Ray Charles Back-Up Singer To Perform at Ramapo This Weekend

The first thing that Angela Workman (Raylette with Ray Charles’ band from 1986 to 1999) wants you to know about the late, great Ray Charles was that the 2004 film “Ray” got it wrong.

“Contrary to the way the movie portrayed him, as a womanizer, he was more like a father figure to me and a mentor. He was very protective of me on the road,” she explains.

Workman, who will be singing Charles’ songs again with Whitley and the Hard Times Band at the “Forever Ray: The Music of Ray Charles” tribute concert at this Saturday, was certainly close enough to him to know.

“I was a baby at that time out there and new to being away from home and my mother asked him to look after me and make sure everything was okay. I didn’t know it at the time but his relationship with his mother was very special as well. And so he really went beyond the call of duty to make sure that I was okay,” says Workman.

She also would like people to know that Charles was not a simple man but a sophisticated sojourner. During her years as a back-up singer for Charles, Workman got the opportunity to travel the globe and become a “citizen of the world” as she puts it, traveling under Charles’ wing.

But he was also sweet and genuine. Before he passed away, Workman got to thank Charles for her time with him. He responded in kind with the words, “You know, I only wanted the best in my band, and that’s all that I wanted.”

Bobby Deitch, drummer for Whitley and the Hard Times Band and long-time Ray Charles fan, certainly knows about playing with the best of the best. For the tribute to Les Paul last month, Deitch got to play with guitar greats Lou Pallo and Bucky Pizzarelli.

“The audience was absolutely phenomenal. I mean they were just so responsive. So I’m hoping that we get equally as great a response with the Ray Charles Band,” says Deitch.

Workman, who knew, first-hand, Charles’ love for a great crowd, agrees that there is nothing like an enthusiastic audience.

“Seeing how much passion the audience still has for Ray. You can just feel the love and I know that where he is he has to still feel that love,” Workman says.

She adds, “I’m just grateful for the experience of being with him and for the experience of being with this wonderful tribute band. Not only do I get to revisit my friends, called songs, I get to really slow down and look at the legacy that I was a part of."

Whitley and the Hard Times Band will play The Sharp Theater at 8 p.m. this Saturday October 22. Get information about ordering tickets, which range from $18-$24, at the Ramapo College website.

Related Topics: Angela Workman, Berrie Center, Forever Ray, Live Music, Ray Charles, Tribute, and ramapo college