Ray Erskine Parker Jr. (born May 1, 1954) is an American guitarist, songwriter, and record producer. As a solo performer, he wrote and performed the theme song for the 1984 film '' Ghostbusters'' and also sounds from the animated series '' The Real Ghostbusters''. Previously, Parker achieved a US top-5 hit in 1982 with " The Other Woman". He also performed with his band, Raydio, and with Barry White in the Love Unlimited Orchestra.

Early life

Ray Erskine Parker Jr. was born in

Detroit, Michigan Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

, to Venolia Parker and Ray Parker Sr. He attended Angel Elementary School where his music teacher, Alfred T. Kirby, inspired him to be a musician at age six playing the clarinet. He attended

Cass Technical High School Cass Technical High School (simply referred to as Cass Tech) is a four-year Public magnet high school in Midtown Detroit, Michigan, United States. from the University Cultural Center Association, retrieved June 9, 1001 It was established in 19 ...

in the tenth grade. Parker is a 1971 graduate of Detroit's Northwestern High School. He attended college at Lawrence Institute of Technology.

Music career

Parker gained recognition during the late 1960s as a member of Bohannon's house band at the 20 Grand nightclub. This Detroit hotspot often featured Tamla/

Motown Motown is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. Founded by Berry Gordy, Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on January 12, 1959, it was incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau ...

acts, one of which, the (Detroit) Spinners, was so impressed by the young guitarist's skills that they added him to their touring group. Through the Bohannon relationship, he recorded and co-wrote his first songs at age 16 with

Marvin Gaye Marvin Pentz Gaye Jr. (; April 2, 1939 – April 1, 1984) was an American Rhythm and blues, R&B and soul singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. He helped shape the sound of Motown in the 1960s, first as an in-house session player an ...

. Parker was also employed as a studio musician as a teenager for the emergent Holland-Dozier-Holland's Invictus/ Hot Wax stable, and his "choppy" style was especially prominent on " Want Ads", a number one single for Honey Cone. Parker was later enlisted by Lamont Dozier to appear on his first two albums for

ABC Records ABC Records was an American record label founded in New York City in 1955. It originated as the main popular music label operated by the Am-Par Record Corporation. Am-Par also created the Impulse! jazz label in 1960. It acquired many labels bef ...

. In 1972, Parker was a guest guitarist on

Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris (; Judkins; born May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American and Ghanaian singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer. He is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th c ...

's soul song "Maybe Your Baby", from Wonder's album ''

Talking Book An audiobook (or a talking book) is a recording of a book or other work being read out loud. A reading of the complete text is described as "unabridged", while readings of shorter versions are abridgements. Spoken audio has been available in sch ...

'', an association which prompted a permanent move to Los Angeles. He also was the lead guitarist for Wonder when Wonder served as the opening act on the

Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...

' 1972 tour. In 1973, he became a

sideman A sideman is a professional musician who is hired to perform live with a solo artist, or with a group in which they are not a regular band member. The term is usually used to describe musicians that play with jazz or rock artists, whether solo o ...

in Barry White's Love Unlimited Orchestra. Parker appeared briefly in the 1974 film '' Uptown Saturday Night'' as a guitar player in the church picnic scene. Ray Parker also played guitar for Rhythm Heritage, Wah Wah Watson,

Lee Ritenour Lee Mack Ritenour ( ; born January 11, 1952) is an American jazz guitarist who has been active since the late 1960s. Biography Ritenour was born in 1952, in Los Angeles, California. At the age of eight he started playing guitar and four years l ...

Rufus Rufus is a masculine given name, a surname, an Ancient Roman cognomen and a nickname (from Latin ''wikt:rufus, rufus'', "red"). Notable people with the name include: Given name Politicians * Marcus Caelius Rufus, (28 May 82 BC – after 48 ...

Chaka Khan Yvette Marie Stevens (born March 23, 1953), better known by her stage name Chaka Khan ( ), is an American singer. Known as the " Queen of Funk", her career has spanned more than five decades beginning in the early 1970s as the lead vocalist of ...

, Jaye P. Morgan (1976),

Aretha Franklin Aretha Louise Franklin ( ; March 25, 1942 – August 16, 2018) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Honored as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Soul", she was twice named by ''Rolling Stone'' magazine as the Roll ...

(1975), Leon Haywood,

Herbie Hancock Herbert Jeffrey Hancock (born April 12, 1940) is an American jazz musician, bandleader, and composer. He started his career with trumpeter Donald Byrd's group. Hancock soon joined the Miles Davis Quintet, where he helped to redefine the role of ...

, Deniece Williams, Spinners,

the Temptations The Temptations is an American vocal group formed in Detroit, Michigan, in 1961 as The Elgins, known for their string of successful singles and albums with Motown from the 1960s to the mid-1970s. The group's work with producer Norman Whitfield ...

, and

Gladys Knight & the Pips Gladys Knight & the Pips were an American Rhythm and blues, R&B, soul music, soul, and funk family music group from Atlanta, Georgia, that remained active on the music charts and performing circuit for over three decades starting from the early ...

. Parker's first bona fide hit as a writer was "You Got the Love", co-written with Chaka Khan and recorded by Rufus. The single hit No. 1 on the R&B charts and No. 11 on the pop charts in December 1974. Parker has stated that he was the original songwriter of

Leo Sayer Leo Sayer (born Gerard Hugh Sayer, 21 May 1948) is an English-Australian singer and songwriter who has been active since the early 1970s. He has been an Australian citizen and resident since 2009. Sayer launched his career in the United Kingd ...

's 1976 hit "

You Make Me Feel Like Dancing "You Make Me Feel Like Dancing" is a song credited to British-Australian singer Leo Sayer, taken from his 1976 album '' Endless Flight''. Ray Parker Jr. claims that the song was stolen from him, after he played it in a studio for an executive ...

", but that when he submitted the tune as a demo, his accreditation as such was missed. In 1977, Parker created the R&B group Raydio with Vincent Bonham, Jerry Knight, and Arnell Carmichael. Raydio scored their first big hit with " Jack and Jill", from their 1978 self-titled album with

Arista Records Arista Records ( ) is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the American division of the Japanese conglomerate Sony. The label was previously a division of Bertelsmann Music G ...

. The song reached No. 8 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart, earning a Gold single and Gold album in the process. Their follow-up hit, " You Can't Change That", was released in 1979 from the '' Rock On'' album. The song was another Top 10 hit, peaking at No. 9 on the ''Billboard'' chart during the summer and selling a million copies. In 1980, the group became known as Ray Parker Jr. and Raydio. The group released two more albums: ''Two Places at the Same Time'' in 1980 and ''A Woman Needs Love'' in 1981, both Gold albums. In 1981, Parker produced the hard funk single "Sweat (Till You Get Wet)" by

Brick A brick is a type of construction material used to build walls, pavements and other elements in masonry construction. Properly, the term ''brick'' denotes a unit primarily composed of clay. But is now also used informally to denote building un ...

. During the 1980s, Ray Parker Jr. and Raydio had two Top 40 hits: "Two Places at the Same Time" (No. 30 in 1980) and "That Old Song" (No. 21 in 1981). Their last and biggest hit, " A Woman Needs Love (Just Like You Do)", released in 1981, went to No. 4 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and to No. 1 on the R&B Chart for two weeks that year. Raydio broke up in 1981. Parker continued with his solo career, scoring eight Top 40 hits, including the hit single " The Other Woman" (Pop No. 4) in 1982 and " Ghostbusters" in 1984. "Ghostbusters" peaked at No. 1 for three weeks on ''Billboards Hot 100 chart, and at No. 1 for two weeks on its Black Singles chart. The song was also nominated for an

Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...

for Best Original Song in 1984, but lost to Stevie Wonder's " I Just Called to Say I Love You" from '' The Woman in Red''. Parker's song secured him a 1984 Grammy Award for Best Pop Instrumental Performance. Other hits from this period included " I Still Can't Get Over Loving You" (Pop No. 12) and "Jamie" (Pop No. 14). RayParkerJr

Parker also played guitar, wrote songs or produced for Cheryl Lynn ("In the Night", "Shake It Up Tonight", 1981), Michael Henderson (1980),

New Edition New Edition is an American Contemporary R&B, R&B/Pop music, pop group from the Roxbury, Boston, Roxbury neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, formed in 1978 by singer/rapper Bobby Brown. Their name is taken to mean a new edition of the Jackson ...

("Mr. Telephone Man", 1984), Boz Scaggs (1980),

Randy Hall Randy Hall is an American singer, guitarist, and record producer who collaborated with Miles Davis during the 1980s. Hall helped Davis arrange '' The Man with the Horn'', and its title track featured lead vocals by Hall, who also played guitar, ...

(1984), Deniece Williams, and

Diana Ross Diana Ross (born Diane Ernestine Earle Ross March 26, 1944) is an American singer and actress. Known as the "Queen of Motown Records", she was the lead singer of the vocal group the Supremes, who became Motown#Major divisions, Motown's most suc ...

(1983). He performed guitar on several songs on

La Toya Jackson La Toya Yvonne Jackson (born May 29, 1956) is an American singer and television personality. The fifth child and middle daughter of the Jackson family, Jackson first gained recognition on the family's variety television series, ''The Jacksons (TV ...

's 1980 debut album. He also sang the theme tune on 1984’s television series Pryor's Place featuring

Richard Pryor Richard Franklin Lennox Thomas Pryor Sr. (December 1, 1940 – December 10, 2005) was an American stand-up comedian and actor. Known for reaching a broad audience with his trenchant observations and storytelling style, he is widely regarded ...

. In 1989, Run-D.M.C. performed a rap for the movie ''

Ghostbusters II ''GhostbustersII'' is a 1989 American Supernatural fiction, supernatural comedy film directed by Ivan Reitman and written by Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis. The film stars Bill Murray, Aykroyd, Sigourney Weaver, Ramis, Rick Moranis, Ernie Hudson ...

'' that contained elements of Parker's 1984 hit. 1989 also saw Parker work with actor Jack Wagner (''

General Hospital ''General Hospital'' (often abbreviated as ''GH'') is an American daytime television soap opera created by Frank and Doris Hursley which has been broadcast on American Broadcasting Company, ABC since April 1, 1963. Originally a half-hour seria ...

'') on an album for

MCA Records MCA Records was an American record label owned by MCA Inc. established in 1972, though MCA had released recordings under that name in the UK from the 1960s. The label achieved success in the 1970s through the 1980s, often by acquiring other ...

that was eventually shelved and never released. A single from the Wagner sessions, "Wish You Were Mine", featuring an intro rap by Parker, was released on a 1990 MCA promotional sampler CD. In 2006, Parker released a new CD titled ''I'm Free''. In 2014, he was invited by producer Gerry Gallagher to record with Latin rock musicians El Chicano, as well as Alphonse Mouzon, Brian Auger, Alex Ligertwood, Siedah Garrett, Walfredo Reyes Jr., Spencer Davis, Lenny Castro, Vikki Carr, Pete Escovedo, Peter Michael Escovedo, Jessy J, Marcos J. Reyes, Salvador Santana, and David Paich. In July 2016, Parker performed on the ABC network's television show '' Greatest Hits''. Parker is also the founder and owner of the Los Angeles–based recording facility Ameraycan Recording Studios. Parker received a star in the

Hollywood Walk of Fame The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a landmark which consists of 2,813 five-pointed terrazzo-and-brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in the Hollywood, Los Angeles, Hollywood dist ...

in 2014. In 2022, Parker competed in season eight of '' The Masked Singer'' as "Sir Bug a Boo". After being eliminated on "Fright Night" alongside the forfeiting of Linda Blair as "Scarecrow", he performed the ''Ghostbusters'' theme as an encore.

''Ghostbusters'' theme song lawsuit

In 1984, Huey Lewis sued Columbia Pictures and Parker, stating that the melody to the ''Ghostbusters'' theme song infringed on the copyright of the

Huey Lewis and the News Huey Lewis and the News (formerly known as Huey Lewis & The American Express) are an American rock band based in San Francisco, California. They had a run of hit singles during the 1980s and early 1990s, eventually achieving 19 top ten singl ...

song "

I Want a New Drug "I Want a New Drug" is a song by American rock band Huey Lewis and the News from their third album ''Sports''. It was released as the album's second single in January 1984 as the follow up to their top-ten hit " Heart and Soul". The single reached ...

", which had been released on their album ''

Sports Sport is a physical activity or game, often competitive and organized, that maintains or improves physical ability and skills. Sport may provide enjoyment to participants and entertainment to spectators. The number of participants in ...

'' the previous year. The three parties reached a settlement in 1995 which forbade them from revealing any information that was not included in a press release they jointly issued at the time. In March 2001, Parker filed a suit against Lewis for breaching the part of the settlement which prohibited either side from speaking about it publicly.

Music videos

Parker was one of the first black artists to venture into the then-fledgling world of music videos. In 1978, Hollywood producer Thom Eubank produced several music videos of songs from Raydio's first, eponymous album on Arista Records. The single "Jack & Jill" was the first released to air on

Wolfman Jack Robert Weston Smith (January 21, 1938July 1, 1995), known as Wolfman Jack, was an American disc jockey active for over three decades. He was famous for his gravelly voice, and credited it with his success, saying, "It's kept meat and potatoes on ...

's Saturday night television show, '' The Midnight Special''. The music videos were also transferred to film and projected in movie theaters all over Europe. He also made two different videos for his hit "The Other Woman". The first was

Halloween Halloween, or Hallowe'en (less commonly known as Allhalloween, All Hallows' Eve, or All Saints' Eve), is a celebration geography of Halloween, observed in many countries on 31 October, the eve of the Western Christianity, Western Christian f ...

-themed and centered around a haunted castle with dancing corpses and

vampire A vampire is a mythical creature that subsists by feeding on the Vitalism, vital essence (generally in the form of blood) of the living. In European folklore, vampires are undead, undead humanoid creatures that often visited loved ones and c ...

s. The second was more performance-oriented, with Parker performing the song against an outer space background with backup singers. Parker's "Ghostbusters" video, helmed by the film's director,

Ivan Reitman Ivan Reitman (; October 27, 1946 – February 12, 2022) was a Canadian film director and producer. He was known for his comedy films, especially in the 1980s and 1990s. Reitman was the owner of The Montecito Picture Company, founded in 1998. ...

, was one of the first movie-themed videos to find success on

MTV MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...

Acting

In addition to ''Uptown Saturday Night'', Parker also made acting appearances on the 1980s sitcom '' Gimme a Break'', 1984 CBS Saturday morning kids' show '' Pryor's Place'' (for which Parker appeared in the opening title sequence singing the theme song), two episodes of '' Berrenger's'' (1985), ''Charlie Barnett's Terms of Enrollment'' (1986) (V) aka ''Terms of Enrollment ''(USA: short title), '' Disorderlies'' (1987), '' Enemy Territory'' (1987). He was also a production assistant for the film ''Fly by Night'' (1993). He made guest appearances on ''

21 Jump Street ''21 Jump Street'' is an American police procedural drama television series created by Patrick Hasburgh and Stephen J. Cannell for the Fox Broadcasting Company. It aired from April 12, 1987 to April 27, 1991, spanning 103 episodes over five s ...

'' and ''

Kids Incorporated ''Kids Incorporated'' (also known as ''Kids Inc.'') is an American children's television program that began production in the mid-1980s and continued airing into the mid-1990s. It was largely a youth-oriented program with musical performances as ...

''. In early 2009, Parker appeared in a television advertisement for 118 118, a British directory enquiries provider. This featured Parker singing a 118-specific version of the ''Ghostbusters'' theme song. On April 15, 2009, Parker's 118 theme song was made available as a downloadable ringtone from the 118 118 mobile website. In 2014, Parker appeared in the fifth episode of the first season of NBC's romantic comedy television series '' A to Z'', singing the "Ghostbusters" theme song for a Halloween party. Parker was highlighted on TV One's series '' Unsung'', in the fifth season.

Discography

''For Ray Parker Jr.'s releases with Raydio, see Raydio discography.''

Solo studio albums

Compilation albums

Solo singles

Filmography

References

External links

* * *
SoulTracks.com profile of Ray Parker Jr.

August 2006
Ray Parker Jr 2012 Audio Interview at Soulinterviews.com

Ray Parker Jr. Interview
at NAMM Oral History Collection (2015) {{DEFAULTSORT:Parker, Ray Jr. 1954 births Living people 20th-century American guitarists African-American Christians African-American guitarists African-American male singers African-American record producers African-American songwriters American bandleaders American baritones American funk guitarists American male guitarists American rhythm and blues guitarists American session musicians American soul guitarists Grammy Award winners Guitarists from Detroit Northwestern High School (Michigan) alumni Record producers from Michigan Singers from Detroit Songwriters from Michigan The Funk Brothers members The Love Unlimited Orchestra members