Ruby Rudman ... Vocalist
Ruby Rudman, vocalist with the Robin Anderson Big Band, was born in Chicago in the late 1940s. Her dad was a detective with the Chicago Police. She grew up in Cicero, Illinois, and boasts of going to high school with Al Capone's neice. She started her singing career at the ripe old age of 3 when her sister Elaine (a few years older) put her on a tree stump in the back yard and told her to sing. And sing she did and hasn't stopped since.
After relocating to San Francisco in March 1969, she sang at folk clubs, including the Coffee Gallery on Grant Street in North Beach while accompanying herself on guitar, and worked as a temporary secretary during the day. A fire in her apartment forced Ruby to suddenly move in January 1972 down to San Jose where she hooked up with a bunch of musicians living in an old Victorian 1/2 block from San Jose State University. That was the turning point and she started her professional career with a group called HEATWAVE and for the next 3 years traveled all over California playing the Holiday Inn circuit. During this time she started playing piano at the group's urging and "learned while she earned." The group moved into a large house in Boulder Creek, California amongst the redwoods and this was their home base.
Ruby traveled to Europe many times as a solo artist, busking on the streets and in the subways of England, Holland, Germany, Italy and France.
Circa 1975 she joined a band called "BROAD DAYLIGHT" with leader, Kacey Jones (the artist formerly known as GZ). This was an all-female band with a drummer from New York, Guitar player from Hawaii, Bass player Brandy Bento (from Los Gatos, Guitar and Saxophone Kacey Jones (from San Jose now Vice President of Kinkajou Records and popular recording artist as well) and Ruby on keyboards. They traveled to Los Angeles and were offered a record contract with MCA Records. However, the deal fell through when the drummer and guitar player decided the manager wanted too much of a percentage. Kacey is alive and well and living Nashville. Check out her new album at http://www.kinkajourecords.com
It's now 1977 and undaunted by this setback, Ruby then hooked up with APRIL AMES & HER DAMES, a Reno Show Band about to go on the road. She spend 12 weeks in Alaska, a stint in Fort McMurray, Alberta, Canada and eventually down to Biloxi, Mississippi at a hotel on the Gulf of Mexico. The group split up there and Ruby started a very successful solo career. She worked her way up the East Coast where a 2-week engagement in Altoona, Pennsylvania turned into 2 months. From there she traveled up to New York, left her equipment and car with friends and spent 4 months in Europe.
After that she returned and toured as solo act all over the United States, eventually settling in Santa Cruz, California. In 1986, wanderlust overtaking the spirited musician, she moved to New York for a short time, and discovered it was much too expensive for a "starving musician" to survive in the big city. From there she moved to Los Angeles where she honed her songwriting skills, become a part of the blues, jazz and folk scene for the next 7 years fronting the authentic blues band TRUE BLUE.
In 1993, Ruby finally moved back to Santa Cruz and claims this is where she'll stay. Two months after she arrived, she hooked up with the Anderson brothers (Robin and Roger) and the rest is, like they say, HIS-TO-RY.
Ruby was the featured vocalist at the Monterey Jazz Festival and Monterey Blues Festival in 1998, and wowed them at an all Gershwin show at Villa Montalvo that same year. Lately you can catch her with her funk quartet Egomania or with RABB at the Crow's Nest every month. In August at the Brewer's Festival in Mountain View and in November at the Cocoanut Grove Ballroom. Check calendar for dates.
