Ray Fuller, guitarist, composer, music director, producer, has intimately worked with such noted artists as Whitney Houston, Anita Baker, Natalie Cole, George Duke, Boney James, Branford Marsalis, Bebe & Cece Winans, Yolonda Adams, Quincy Jones, Brenda Russell, Jeff Lorber, Everette Harp and many, many others in his outstanding musical career!
Ray's solo project entitled 'The Weeper', is currently being released on the A Ray Artist Music label. Its title taken from the nickname he was given by none other than 'world class' musician, George Duke, who states, "Ray emotes with such passion and so musically well, the deepest and most intimate expressions of an author's story."
"There's an understanding among artists of all walks that the most gifted make their statements with the most refinement. From Picasso and Rembrandt to Miles and B.B., at the height of their artistry, each was able to express volumes with a few precise brush strokes or one well placed note.
Chicago native Ray Fuller, blessed with limitless capacities for taste, economy and sensitivity, is well on the road to such refinement, though it's mostly been other musicians who have realized it...." A. Scott Galloway
A graduate of Chicago's Kenwood Academy of the Arts and later The American Conservatory of Music, Ray "The Weeper" Fuller has continuously made his mark in the entertainment arena as a Guitarist, Performer and Musical Director.
While still in high school, he was already considered on the "A" lists of most record producers and jingles (commercials) in the Chicago area. He also toured the country with Curtis Mayfield and The Chi-Lites. At age 19, Ray toured South Africa with the Staple Singers. Seeing the conditions of a nation under Apartheid and a People oppressed beyond hope had a great impact on his perspective of life and opportunity. It was soon after that he embarked on the bigger challenges of his career and moved to Los Angeles. Ironically, 10 years later, Ray performed with Anita Baker as Musical Director as well as Natalie Cole for Mandela's "Freedom" concert, which celebrated his release from prison, and also had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Mandela and personally expressed to him of South Africa's inspiration to his own life.
In addition to album recordings and world tours, his guitar has been heard on numerous television and film soundtracks, to name a few; "The Bodyguard" ("I Will Always Love You"), "Leap of Faith", "Thelma & Louise" (recorded w/ B.B. King), "Another 48 Hours", "Boomerang", "Meteor Man", "Captain EO" (Disney), "The Prince of Egypt" (Dreamworks), to name a few.
The making of "The Weeper", his first CD as a leader, is something Ray Fuller sums up with a tired but happy shrug as a challenging but much needed and appreciated "process." The sheer determination that Fuller had to finish this project in the face of ceaseless personal distractions is a shining testament to his commitment to seeing it through.
"It's just real and a long time coming," Ray concludes. "There's always something else for a popular musician to do, but at some point we know when it's time to tell our own story. I don't think I was prepared to tell the story before. I'm not saying it's absolutely necessary for an artist to go through tragedy and drama before they can tell a story worthy of listening to. It's just 'more' about fully having something of value to say musically, and having a well-rounded vocabulary with which to 'speak' it."
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