Ray Jr Parker. is a renowned American musician, songwriter, and producer, best known for his iconic hit song "Ghostbusters". Born in Detroit, Michigan, Parker began his music career as a teenage session guitarist, playing on recordings for Holland-Dozier-Holland's Hot Wax and Invictus Records.
Parker's early career saw him playing behind the Temptations, Stevie Wonder, the Spinners, and other Motown acts at the Twenty Grand Club. In 1972, Wonder called Parker to ask him to play behind him on a tour with the Rolling Stones, but Parker initially thought it was a prank and hung up the phone.
Parker later played on Wonder's albums Talking Book and Innervisions, before moving to Los Angeles to focus on session work. He appeared in the picnic scene of the Bill Cosby/Sidney Poitier comedy classic Uptown Saturday Night and worked with Motown producer Clarence Paul on Ronnie McNeir's debut album.
In 1977, Parker signed with Arista Records and formed the band Raydio, which included vocalist Arnell Carmichael, bassist Jerry Knight, guitarist Charles Fearing, Larry Tolbert, and Darren Carmichael. Although the band members were paid a retainer, Parker played most of the instruments on their recordings.
Raydio's debut album went gold, peaking at number eight R&B, and included the hit single "Jack and Jill". The band's subsequent albums, Rock On and Two Places at the Same Time, also spawned hit singles. Parker's solo album, The Other Woman, held the number one R&B spot for two weeks.
One of Parker's most iconic songs is "Ghostbusters", which was initially submitted for the background score of the 1984 film. Director Ivan Reitman thought the song should be released as a single, and it went on to become a massive hit, reaching number one on the R&B and pop charts.
Parker has also written and produced hits for various artists, including New Edition, Randy Hall, Cheryl Lynn, Deniece Williams, Brick, and Diana Ross. He is currently working on a new album and a memoir, "Who Ya Gonna Call? The Adventures of Ray Parker Jr.", which is expected to be released in 2019.
