

There are guest appearances from Nelson, guitarist Warren Haynes, drummer Steve Jordan, and British deejay Pato Banton.

“Dr Dread and I thought we could meld reggae, ska, and what I do into a new sound. I’d heard covers of Easy Snappin’ so I found Theo Beckford’s version and thought I could cover it well,” Benson told the Jamaica Observer.

Since forming Asleep At The Wheel in 1970, the Philadelphia-born Benson has recorded over 20 albums with that band and collaborated with legends like Dylan, Nelson, Emmylou Harris, and Dwight Yoakam.

An admirer of legendary guitarist Ernie Ranglin, he also produced Still is Still Moving To Me, a 2004 song by Nelson and Toots Hibbert.

“I first heard Jamaican music in the 60s with Desmond Dekker and Millie Small. In the 70s Toots and The Maytals were a favourite of mine and, of course, Bob Marley and Peter Tosh. I first visited Jamaica in 1980,” said Benson.

Himelfarb, who is from Washington, DC, started RAS Records in 1979. The label flourished during the 1980s and 1990s through albums by Israel Vibration, Culture, Bunny Wailer, Gregory Isaacs, Don Carlos, Yellowman, and Inner Circle.