My friend Ray Shulman, who has died aged 73, was an adventurous composer, musician and record producer.
He was born in Portsmouth to Louis Shulman and Rebecca Laufer, and attended Portsmouth Technical high school. At first he seemed set to become a jazz trumpeter like his dad, then seemed headed for the National Youth Orchestra, but in 1966 he was persuaded to join his older brother Derek’s R&B group Simon Dupree and the Big Sound. Their career – whose highpoint was the psychedelic hit Kites – flared and faded while Ray was still a teen, but the group soon reinvented itself as Gentle Giant, an ensemble of supremely accomplished multi-instrumentalists who combined medieval, baroque, folk, jazz and rock elements with joyous panache.
Too challenging for the charts, the band’s music dazzled and delighted audiences in concert. Integral to its charms were Ray’s muscular but always elegant bass playing and his sprightly violin (often bounced around the hall by an innovative sound system).
It was after one such gig in 1973, in Cleveland, that Barbara Tanner, a photographer, snapped Ray outside a strip club and joked that she would send it to his mother if he didn’t stay in touch. Tan and Ray were partners from that moment, marrying in 1981.
After Gentle Giant bowed out in 1980, Ray experienced a creative renaissance as a producer of quirky alternative pop. He produced Björk’s breakthrough band the Sugarcubes and a slew of indie acts, including his personal favourites, AR Kane, with whom he also played bass. Morphing into a tech wizard, he went on to score video games, release a techno 12-inch under the name Head Doctor, author DVDs for bands such as New Order and Queen, and compose commercials for Nike.
Ray’s lack of interest in reforming Gentle Giant when prog came back in vogue frustrated fans; he had certainly moved on, but his alienation was not disapproval. “Sorry to give the impression that I’m not a GG fan,” he told me. “I loved our time and like the fact it’s still remembered, particularly when sampled by hip-hop acts.” A heartwarming YouTube video of Proclamation, directed by Ray’s nephew Noah and recorded during Covid lockdown by a far-flung collective of younger-generation fans and former band members, celebrated the music’s enduring verve. Ray had long abandoned his violin but he contributed some banjo, smiling gently.
He is survived by Tan and his brothers, Derek and Phil.
