Gentle Giant have confirmed via social media the death of co-founding bassist and composer Ray Shulman. Elder brother Derek posted on Facebook, "I was with him until the end as he bravely battled a long illness. At least I know he is now at peace."
Born in 1949, Ray was the youngest of the Shulman brothers and, along with siblings Derek and Phil, was a founder member of Simon Dupree And The Big Sound. In 1970, the brothers formed Gentle Giant along with guitarist Gary Green, keyboard player Kerry Minnear and drummer Martin Smith.
Ray was one of the band's main composers, contributing to all their albums from their 1970 self-titled debut and 1975 US hit Free Hand, through to their final studio release in 1980, Civilian. In addition to his work with Gentle Giant, he was also a record producer whose credits included Björk's former band The Sugarcubes, and composed music for computer games.
Ray played an active role in Gentle Giant's reissues campaign and, in 2020, made a special appearance in the "reunion" fan video for Proclamation.
Ray is survived by his brothers Derek and Phil, and by his wife Barbara Tanner.
