Music: Ray Charles Tribute

Ray Charles Tribute

In tribute to the genius of Ray Charles, a swinging sextet of outstanding Bay Area musicians offers their take on some of the highlights from Ray’s amazing songbook.
Tony Lindsay has 11 Grammy awards on his mantel after spending two decades as lead singer of Santana, and has recorded with such artists as Patti Austin, Aretha Franklin, Curtis Mayfield, and Steve Winwood. He moved from Albany, New York to San Jose in 1980, worked at Guitar Center, and joined the Danny Hull Quintet, which later adopted the name Spang-a-Lang. His friend Chester Thompson invited him to audition for Santana, and overnight he went from playing small clubs to huge amphitheaters. He comes fresh off a stint with Santana at the House of Blues in Las Vegas.

Soulful vocalist, Glenn Walters has led and performed in a wide variety of bands on a freelance basis, relying on his enormous repertoire of jazz, blues, rhythm & blues, and even country & western. He performed with such high level groups as: Steely Dan, Savoy Brown, Uriah Heep, Johnny Winter, The Pointer Sisters and Sammy Hagar. He is also in great demand as a voice talent for commercials and movies. He’s done many national radio and television campaigns for companies such as Levi-Strauss, 
E & J Gallo, Hershey’s Chocolate, and Mattel Toys, and provided singing and character voices for the Tim Burton animated film, “The Nightmare Before Christmas”, among others. Glenn also sang the radio themes for the S.F. Giants two years in a row.

Chris Cain’s jazz-tinged blues soaked guitar and deep warm vocals have the maturity and authenticity of bluesmen many years his senior. His expressive style is the result of a lifetime of study and the relentless pursuit of musical mastery. His passion and intensity are a blend of his mother’s Greek ancestry and his father’s soulful black heritage. He’s played with such greats as Albert King, Albert Collins, Johnny Otis, Junior Wells, Boz Scaggs and Willie Nelson. Through his guitar mastery and unique songwriting ability, Chris Cain has established himself as a musical force to be reckoned with. With ten solo albums to his credit, he tours and performs regularly under his own name and enjoys sharing his talents with the RC Project.

Co Founder of the RC Project, bassist Dewayne Pate is a graduate of the Musicians Institute in Los Angeles where he studied privately with Jeff Berlin and Bob Magnusson. After a stint with Bobby Freeman (“Do Ya Wanna Dance”, “The Swim”) in the LA area, Dewayne returned to his home in the Bay Area, and worked with a wide array of artists including Huey Lewis & The News, Boz Scaggs, Robben Ford, Maria Muldaur, Pete Escovedo, Tracy Chapman and Pat Benatar. His highly acclaimed instructional video, “The Art of Tapping” is sold around the world. He has been a columnist for Bassics Magazine and has recently toured with Grammy winning trumpet virtuoso Arturo Sandoval.

Keyboardist David K Mathews has been on the music scene since 1975 and is currently the keyboard player with Santana. At the age of 23, Dave joined the legendary funk/soul group Tower of Power and toured with the group for 2 years. From 1988 - 2008 he was the organist/pianist for Grammy winner and Queen of Rhythm & Blues, Etta James. In addition, he has performed on TV, radio and video, including the Tonight Show w/ Johnny Carson, the David Letterman Show, Austin City Limits, Dancing with the Stars, etc. He has worked and/or recorded with such diverse artists as India Arie, Chris Daughtry,The Gypsy Kings, Sheila E, The Fabulous Thunderbirds, Bonnie Raitt, Charles Brown and Jimmy Witherspoon.

Deszon Clayborne is a wonderful musician as well as a human being of great depth who lights up the stage with his dedication, proficiency and sense of humor alike. He managed to flawlessly integrate the styles of straight ahead jazz, funk, hip-hop and world music since completing his studies with master drummers Billy Cobam, James Levi, Barry Jekowsky, Kenneth Nash and Ralph Humphrey. His vast experience of the live stage and the recording studio include engagements with: Peter Apfelbaum, Angela Bofil, Les McCann, Dr. Lonnie Smith Omar Sosa, Robben Ford, Boz Scaggs, Greg Howe, Ernie Watts and Tom Scott. He is widely regarded as one of the premier drummers on the West Coast.
This concert generously sponsored by Crickett Jones.