Early Work
In the mid-1970s he was a sideman in Barry White's "Love Unlimited Orchestra", before creating Raydio, an R&B group, in 1977, with Vincent Bohnam, Jerry Knight, and Arnell Carmichael. Parker appeared briefly in the 1974 film "Uptown Saturday Night" as a guitar player. Parker also wrote songs and did session work for The Carpenters, Rufus and Chaka Khan,Aretha Franklin, Stevie Wonder, Leon Haywood, Temptations, The Spinners, Boz Scaggs, Rhythm Heritage, and Gladys Knight and the Pips.
Raydio
The group scored their first big hit, with Arista Records, "Jack and Jill" off of their self-titled album in 1978. The song was # 8 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts, earning a Gold record in the process.
Their successful follow-up hit, "You Can't Change That" was released in 1979, off of the Rock On album. The song was a Top 10 hit, making it up to # 9 on the Billboard charts during the same year it was released.
In 1980, the group became known as Ray Parker Jr. and Raydio, and the group released two more albums: Two Places at the Same Time in 1980 and A Woman Needs Love in 1981.
During the eighties Ray Parker Jr. and Raydio had two Top 40 hits ("Two Places at the Same Time" - # 40 in 1980 and "That Old Song" - # 21 in 1981) and their last and biggest hit "A Woman Needs Love," released in 1981, went to # 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 Charts, and # 1 on the R&B Charts for two weeks in 1981.
The Solo Years and Ghostbusters
Raydio broke up in 1981, while Ray Parker Jr. continued with his solo career, scoring six Top 40 hits, including the hit single "The Other Woman" (Pop # 4) in 1982 and "Ghostbusters" in 1984.
Parker was one the first black artists to venture into the then-fledgling world of music videos. He actually made two different videos for his hit "The Other Woman". The first was Halloween-themed and centered around a haunted castle with dancing corpses and vampires. The second was more performance-oriented, with Parker performing the song against a outer space background with backup singers. MTV initially refused to air either video because, at the time, no videos for black artists were shown and, in the case of the "haunted castle" video, Parker was depicted as having interracial relationships, which MTV didn't want to promote.
"Ghostbusters" was a title track of the Gold-selling soundtrack of the hit movie Ghostbusters (but the song has now sold upwards of 28 million units internationally according to Parker in 2007)[citation needed], starring Bill Murray and Dan Aykroyd. The single was at #1 for three weeks on Billboard's Hot 100 chart, and at #1 for two weeks on its Black Singles chart. The song was also nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1984 but lost to Stevie Wonder's "I Just Called to Say I Love You" from The Woman in Red.
He also made an acting appearance on the 1980s sitcom Gimme a Break starring Nell Carter.
Controversy surrounding Ghostbusters
Parker was accused of plagiarizing the melody from Huey Lewis & the News song "I Want a New Drug" for his 1984 #1 hit theme to Ghostbusters, released only six months after Lewis' hit reached #6 in the Billboard Hot 100. This ended with Lewis suing Parker, and the pair settled out of court in 1995.
They returned to court once again in 2001, as Parker sued Lewis for breaching a confidentiality agreement forming part of their original out of court settlement which prohibited either side from speaking about it publicly. Lewis had revealed in a VH1 Behind The Music special that Parker had paid a financial settlement as part of the original agreement.
Continued Songwriting
Ray Parker Jr. also wrote and produced hits for New Edition ("Mr. Telephone Man"), Randy Hall, Cheryl Lynn ("Shake It Up Tonight"), Deniece Williams ("I Found Love") and Diana Ross. He also performed guitar on several songs on La Toya Jackson's 1980 debut album.
Raydio Discography
* Raydio (1978) #27 US
* Rock On (1979) #45 US
* Two Places at the Same Time (1980) #33 US
* A Woman Needs Love (1981) #13 US
* Greatest Hits (1982)
Ray Parker Jr. Discography
* The Other Woman (1982) #11 US
* Woman Out of Control (1983) #45 US
* Ghostbusters (Soundtrack) (1984) #6 US
* Chartbusters (1984) #60 US
* Sex and The Single Man (1985) #65 US
* After Dark (1987) #86 US
* I Love You Like You Are (1991)
* I'm Free (2006)
Ghostbuster
Ray Parker Jr. Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
If there's something strange in you neighborhood,
Who you gonna call? Ghostbusters!
If there's something weird and it don't look good,
Who you gonna call? Ghostbusters!
I ain't afraid of no ghost.
I ain't afraid of no ghost.
If you're seeing things running through your head,
Who you gonna call? Ghostbusters!
An invisible man sleeping in your bed,
Who you gonna call? Ghostbusters!
I ain't afraid of no ghost.
I ain't afraid of no ghost.
Who you gonna call? Ghostbusters!
If you're all alone, pick up the phone and call
Ghostbusters is a 1984 hit song by Ray Parker Jr. The song talks about paranormal activities and encourages listeners to call the Ghostbusters for help. The song opens up by posing a question, "If there's something strange in your neighborhood, who you gonna call? Ghostbusters!" The song is catchy and upbeat, and the lyrics are easy to remember, making the song a classic.
The first two verses encourage people not to be afraid when they encounter paranormal activities. The chorus of the song repeatedly affirms that the singer isn't afraid of ghosts. The final verse suggests that if you're all alone and you encounter something strange or weird, then you should pick up the phone and call the Ghostbusters.
The lyrics of Ghostbusters are simple and fun, and the song has become an iconic part of popular culture. The song has also appeared in numerous movies, TV shows, and commercials over the years.
Line by Line Meaning
Ghostbusters!
Call the Ghostbusters team for assistance.
If there's something strange in you neighborhood,
If you see or experience anything unusual or scary in your area,
Who you gonna call? Ghostbusters!
You should reach out to the Ghostbusters team for help.
If there's something weird and it don't look good,
If there's a frightening or unusual situation that requires expertise beyond your understanding,
I ain't afraid of no ghost.
I'm not scared of any paranormal entities.
I ain't afraid of no ghost.
I'm not frightened by anyone or anything that is not in the normal realm of the living.
If you're seeing things running through your head,
If you are experiencing hallucinations or any unwanted thoughts in your mind,
Who you gonna call? Ghostbusters!
The Ghostbusters team is always ready to help you deal with any abnormality in your life.
An invisible man sleeping in your bed,
If you're experiencing the presence of a supernatural entity in your room,
Who you gonna call? Ghostbusters!
You should reach out to the professional Ghostbusters team for solutions and assistance in dealing with the situation.
If you're all alone, pick up the phone and call
If you are alone and experiencing anything unique or bizarre,
Lyrics © RAY PARKER JR DBA RAYDIOLA MUSIC
Written by: RAY PARKER JR.
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@rosebyanyname
All non-GB cameos:
1:16 - Chevy Chase
1:25 - Irene Cara (RIP!)
1:58 - John Candy (RIP!)
2:23 - Melissa Gilbert
2:31 - Ollie E. Brown
3:24 - Jeffrey Tambor
3:29 - George Wendt
3:34 - Al Franken
3:42 - Danny DeVito
3:46 - Carly Simon
3:51 - Peter Falk (RIP!)
3:54 - Teri Garr
3:58 - bonus - Chevy Chase nearly swallowing a cigarette
@COMODORO29
1:16 Chevy Chase
1:25 Irene Cara
1:58 John Candy
2:23 Melissa Gilbert
2:31 Ollie E. Brown
3:21 Cindy Harrell Horn
3:26 Jeffrey Tambor
3:29 George Wendt
3:34 Al franken
3:42 Danny DeVito
3:46 Carly Simon
3:50 Peter Falk
3:55 Teri Garr
3:59 Chevy Chase
@yungspookers
BUSTIN MAKES ME FEEL GOOD is definitely a line for the ages
@SuperSlayTbh
Ikr
@adnanjamil7271
bustin makes me feel good......an invisible man sleepin on your bed.....these lines have different meaning as an adult đ đ€Ł đ
@blackman9008
he knew what he was doing
@androsgreene9824
đđ
@whiteeye2121movalik
what does the line mean?
@sambazparlak1445
I swear this song ruled the world for a while. this never gets old
@carloshinojosa4351
It always comes back for Halloween. And now that weâre having a ghostbusters movie we might actually see some costumes start to pop up again.
@LLVideomaker
@@carloshinojosa4351 hope so!
@dennismullany4755
It its the spot a sound