Jazzman Parker indulges audiences with sweet tunes

Jazzman Parker indulges audiences with sweet tunes

By Yenni Kwok

JAKARTA (JP): Ray Parker Jr. knows how to indulge the
Indonesian taste for sweetness.

He won over audiences during recent performances at Jamz,
South Jakarta, with his sweet smile, sweet deep voice and, above
all, sweet love songs.

The shows from April 9 to April 12 were packed with young
professional couples, who sat solemnly or cheered politely as the
guitarist-singer wooed them with his hits.

He started out with his staple of mellow R&B songs, such as
Don't Want to Sleep Alone Tonight and One-Sided Love Affair,
which was played as his piano solo. Parker and his band, The
Radio, later heated up the stage with funky tunes and some
detours into humor.

With his sexy voice and bright white smile, the Detroit-born
Parker is indeed Mr. Romantic. The night was saved from a
complete wallowing in romance by The Radio's funny asides, which
Parker happily accommodated.

The Thumb by West Montgomery, Parker's favorite jazz
musician, was the vehicle for the humor. Parker, saxophonist
Charles Green and bassist Alex Al "talked" with their instruments
while playing the tune.

The audience lapped up the slapstick humor, which included
flirting with several female audience members and making fun of
each other. Green became an instant side-kick star with his funny
antics.

"I like to perform in the city where people who don't know my
music still enjoy the show," Parker said in explaining the
inclusion of the skit.

In Jakarta, he did not need to worry about that. The audience
knew his hits well, and most of them even sang along. They seemed
to prefer Parker's romantic side over his mischievous one.

They cheered when he and The Radio played the funky intro to
The Other Woman but their enthusiasm was quickly dampened as they
listened to the lyrics recounting how a one-night-stand turns
into a hot romance.

Parker, who is married with two children, said some of his
inspiration for his love songs come from his own experiences, but
most is from listening to other people's stories and spicing them
up.

Easygoing is probably the best description of Parker, who
currently lives in Mammoth Lakes, California. He revealed that he
had no idea how big Jakarta was until he arrived here.

"I thought it was a small city, with only one million people,"
he said. He said he loves the "easy personality" of Indonesians.

This was in evidence at Friday's show, which was scheduled to
start at 8:30 p.m. but began a half hour later. There were no
complaints from Parker's eager fans.

Parker noted the contrast of the Indonesian audience with
those in Japan, their previous stop before coming here. "The
Japanese wanted to be on time, and they always looked at their
watch."

His laid-back attitude extends to his future plans. Although
he is planning to record a new album and to finish it by the end
of this year, he claims he has no ambitions except "to be happy
and have fun." He recently signed up with MCA and is coming back
with the single I Love You Like You Are.

Parker cited the influence of growing up in Motown, the hotbed
of rock and blues music, an offshoot of black gospel.

"Stevie Wonder and Diana Ross lived only eight or nine blocks
away (from my home)," he remembered.

'Ghostbusters'

He learned to play the guitar in grade school and turned
professional in his early teens. He first toured with the
Spinners and played on a recording session at Motown for Marvin
Gaye, Gladys Knight & the Pips and his neighbor Wonder.

In the mid-70s, he left the Midwest and moved to Los Angeles
to embark on his musical career. His early hits were A Woman
Needs Love, The Other Woman and Girls Are More Fun. Yet he is
best known for the 1984 soundtrack tune for the movie
Ghostbusters.

Parker wrote Ghostbusters on request from the filmmaker, who
gave him a few directions on his vision of the soundtrack. The
result was a bopping dance tune, a departure from his usual love
ballads.

He said he has no qualms about writing songs according to
other people's dictates. "I don't care... as long as they pay,"
Parker laughed.

He has reason to be grateful as Ghostbusters brought him
international fame. Parker never passes up the opportunity to
perform the song.

While jamming to Ghostbusters, he pulled a girl up on stage to
do the wacky theme dance. "Who you gonna call?" he asked the fan
in her orange top and floral pants.

"Ray Parker!" she screamed. Satisfied, the star beamed his
trademark sweet smile and let her go.