Biography
mr. RAY (Ray Andersen) grew up in the house that legendary songwriters, Carole King and Gerry Goffin lived in…
His Dad told the family that they'd be moving into the former home of the legendary singer/songwriters, in West Orange, New Jersey.
It is the house where Carole King wrote most of Tapestry, and she and Gerry Goffin wrote the hit song, Pleasant Valley Sunday,
for the Monkees. Pleasant Valley Way runs right through West Orange and the song's lyrics summarize suburban life, and mentions
neighbors on mr. RAY's street. Upon an older cousin turning him onto the Beatles, and discovering from there the beauty of great songwriting,
Ray was inspired at a very early age to attempt playing the piano, guitar and drums, and start crafting his own songs-without a single lesson.
Besides having his Rock and Roll idols and inspirations, Ray was always attracted to the zaniness of TV/movie personalities & entertainers like Danny Kaye,
Jerry Lewis, Monty Python, Dick Van Dyke, etc. Ray describes it as, "…keeping one foot in childhood, and one foot in the grown-up world…
it's a delicate balance." Seeing these personalities prompted Ray to start acting in local productions and studying at
New York City’s famed, American Academy of Dramatic Arts. In the early 80s, he was a member of the notable Asbury Park NJ,
Stone Pony house-band, Cats On A Smooth Surface. Bruce Springsteen played with Ray and the band so much, he often
raved to the press worldwide, that they were his favorite group of musicians to jam with when he was off tour.
In 1995, Ray and his wife, Patti Maloney, formed a pop/rock duo, Blue Van Gogh, and they released an album called Hi-Fi Junkie Sonata
and video to international acclaim. They toured throughout Germany as the opening act for matchbox twenty in April of 1998.
Later that year, 1998, Ray got a call to play guitar, keyboards & sing backup for international rock star, Meat Loaf. Besides giving him the
thrill of performing in some of America & Europe’s greatest venues, Ray, as part of Meat Loaf's band, did a lot of TV such as
David Letterman, Jay Leno, Top Of The Pops, TGIF, VH1's Storytellers, Hard Rock Live and many more. In October of 1999,
the #1-rated VH1 Storyteller episode of all time, Meat Loaf's, went on the road through 2000, & Ray along with Mr. Loaf can be seen forever
preserved on the Storytellers DVD and CD.
Throughout all of this, of course, mr. RAY was entering into a new
musical galaxy where his critics were a lot tougher… even if they were under the age of 8! But Ray knew how to get through to them
with his music & friendly antics. In 1994, his wife, who was part-timing at a pre-school, asked Ray to come in and perform some
songs for the kids. In no time, he became known as "mr. RAY," clad in his trademark black glasses,
holding an eye-catching, colorfully-stickered guitar. The kids were quickly hooked.
Singing about friendship, dinosaurs and rainbows never sounded so cool before… It was such a success that parents everywhere
started begging him to record these songs for those long car rides. mr. RAY wrote and co-produced his own album entitled,
Start Dreaming! It was released in April 2001.
He then signed with Sugar Beats Entertainment (a company owned by
Carole King's daughter!) to distribute his album nationwide. In March 2003, mr. RAY (no longer Ray Andersen!) signed a
DVD/Video deal with a Philadelphia-based company, Center City Film & Video. Live footage intertwined with animation
based on his songs is featured. He's been featured in Parenting Magazine, Family Fun & the New York Times, & many more.
The Wall Street Journal profiled him on the front of one of their Marketplace section, with a color photo, as well.
In 2005 he was on AMC's reality-based series, Into Character, where he portrayed (as himself) a rock guitar instructor on the La Bamba
episode. mr. RAY has also appeared on QVC and sold his DVD and Start Dreaming CD. mr. RAY's second album,
Songs From The Kids' Lounge was released in October 2004. The third mr. RAY album, Family Ride was released November 2006. His 4th album will be released in May 2009.
On December 6th 2006, the first-ever mr. RAY commercial aired on NICKELODEON & CARTOON NETWORK in the US,
selling the brand-new DVD, "Songs From The Stickered Guitar." It features 5 animated original songs…
In March 2007, mr. RAY signed with Cool Kids Music based in London. His products are now sold in many retail stores there.
In May '07 and February '08, he toured throughout London.
In May 2008, mr. RAY signed with Universal Records UK. This is a UK and Ireland-only deal.
The site they had commissioned went live in September.
www.mrraymusic.com
In September 2008, mr. RAY partnered with a very hip indoor playground in Chelsea NYC called appleseeds,
by writing all the songs for their music for kids program called songs for seeds. Classes launched in January 2009.
On March 19th 2009, mr. RAY was invited to sing at the United Nations in NYC for an event called A Season for Non-Violence.
He was backed up by 15 children singers, performing John Lennon's 'Imagine' 'Give Peace a Chance' and two originals, 'Music's A Language' and 'Make The World Safe."
mr. RAY's fourth album is titled. Welcome To The Music Room and features16 original songs.
Combining classic rock with a modern sound that’s perfect for kids, as well as parents to rock to, these 16 songs educate, inspire and entertain children and their families!
Mr. RAY has the following he also dreamed of – he just never thought they’d be under 8 years old!
Entire families are often seen singing and dancing together at all of his live shows. He calls what he does ::: MUSIC FOR THE KID IN ALL OF US.
Ray and his wife, Patti, live in New Jersey USA, and are the parents of a beautiful girl they adopted from birth…they named her Layla.
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