Artist:A Guy Called Gerald
Song:Voodoo Ray
Album:Ministry of Sound Classics
British producer Gerald Simpson is a key figure in the development of electronica and house music especially in his home town of Manchester, England. As A Guy Called Gerald, he scored a top 20 hit in England with the 1988 single Voodoo Ray. He was born Feb. 16, 1967 in Moss Side, Manchester, England. His parents are Jamaican and Simpson was heavily influenced by his dad's ska and reggae record collection and his mom played piano in church. He listened to jazz fusion and electro funk in local clubs. At first he studied dance but then he got into electronic music by listening to Stu Allan on Picadilly Radio and hanging out at local record shops. Simpson started messing around with tape editing and drum machines in the attic of his house. And that led to the formation of Scratchbeat Masters. It's based on what is done in Jamaica. He challenged bands and their sound systems. He released a single with Graham Massey and Martin Price and they formed the pioneering electronic music group 808 State. Simpson soon left to release the 1988 single Voodoo Ray on his own label. After gaining steam in clubs, Voodoo Ray reached #12 on the British Singles chart. The vocal is by Nicola Collier who worked with Simpson on other songs. The main sample is from the Peter Cook and Dudley Moore comedy album Derek and Clive. Voodoo Ray is considered to be very influential on house music. It appears in the 2002 film 24 Hour Party People which is about the Manchester scene. You can get Voodoo Ray on this various artists budget comp. The success got Simpson a deal with Columbia. But after two albums, he started his own Juice Box label. Simpson moved to New York in 1997. Simpson got into ambient music and he hasn't released music since 2013. But Simpson's legacy is his influence on the Manchester electronic music scene. Here's the video for Voodoo Ray by A Guy Called Gerald.
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