THE new comedy creation from Limerick musician/ actor Ray Murphy is Fontaine Zing.
Fontaine’s debut single is a jazz ballad croon called ‘Sensual Barbecue’. The video now online follows Zing as he, “serenades his beautiful wife with his smooth new jazz classic.”
The video is as oily and funny as the title would suggest.
Ray, who plays drums in many jazz combos in the city, says his new creation was based on the bringing together of the cheesy elements of a jazz singer with the cheesy elements of a romantic experience.
“A lot of jazz singing is predisposed to cheesy stuff. From my own experience even instrumentally, the genre of jazz has lots of cheese in it.
“You have good country, you have bad country, good classical and watered down stuff. I am putting a magnifying glass to parts of jazz singing that are cheesy and turning the volume up a much as possible.”
The idea for the funny video was conceived while Ray was on holiday. The video was filmed and edited by Shane Serrano with guitar written and performed by Joe O’Callaghan and bass written and performed by Peter Hanagan. There’s a star turn from Roisin Keating in the role of Fontaine Zing’s love interest.
“It was her first time acting. She was totally up for it and was great craic.”
“Shane is so in the zone when he walks into the room. He such a talented guy with a lens and in the editing room afterwards.”
Fergal and Peter, who feature as the band “took very little cajoling for face pulling – it just came so naturally to all of them. They did an amazing job.”
Ray has created a collection of characters that all relate to the cheesy clichés in musical genres.
Previous videos introduced the world to the sensational creation Declan Dallas, Country Star and the Christmas Comedy Opera.
Now all his creations are available at his new website Do-Rah-Mee. See the Facebook page www.facebook.com/Doh-ray-me for all the mad creations.
“The characters are starting to feel like one mad family,” he laughs.
“I have been playing music a long time and it is an opportunity to have a bit of fun. I really enjoy building the characters. I really love getting into character and the experience of getting lost in all of that.
“There is great fun to be had poking fun at this, a case of, another genre – another victim.”
Ray continues to play music regularly and is keen to get back playing jazz and put a good session together.
“I was lucky to play with Liam O’Brien and Brian Meehan a couple of times this year and with Limerick Jazz Society.”
“It is amazing to see what is going on with Limerick Jazz Society. At the annual workshop celebration in Dolan’s, the numbers were so impressive from young to the elder ‘states persons’. It is brilliant to see how large it is growing now, the talent coming through is so impressive.”
