Ray Benson
Encyclopedia
Ray Benson is the front man of the Western swing band Asleep at the Wheel
.
In 1970, Benson, a Jewish native of Philadelphia, formed Asleep at the Wheel with friends Lucky Oceans
and Leroy Preston. The group relocated to Austin
in 1973 after a suggestion from Willie Nelson
.
Since then, the group has released more than 20 albums and earned 9 Grammy awards. Though the band's lineup has changed greatly over the years (about 90 people have been part of Asleep at the Wheel at some point), Benson has always remained at the helm as the band's driving force.
In addition to his work with Asleep at the Wheel, Benson is also an accomplished producer whose credits include albums by Dale Watson
, Suzy Bogguss
, Aaron Watson
, James Hand and Carolyn Wonderland
; also single tracks for Willie Nelson
, Aaron Neville
, Brad Paisley
, Pam Tillis
, Trace Adkins
, Merle Haggard
, and Vince Gill
.
In 2003, Benson released his first solo album entitled Beyond Time.
Benson is also a founding member of the Rhythm and Blues Foundation
, which raises money to help aging R&B artists, and a member of the board of directors of the SIMS Foundation, which provides low-cost mental health services to Austin musicians and their families. He is also a trustee for the Texas chapter of NARAS
, a board member of St Davids Community Health Foundation, Board member and founding member of Health alliance for Austin musicians (HAMM).
Benson is 6 feet, 7 inches tall with size 16 EEE feet.
. A Ride With Bob includes the live performance of 15 of Wills’ most well-known songs in a plot that interweaves Ray Benson’s present day with various stages in Wills’ storied career. The play continues to tour throughout the country.
. Nelson has a long-time interest in western swing and had toured with the band in 2007. Paul Shaffer
and Vince Gill also perform on this album.
Asleep at the Wheel
Asleep at the Wheel is a American country music group that was formed in Paw Paw, West Virginia, but based in Austin, Texas. Altogether, they have won nine Grammy Awards since their 1970 inception. In their career, they have released more than twenty studio albums, and have charted more than twenty...
.
In 1970, Benson, a Jewish native of Philadelphia, formed Asleep at the Wheel with friends Lucky Oceans
Lucky Oceans
Lucky Oceans is a pedal steel guitarist and a former member of Country/Western Swing band Asleep at the Wheel. He is now a broadcaster in Perth, Western Australia with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation...
and Leroy Preston. The group relocated to Austin
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
in 1973 after a suggestion from Willie Nelson
Willie Nelson
Willie Hugh Nelson is an American country music singer-songwriter, as well as an author, poet, actor, and activist. The critical success of the album Shotgun Willie , combined with the critical and commercial success of Red Headed Stranger and Stardust , made Nelson one of the most recognized...
.
Since then, the group has released more than 20 albums and earned 9 Grammy awards. Though the band's lineup has changed greatly over the years (about 90 people have been part of Asleep at the Wheel at some point), Benson has always remained at the helm as the band's driving force.
In addition to his work with Asleep at the Wheel, Benson is also an accomplished producer whose credits include albums by Dale Watson
Dale Watson
Dale L. Watson is the former Assistant Director for the Counterterrorism Division of the FBI, as such he headed the FBI investigation into the September 11, 2001 attacks and the 2001 anthrax attacks.-Education:...
, Suzy Bogguss
Suzy Bogguss
Susan Kay "Suzy" Bogguss is an American country music singer. In the 1980s and 90s she released one platinum and three gold albums and charted six top ten singles, winning the Academy of Country Music's award for Top New Female Vocalist and the Country Music Association's Horizon Award.After...
, Aaron Watson
Aaron Watson
Aaron Watson is an Texas country music singer.Watson was born in Amarillo, Texas and attended Abilene Christian University, where he began learning guitar, after playing junior college baseball in New Mexico. He gigged around Texas before releasing his debut album, A Texas Cafe; the follow-up,...
, James Hand and Carolyn Wonderland
Carolyn Wonderland
Carolyn Wonderland is an American blues singer, songwriter and musician. She is married to A. Whitney Brown.-Biography:Wonderland dropped out of Houston's Langham Creek High School to pursue her music ambitions...
; also single tracks for Willie Nelson
Willie Nelson
Willie Hugh Nelson is an American country music singer-songwriter, as well as an author, poet, actor, and activist. The critical success of the album Shotgun Willie , combined with the critical and commercial success of Red Headed Stranger and Stardust , made Nelson one of the most recognized...
, Aaron Neville
Aaron Neville
Aaron Neville is an American soul and R&B singer and musician. He has had four top-20 hits in the United States along with four platinum-certified albums...
, Brad Paisley
Brad Paisley
Brad Douglas Paisley is an American singer-songwriter and musician. His style crosses between traditional country music and Southern rock, and his songs are frequently laced with humor and pop culture references....
, Pam Tillis
Pam Tillis
Pamela Yvonne "Pam" Tillis is an American country music singer-songwriter and actress. She is the daughter of country music singer Mel Tillis....
, Trace Adkins
Trace Adkins
Tracy Darrell "Trace" Adkins is an American country music artist. He made his debut in 1996 with the album Dreamin' Out Loud, released on Capitol Records Nashville. Since then, Adkins has released seven more studio albums and two Greatest Hits compilations...
, Merle Haggard
Merle Haggard
Merle Ronald Haggard is an American country music singer, guitarist, fiddler, instrumentalist, and songwriter. Along with Buck Owens, Haggard and his band The Strangers helped create the Bakersfield sound, which is characterized by the unique twang of Fender Telecaster guitars, vocal harmonies,...
, and Vince Gill
Vince Gill
Vincent Grant "Vince" Gill is an American neotraditional country singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He has achieved commercial success and fame both as frontman to the country rock band Pure Prairie League in the 1970s, and as a solo artist beginning in 1983, where his talents as a...
.
In 2003, Benson released his first solo album entitled Beyond Time.
Benson is also a founding member of the Rhythm and Blues Foundation
Rhythm and Blues Foundation
The Rhythm and Blues Foundation is an independent American nonprofit organization dedicated to the historical and cultural preservation of rhythm and blues music....
, which raises money to help aging R&B artists, and a member of the board of directors of the SIMS Foundation, which provides low-cost mental health services to Austin musicians and their families. He is also a trustee for the Texas chapter of NARAS
National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences
The National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences, Inc., known variously as The Recording Academy or NARAS, is a U.S. organization of musicians, producers, recording engineers and other recording professionals dedicated to improving the quality of life and cultural condition for music and its...
, a board member of St Davids Community Health Foundation, Board member and founding member of Health alliance for Austin musicians (HAMM).
Benson is 6 feet, 7 inches tall with size 16 EEE feet.
"A Ride With Bob"
In the Spring of 2005, Ray Benson and Asleep At The Wheel began the production of "A Ride With Bob" that follows the travels of legendary singer/songwriter Bob WillsBob Wills
James Robert Wills , better known as Bob Wills, was an American Western Swing musician, songwriter, and bandleader, considered by music authorities as the co-founder of Western Swing and universally known as the pioneering King of Western Swing.Bob Wills' name will forever be associated with...
. A Ride With Bob includes the live performance of 15 of Wills’ most well-known songs in a plot that interweaves Ray Benson’s present day with various stages in Wills’ storied career. The play continues to tour throughout the country.
Awards
Benson has been presented numerous awards throughout his career. Most recently, the 16th Annual Midsouth Regional Emmy Award for the making of "A Ride With Bob", an Honorary Junior Member of the United States Secret Service, and the Darrel K. Royal Music Patron Award by The Texas Heritage Songwriters' Association. In 2007, the Austin Chronicle recognized Benson for Male Vocals, Band of the Year, Songwriter, Record Producer, and for the Country Genre. Benson was inducted into the Austin Music Hall of Fame in 2002, was given The Texas Music Association Lifetime Achievement Award in 1996, and recognized as an Outstanding Producer by the National Academy of Recording Arts in 1988. He has also been given numerous Citations of Achievement by Broadcast Music, Inc. for his work in the country music field. Ray Benson has been one of the strongest names in Country Music for the last forty years. Ray Benson has earned 9 Grammy awards in 4 different decades.Willie and the Wheel
In February 2009, Asleep at the Wheel and Willie Nelson released "Willie and the Wheel," a western swing collaboration suggested by veteran producer Jerry WexlerJerry Wexler
Gerald "Jerry" Wexler was a music journalist turned music producer, and was regarded as one of the major record industry players behind music from the 1950s through the 1980s...
. Nelson has a long-time interest in western swing and had toured with the band in 2007. Paul Shaffer
Paul Shaffer
Paul Allen Wood Shaffer, CM is a Canadian musician, actor, voice actor, author, comedian, and composer who has been David Letterman's sidekick since 1982.-Early years:...
and Vince Gill also perform on this album.
External links
- http://www.aridewithbob.com
- http://www.raybenson.com
- http://www.asleepatthewheel.com
- http://www.bismeauxstudio.com