Ray Goren & The Generation Blues Experience

. . . . Buddy (Guy) brought out an even YOUNGER kid to play.
We barely heard this eleven-year old’s name, Ray Goren, but he didn’t seem to care. Ray plugged in and walked right to center stage to take control, silencing the band of road warriors with one swoop of his scrawny arm, he whirled back to the mic and sang, “I got a Sweet Little Angel, and I Love it when she spread her wings.”

For those new to the party, this BB King hit is NOT about an actual angel. It is what we call in writing class, a metaphor. This kid – and his rubber, guitar hero face – breathed new passion into a song he can not possibly understand… unless he’s a distant relative of Georgia O’Keefe.

Ray was impossibly good. The only topper would have been a newborn with a Strat jamming Purple Haze out of a Baby Bjorn strapped to a hot Hollywood mommy. Ray oozed Mojo far beyond his years, matching Quinn and even BUDDY, riff for riff. He refused to yield the spotlight, and went toe to toe with the Man without a hint of fear. Johnny Lang came out, but couldn’t get a note in edgewise.
Eventually, Buddy just gave up and let the kid go. Without hesitation, Ray strolled past Buddy to the edge of the stage as if he’d been fronting this state-of-the-art Blues Machine for a decade. HOW he got this good this young isn’t the question. I want to know how good he’s gonna be. And though Buddy may not be in the wings for Ray’s 76th year, he’ll be there on his strings. Just like Muddy and Junior and Wolf and T-Bone never miss a show of Buddy’s.

THAT is why I love the Blues.

- Word Press

Old-timers who have been playing the blues for decades are in awe of Ray Goren. They say his guitar-playing is phenomenal, they call him a genius and they say nobody compares to him.

They even say he's already got a signature lick – although, if you ask Goren, he's not quite sure what it is.

One more thing: Goren's about to enter the seventh grade.

The 12-year-old, Irvine-based electric guitarist and vocalist picked up the guitar just 3 1/2 years ago, and already he's got his own band named after him.

Goren got his start playing live gigs a few months ago while watching harmonica player Mason Casey perform at a bar. (He was with his dad.) Goren's father and Casey talked, and then Casey invited Goren to the stage to accompany him on guitar.

"It was horrible," said Goren. "My playing was, I mean – the band was amazing. I was horrible. But I'm a lot better now."

He's not the only one who thinks so. He says he's "played a ton of shows" in the past few months, and on Monday night, he played with 68-year-old Bobby "Hurricane" Spencer, who's been playing saxophone for more than 50 years and has played with the likes of Etta James, B.B. King and Otis Redding. Every Monday, Spencer hosts what he calls an all-star blues jam at Lucy's 51, a lounge in Toluca Lake.

When Spencer calls Goren up to the stage, the 12-year-old looks a little, well, small holding his guitar. But after playing just a single bar and watching the way his face contorts with concentration and feeling as he makes the guitar wail, there’s no doubt that he holds his own among the older, more seasoned musicians backing him.

“Ray is an old soul," says Spencer after the set. "He might be 12, but he really ain’t. He plays – like I always say – like he's about 50 years old, and had three divorces and children everywhere, paying alimony."

Spencer isn't the only old-timer who feels that way. Sammy Lee has been playing harmonica for 30 of his 65 years, and was also present for Goren's performance on Monday. He says the kid is incredible.

"Very soulful," Lee said. "Got a whole lot of soul for a young man. He plays with a feeling. I’ve been around a whole lot of blues people. … Lot of people play what they hear. He plays what he feels and you can tell.”

78-year-old Jamie Powell – a blues guitarist for 53 years – was there, too, and invokes the name of one of the greats when asked about Goren's ability.

"They think Stevie Ray Vaughan was bad? This is gonna be bad," he said. "They can't take nothing from him."

The weight of these men's praise isn't lost on the young Goren.

"First thing I have to say is respect," he said. "I really respect the fact they have a lot of experience. I just try to learn from them as much as I can. It's a cool feeling. I like that."

Goren's made a habit of keeping an eye on those with more experience – like Vaughan for example. He's influenced by a gamut of artists, including Freddie King, Jimi Hendrix, B.B. King, Buddy Guy and Eric Clapton. Ask Goren to describe his playing style, and he'll say it's some of Vaughan's intensity, B.B. King's "bluish licks" and Freddie King's syncopation.

Ask Spencer, Lee and Powell who the boy reminds them of, though, and there's no disagreement: All three say B.B. King.

"I think he's going to put blues in a place that, in modern times, it's never been," said Spencer. "If he was 50 even right now, he would be a phenomenal guitar player."

For now, though, Goren's focusing on his upcoming gigs, one of which is the Central Avenue Jazz Festival in South Los Angeles, where he'll play on Sunday afternoon. He played last year, too, joining bluesman Deacon Jones on the stage for a song.

And when the fall rolls around, he's got school to think about, too.

"I just have to keep school before everything, which I've been doing," Goren said. "I get straight As. I also practice every day for two to four hours, depending on the day."

But once he takes the stage, nothing could be further from his mind.

"My eyes are closed and I'm feeling it," he said. "I don't really think about anything when I'm on stage. Unless I screw up. But if I screw up, I screw up, and I get over it in a second."

Spoken like a true bluesman.

The Ray Goren Band is scheduled to play on Sunday, July 29 at 3:50 p.m. at the Central Avenue Jazz Festival, which will take place at the intersection of Central Avenue and 42nd Street. For more information, click here.


José Martinez, OnCentral Reporter - KPCC NPR affiliate

Coined a genius, a prodigy, a phenomenon, and a world-class musician at the tender age of 12, Ray Goren & The Generation Blues Experience will be performing this weekend in Los Angeles.

Raised on music by the likes of Thelonius Monk, Miles Davis, Oscar Peterson, B.B. King and many others, Goren found the magic he was looking for when he discovered Bell’s Blues Workshop in South Los Angeles. There he met up with two masters of the Blues, Bluesboy Jamie Powell, and Harmonica Sam Lee.

The mystical connection between young Goren and his old-timer musical peers who have been playing the Blues for decades demonstrates the pure Power of Blues Music by defying age and time. Far from the trendy clubs and festivals where he even performed at actor Jamie Foxx’s 43rd birthday, Goren found what his soul was yearning for at Bell’s and his teaming with Powell and Lee is truly a soul stirring Blues experience. - EURWEB.com

He is just 13 years old and has already played with Melvyn “Deacon” Jones, Eric Gales and opened for the legendary blues guitarist B.B. King. And did we say that Jamie ‘Django’ Foxx admires his skills on the axe?! A livewire and a guitarist waiting to burst out on the American music scene, Ray Goren took time off from his homework for an email chat with t2.

Ehsaan Noorani was recently blown away by your guitaring...

It surprised me to know that there are Fender Artists that we don’t know about in the USA. It showed me what a big world is out there and I only know a small part of it. He is an amazing musician and guitar player. I listened to him and a great band –– The Saturday Night Blues Band. I never imagined there is such good blues in India… that was really ignorant of me.

He also liked your YouTube video with Eric Gales…

He is one of the best guitar players out there. He has both feel and technique. We enjoyed playing at NAMM.

You’ve also met Jamie Foxx (who has recorded four albums –– Peep This, Unpredictable, Intuition and Best Night of My Life) …

He is a great musician. He loves the blues. He was surprised that I can play like I do. He has already invited me back to his show a few times. He is very funny too.

You are only 13 years old; how were you introduced to the guitar?

I was introduced to the guitar and music at the age of eight. Until then I was listening to a lot of jazz, mostly piano and loved trumpet sax and trombone. I was looking on YouTube for trombone player JJ Johnson and stumbled on B.B. King playing with Eric Clapton, Buddy Guy, Jeff Beck and Albert Collins. They were playing Sweet Little Angel. That was it. I felt something strong that I still cannot put in words. I knew I had to play the guitar. Until then I was playing the piano. I went from listening to (Thelonious) Monk, Oscar Peterson, Lee Morgan, JJ Johnson, Miles (Davis), (John) Coltrane… to B.B. King, Albert King, SRV (Stevie Ray Vaughan) and others. I found it all on YouTube.

This music (blues) is not about how fast you play or how many notes you play. Listen to B.B. King.... He doesn’t play super fast. But every note he plays hits me in the stomach.

In what ways did your life change after meeting Melvyn “Deacon” Jones, who is famous for his work with John Lee Hooker and Freddie King?

Deacon is one of those great players. He can hit that one chord perfectly at the right place, at the right time and you just feel it in your gut. I was lucky. I met Deacon after playing guitar for less than a year. He let me sit in and I loved it. He loved the way I played and he started inviting me to sit in. We are still in touch and in some shows he invites me over. He is a genius. You just breathe the blues and feel the music around him. It was also Deacon’s dynamics that really helped me understand how to play. I was and am lucky to have Deacon in my musical life. It really helped me and people started to take me seriously.

Tell us about your bands…

I have two bands. One is made of great musicians who are in their 20s and 30s. We play blues rock and R&B. My other band is a blues band. The guys are much older. Jamie on guitar is 78. He is amazing. So is 68-year-old Sammy Lee on harmonica. We have a great drummer, keys player and bass (Albert, Tadg and Lester). Everyone sings. They are all amazing musicians. I hear stories about discrimination, problem with women, love and life. I take it all in. We just opened for B.B. King a few weeks ago.

- T2 The Telegraph, Calcutta, India

Reviewer Robert Kinsler wrote the following about Ray’s performance at Doheny Blues Festival opening for Buddy Guy and Steve Miller:

“The festivities began with an impressive set from singer-guitarist Ray Goren who at the mere age of 12 already plays his Fender like a master….. Kinsler noted that Ray “not only plays like Jonny Lang but sings with convincing emotion while improvising on artful arrangements of the Beatles’ “Let It Be” and Bill Withers’ “Ain’t No Sunshine”.

- Orange County Register

Ray Goren --12 years old. A band came out on stage to open for the legend, B.B. King, and this kid – 12 years old! – comes out to front on lead guitar and vocals. What was more surprising is the gifts that this musician possesses. He is a real phenomenon, and you sit there not believing what you are seeing and hearing… It was really one of the most unbelievable moments I’ve experienced at any concert. Amazing.

Truly, what this kid is capable of on stage is staggering. And I actually feel kind of bad referring to him as a kid, but he is only 12 years old. His guitar playing reveals the soul of a man who has lived life… that is what is so amazing. He also has a stage presence, at times leading the band through changes with equal measure of respect and confidence, like the principal conductor of an orchestra – only the orchestra is an incredible blues and rock group.

And as if the rest of his set was not amazing enough (along with highlights and moments from other members of the band – all incredible musicians), for the last number, after making his guitar come alive in ways I’ve rarely seen from life long professional musicians – he switched spots (and instruments) with the keyboardist, and started an incredible blues riff on the keyboard.

If this kid has this much talent at age 12, I have to imagine some day, everyone will know his name. And I will never forget his performance. People can’t be taught such talent – they are born to share their art with the world, and Ray Goren has an early start.

- ROCKSUBCULTURE.COM

Ray Goren --12 years old. A band came out on stage to open for the legend, B.B. King, and this kid – 12 years old! – comes out to front on lead guitar and vocals. What was more surprising is the gifts that this musician possesses. He is a real phenomenon, and you sit there not believing what you are seeing and hearing… It was really one of the most unbelievable moments I’ve experienced at any concert. Amazing.

Truly, what this kid is capable of on stage is staggering. And I actually feel kind of bad referring to him as a kid, but he is only 12 years old. His guitar playing reveals the soul of a man who has lived life… that is what is so amazing. He also has a stage presence, at times leading the band through changes with equal measure of respect and confidence, like the principal conductor of an orchestra – only the orchestra is an incredible blues and rock group.

And as if the rest of his set was not amazing enough (along with highlights and moments from other members of the band – all incredible musicians), for the last number, after making his guitar come alive in ways I’ve rarely seen from life long professional musicians – he switched spots (and instruments) with the keyboardist, and started an incredible blues riff on the keyboard.

If this kid has this much talent at age 12, I have to imagine some day, everyone will know his name. And I will never forget his performance. People can’t be taught such talent – they are born to share their art with the world, and Ray Goren has an early start.

- ROCKSUBCULTURE.COM

Reviewer Robert Kinsler wrote the following about Ray’s performance at Doheny Blues Festival opening for Buddy Guy and Steve Miller:
“The festivities began with an impressive set from singer-guitarist Ray Goren who at the mere age of 12 already plays his Fender like a master….. Kinsler noted that Ray “not only plays like Jonny Lang but sings with convincing emotion while improvising on artful arrangements of the Beatles’ “Let It Be” and Bill Withers’ “Ain’t No Sunshine”.

- Orange County Register

Reviewer Robert Kinsler wrote the following about Ray’s performance at Doheny Blues Festival opening for Buddy Guy and Steve Miller:
“The festivities began with an impressive set from singer-guitarist Ray Goren who at the mere age of 12 already plays his Fender like a master….. Kinsler noted that Ray “not only plays like Jonny Lang but sings with convincing emotion while improvising on artful arrangements of the Beatles’ “Let It Be” and Bill Withers’ “Ain’t No Sunshine”.

- Orange County Register

Renowned music critic Howard Reich noted that: “No one rattles the place like 11-year-old Ray Goren, from the Los Angeles area. He plays electric guitar — and sings — with a fluency, ease and depth of expression that defy easy explanation”. Chicago Tribune, August 2011. - Chicago Tribune