Ray Bonneville

Raymond J. Bonneville was born October 11, 1948 in Hull, Quebec (now Gatineau), the second-oldest of nine siblings in a family that spoke solely French. From his native Quebec, he moved to Boston at age twelve where he learned English and picked up piano and guitar. His remarkable life journey included serving in Vietnam, earning a pilot's license in Colorado, and living in Alaska, Seattle, and Paris before six years in New Orleans infused his musical sensibilities with the region's culture and rhythms. A turning point came in 1989 when Bonneville returned to Canada to fly airplanes in the bush, but quit two years later after almost hitting a power line while piloting a seaplane across the Canadian wilderness in bad weather, deciding to make music his full-time career. Born in Canada and raised in the United States, Bonneville is a folk and blues-influenced song and groove man strongly influenced by New Orleans. His awards include a prestigious Juno Award, the Canadian equivalent of a Grammy, for his 1999 album Gust of Wind. In 2012, Ray won the solo/duet category in the Blues Foundation's International Blues Challenge. When not on the road, Ray divides his time between homes in Goulais River, Ontario and Austin, Texas. He has performed at renowned venues around the world including South by Southwest, Folk Alliance, and Montreal International Jazz Festival, playing over 100 shows per year across the U.S., Canada, and Europe.

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