Here are some notes and bits that I think you might find interesting. News about the band, updates about the web site, and anything else I think is relevant. Hope you find it fun and informative.

Best Regards, 
Renny "Ray"

14 August 2009 :: Out last gig: Two Nights at The Crooked Cue in Mississauga, Sept 11 & 12 as part of the Port Credit South Side Shuffle.

John Pappas, owner of the 'Cue, has invited us back again for two nights during the Southside Shuffle. We'll be on the main floor (like last year) and this will be Rave On's final gig. Rave On has been going on now for about eight years, and it is time to move on to other things. I want to thank everyone who has supported us over the years, as well as my current and past band mates. It's been a great time.

You may wish to know that a gentleman by the name of Dave Ryan is currently working with me to start up his own SRV Tribute, so you soon should be able to get your Stevie fix if you need it. Again, thank you to everyone, and take care.

Renny Schweiger

18 June 2009 :: One night at The Crooked Cue in Mississauga, June 20.

I always like to support John at the 'Cue. We're playing one night as part of the Mississauga Waterfront Festival. We'll be upstairs, so come on out. This may be one of the last times you can see us play. We'll also be at the Crooked Cue as part of the Port Credit Jazz and Blues Festival, the Southside Shuffle, September 11 and 12.

1 February 2009 :: Rave On to take a year off from gigging.

We're taking a break during 2009. I'd like to thank all the fans that supported us during the past many years, as it gave us a great feeling to know that what we were doing was appreciated. (Brian and Ramona, thanks so much!)

30 May 2007 :: Music files up on the site. (Finally.... )

I've finally moved the web site to a proper web hosting service, which allows much more room for files, so I've been able to put the mp3 files of our Demo CD up here. 

We're going to be busy in June: If you live in the western GTA, check us out at Boston Manor in Burlington on June 2nd. We're in Grimsby at The Rumour Mill on the 15th, and we've just booked a Q107 Discography Series at the new Healey's Roadhouse in Toronto where we will do "Live Alive" and all of your favourites on the 23rd. We finish up June at Web's in Mississauga on the 29th. Hope to see you there!

One more thing... don't forget to book yourself a table at The Crooked Cue during the Port Credit South Side Shuffle. We're on the main floor Friday and Saturday night (Sept 7/8)

21 March 2007 :: Some gigs on the books, and a newspaper article on Rave On.

Our schedule is starting to look a little fuller, and I expect more gigs soon. Also, I've placed an article about Rave On and tribute bands on the site. Read it here.

17 January 2007 :: OK, the Holiday's over, time to get some gigs!

Don't despair. I'm working the phones and hope to get some gigs soon. .

12 September 2006 :: South Side Shuffle was great. Man, are we tired!

I've never moved so much gear and played so hard in my life in one 30 hour stretch! Thanks so much to all the great people that enjoyed our shows over the weekend. If you have photos, please share -- I'll pay $$$ for good shots! I can't wait for next year. I'm sure I'll have recuperated by then.

26 August 2006 :: We had a BLAST at Healeys'.

Hey there, I can't believe it's been 5 months since my last post here. We've been quite busy over the summer. The Q107 Discography Series we played at Healey's last weekend was one of the high points of Rave On's run. We played the first and last studio albums Stevie and Double Trouble did in the studio: Texas Flood (1983) and In Step (1989). The response was great, and we had about 200 people out. Not bad for a summer weekend and the first weekend of the CNE.

Look for us at the Port Credit Southside Shuffle Sept. 8 and 9. On Saturday we're doing the Sidewalk Shuffle in the afternoon and playing The Crooked Cue (upstairs) in the evening. The Friday night before we're at Natty's. The Sidewalk Shuffle is a great time to take the kids or younger SRV fans out to see us. See y'all there!

26 March 2006 :: The SRV Workshop was GREAT. Thanks to all who came out.

Our SRV Guitar Workshop at the Black Swan Tavern went very well. I think people enjoyed it, and the jammers had a great time. Tony Springer from the Hendrix tribute FIRE put on a great show, and we did Voodoo Chile together, trading licks and sharing vocals. There were lots of raffle prizes. If anyone has any photos to share, I'd love to see them; please send them here. 

One thing I didn't get enough time to do during the workshop was talk about licks and the tips and techniques. I did cover a few things in between songs, but I had an entire agenda I would have liked to go through. Also, I had some demonstrations prepared to compare amps and speakers, but we didn't have enough time. I suppose I was too ambitious. Also, in retrospect, the Swan probably isn't the best place to convey that type of information. So, I'm working on an SRV Workshop "Part II". I'm not sure where it will be held, but I'm hoping to hold it in a more intimate setting, where we can talk more in depth about Stevie's playing and the gear used to get that tone. I'll contact all the registered attendees when I have the details worked out. Hopefully this event can be free.

For any of you who still would like a Resource CD from the workshop, please email me or call me at (647) 284-4153, and I'll mail you out one. Cost is $5, but it is well worth it, just for the great 2-CD bootleg of SRV at Fitzgerald Club in '83 that's on it, not to mention the interviews, Guitar World interview with booklet, and other links and information. 

Thanks again to everyone who attended and helped make the event a great time. And Tom, send those photos!

9 February 2006 :: Look out! Lots of upcoming dates, and a Guitar Workshop.

Doug (Bass) and I have been pounding the pavement in search of gigs, and now that our new promo package is available, I've been bothering all the agents out there to scare up some gigs. It's working, as we have half a dozen gigs now on the calendar, and I hope to have more soon. Also, John Long of Long and McQuade Music is supporting our SRV Guitar Workshop, which will be at the Black Swan Tavern on Sunday March 19 at 3 in the afternoon. Everyone is welcome, including non-musicians and non-guitarists. We'll have music, some discussion, jamming and prizes. And a very special guest, Tony Springer from the Hendrix tribute FIRE will be joining us for some fun. 

20 January 2006 :: We're back after a bit of a hiatus...

After a string of gigs in the fall of 2005, we had a quiet holiday season. But, we've got new posters and a new promo package together, and we're beating the bushes for all the gigs we can get. Stay tuned, and we'll be sending out the newsletters shortly! If you would like to be notified of upcoming shows, please email me and I'll put you on the list. 

I've just been scanning this news page... I've been posting up dates for 3 years now. Where does the time go?  :-)

15 July 2005 :: Jammin' with Tony Springer and Wild T and The Spirit.

Doug and I visited Tony Springer's Thursday night jam at the Black Swan on Danforth last night. We had a great time and met some really good musicians. If you don't know, Tony fronts a great band: Wild "T" and the Spirit. Also, Tony does North America's best Jimi Hendrix tribute: Fire. I'm hoping to get together with Tony to do a double tribute sometime--can you imagine a night of Stevie and Jimi, with a closing set of both jamming together? 

Also, now that the lineup of Rave On has settled down, I'm concentrating on getting gigs for the fall. Things are starting to roll along--check out our schedule page. If you're not on our mailing list, please email me, and I'll send you out a reminder email when we have any new gigs coming up. Our next one is at The Black Swan on August 31.

22 June 2005 :: A new #1 -- A replica of SRV's relic main squeeze.

I'm so excited about the latest addition to my guitar collection. I've finally assembled my SRV #1 Stratocaster replica. The guitar was done for me by master craftsman Tim Davis of Missouri, and is truly a work of art. Fender had made 100 of these replicas of Stevie's beat up old Strat, and was selling them for $10,000 USD each! You can find Tim's work on eBay, or contact him directly at (636) 288-2108 or via email at customluthier@yahoo.com. His replicas usually go for much less, but in my opinion they are closer to the real thing as he puts a lot of sweat and TLC into them. Fender couldn't have possibly put the same attention into each one. I'll have some photos up on the site soon on an upcoming gear page. Tim is getting his web site together; watch this space for a link.

20 April 2005 :: Rave On welcomes Will Catrambone as our drummer.

After some searching and trials, Rave On's drumming position has been filled. Will Catrambone has joined us, and like Chris Layton, Will has power and is a great shuffle demon. We wish Crisco all the best.

3 January 2005 :: 2 years of Rave On web site, and our 4th year of playing. Also welcome Doug Collier, and all the best to Brian Pinder.

It just occurred to me as I was reviewing these posts that our web site has been up for 2 years now. Also, we're now entering into our 4th year of "Raving On"! I honestly can't say how this year will shape up, but things are evolving for us: Brian, our bass player who has been with us since the beginning, has decided to take a different direction. We wish him well in his musical endeavours, and welcome Doug Collier to Rave On. Doug jammed with us shortly after Rave On formed (back in the early days at Touchdown's after the 9/11 benefit) and he's a big Tommy Shannon fan. We're thrilled to have him. See his Bio for more info.

As for the web site, I hope to start a "gear" section soon. I'm starting to build a collection of SRV replica guitars, and want to catalog the gear I use for you "gearheads" (like me!). 

7 November 2004 :: Q107 Got a glimpse of Heaven — "Jimi & Stevie Jam"

Thanks to Special Agent Joe Brett (who got us our Raker's gig) I had a wonderful opportunity to play with Tony Springer. For those of you who don't yet know Tony, he is a major force on the Canadian music scene and the man behind Wild "T" and the Spirit. On Sunday Nov. 7 he brought his world–class Jimi Hendrix tribute "Fire" to Club 279 (home of Q107's Ultimate Jam with Michael White's Animal House) to celebrate the acceptance of a white Gibson SG Jimi Hendrix played on the Dick Cavett show. I was excellent to play with Tony, and we did Little Wing and Voodoo Chile together. The audience was amazed to see "Jimi" and "Stevie" jamming together and having a great time. I can only imagine that they're both jammin' at that other "Ultimate Jam" in the sky. 

I want to extend a big "Thank You" to the staff and management at Club 279 for their hospitality and support. You guys rock!

3 October 2004 :: Happy 50th Birthday Stevie!

We had a super time at Rakers last night (Oct 2), and the club patrons had a great time as well; we received lots of compliments. I dedicated "Lenny" to Stevie in the wee hours of October 3rd. Stevie left behind an incredible body of work for us to enjoy that was created only within about 20 years from his formative days as a young teen until his tragic death in 1990--imagine if he was still with us and was able to build on that. Our "current" guitar heroes would be shaking in their boots!

Here's a gem from Stevie, by way of my friend Joe Brett: Take care of yourselves so you can be there for the ones who love you and so you can take care of them.

Happy 50th, Stevie! We all miss you.

15 September 2004 :: 6th Annual Southside Shuffle — "The Mississauga Delta"

It's hard to believe that we've had 6 years of the Port Credit Southside Shuffle! Time flies when you're playin' the blues—seems like just yesterday that my good friend Chuck Jackson birthed the first festival. Rave On played at the Port Credit Legion on the Saturday and on the sidewalk by the Shuffle Store on Sunday. To tell the truth, I was dreading the sidewalk gig, but it was a blast. The weather was perfect, and the early afternoon time slot ensured the No Frills' awning continued to provide shade for the entire time. We tried our backdrop out for the first time, and it worked really well. Our PA gave us a hiccup (our power amp got sick) but Brian, our wizard of the PA, got us up and running again by using the amp in the mixer. If you'd like to see some photos of the event, click here; photographer Hugh Thompson put up some photos—thanks Hugh! And thanks to all the wonderful people who stopped and enjoyed the music and who talked with us and let us know they had fun.

We can't wait for next year!

12 August 2004 :: Great fun at Blue Mountain Village

On August 1 we played the Village at Blue Mountain Ski Resort in Collingwood, for their Blues at Blue music fest. If you haven't been to Blue for a while (which was the case with me), you'll be blown away by what they've done to the place. It's like an old European village, with a huge town square, shops and restaurants all around, a fountain, and the hotel balconies several stories up surrounding the square. We played in the square or courtyard, and had a great time. We started at 6 pm, when there were a hundred or so people sitting on chairs in the courtyard, and by the time we finished up at 10:15, the crowd had swelled to maybe a couple hundred, and we had them up on their feet dancin' and boogyin'. Special thanks to Steph Comrie, who made us feel welcome and comfortable. We all hope we get to do that again some time. If you haven't been up to Blue, check out their web site and go visit. It sure isn't just for skiing anymore!

Oh, I almost forgot to mention, we've got a couple of choice spots at the Port Credit Southside Shuffle. Check out our schedule for times and venues.

20 June 2004 :: Ride For Sight was a Blast!

As I write this I'm still reeling from the great time we had at the 2004 Ride For Sight event in Collingwood. We were so fortunate to get a choice spot in the lineup, opening for Alannah Myles on the Saturday night. The sun had just set, the audience was a sea of people, and we rocked several thousand RFS attendees for over an hour. This was the high point of Rave On's career thus far. However, I hasten to add we did not do it alone: we have to thank our publicist, Terry D. Lane who works very hard for us, the great people at RFS who believed in us, (thanks to Brenda and everyone at RFS!), and the excellent and professional staging company Straight Street Services based in Kitchener--you guys ROCK! 

(By the way, if anyone has any video or stills of Rave On playing, please let me know at rennys@rogers.com -- I'm willing to purchase good video or images).

4 April 2004 :: Lots of gigs lined up for Spring '04!

Things are shaping up nicely for the next few months. We're playing two outdoor festivals in June, and helping christen a new bar: IT on Dundas in Mississauga. Lots of chances to come out and see us play. Check out our schedule, and let us know if you want to be on the mailing list for advance notice of upcoming gigs and news.

28 March 2004 :: Welcome Richard Uglow to Rave On!

I'm thrilled to announce that Richard Uglow has accepted the position of keyboard player for Rave On. Our previous keys player, Bill Tranah, had to quit the band, and we miss him. We originally came to know Richard at New Year's Eve 2003 when he subbed in for Bill, and we've been using him as a sub for some time. We were so enthralled with Richard's playing and attitude that we were able to coerce him into being a member! Once you hear Richard play, I'm sure you'll agree that he is a wonderful player. Welcome Richard! And thanks to long time friend Virgil Scott for recommending him.

4 January 2004 :: Finally got some photos up.

I finally got around to putting up some photos. Now that I've got the javascript and stuff all worked out, I can put up more fairly easily -- I hope to go through all the photos people have given us and scan those in as well. Enjoy!

2 November 2003 :: email glitch... Sorry if you didn't get a reply.

In the last several weeks I've had problems with email for the rave-on@rogers.com account (nothing to do with Rogers). If you've sent an email from the web site within the last several weeks and haven't got a reply, please send it again and I'll reply immediately. My apologies for any inconvenience.

15 October 2003 :: Renny's back from the 8th Occasional SRV Fan Club Tour!

Yee Haw! I just spent 5 days in Texas, traveling between Dallas and Austin on Craig Hopkins' SRV Fan Club Tour. I was on it two years ago, and this one was awesome. I met Tommy Shannon (for those of you who don't know, that was Stevie's bassist). I played (just a bit for the tour attendees) on the Austin City Limits sound stage. Very cool. 

Saw some great blues at Joe's Generic Bar on 6th Street in Austin, including a fabulous young guitarist named Luke Cutchen (remember that name!) who plays with Dee Dee Priest and the Altar Boyz. Also, the fabulous and smooth Alan Haynes played at Joe's Generic for the tour attendees on Saturday night and Tommy sat in, What a night! 

Found a "TEXAS" rhinestone hat pin at Texas Hatters I've been looking for for 3 years--thanks Joella! I was re-acquainted with some very special friends, and made some new ones. Rick Corbin, keep pickin'! One of the highlights for me was to be able to jam with blues and rock singer Cee Cee James from California--what a voice!

I hope to get some pictures of the tour up soon. This site doesn't have nearly enough so this is a good excuse to get off my butt!

27 August 2003 :: Stevie was taken from us 13 years ago.

Live every day as a gift. Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. Today, tell the people you love how much you love them, and what they mean to you. You may not get another chance.

Peace and Love to everyone.

Rave On Stevie, Rave On! 

17 August 2003 :: Magic at Hollywood on the Queensway.

We had a great time at Hollywood on the Queensway in Etobicoke last night. Thanks to all our fans who came out; I'm sure we made many new ones too. The patrons were very enthusiastic with their support and applause and made us feel great at this new club. The staff were great and very attentive, and the food is very good with generous portions. Also, it must be said that the sound was excellent, thanks to seasoned sound man Dave Scott. We hope to play there again before the end of the year. Look for us too at its sister club, P.K. Creek in Mississauga.   

9 August 2003 :: Looking forward to the fall.

Everyone's just about back from their various vacations and we're looking forward to gigging again. We're excited about playing at the new upscale Hollywood on the Queensway on August 16, and we're at Grossman's again on the 23rd. We celebrate our one year anniversary playing a gig on our own at Natty's in Port Credit as part of the Southside Shuffle on Sept. 5. 

We are saddened by the closing of Blues on Belair in downtown Toronto. It was a great club, and we were looking forward to playing at that fine establishment. SARS was just too much for a club dependent largely on convention and tourist traffic for its livelihood. Thanks, Diane, for the memories there! 

Finally, we welcome Phil Vitale of Showcase Attractions who is on board as an agent. For contact info, go to our Bookings page.

18 May 2003 :: The Hardball Café in Milton ROCKS!

Last night we played The Hardball Café in Milton (just north of the 401 on Hwy 25 -- map here). What a great club. The sound was unbelievable. A real stage with lights, the best wings this side of the Chick'n Deli, great seating and a big dance floor. I urge all of you to check out our calendar and mark yours for the next time we play at The Hardball.

29 April 2003 :: Input List, Stage Plot and Songs List now available

For those venues interested in a Stage Plot and/or Input List, these pdf documents are now available on our new Bookings Page. We also have a complete Song List. Thanks, Terry Lane!

22 April 2003 :: New gear!

Renny Ray has acquired a new guitar (bought by loose change he's found between the sofa cushions) to use alongside of his trusty old #1. This addition is a new Fender American Highway 1 strat. It has a wonderful scarlet red colour with a maple fingerboard, and so looks like Stevie's 'Lenny". It sounds sweet on Lenny and Riviera Paradise.

Christmas also came early for Bill: a Korg CX-3. Real drawbars! We're all in Hammond B3 heaven. It's about as close as you can get to the real B3 without lugging 400 pounds of furniture to the gig. What a great sound. Come on out all you B3 lovers and hear this thing wail!

GAS (Gear Acquisition Syndrome) continues....

8 February 2003 :: Home Page Popup and Calendar Update

I'm starting to play around with some javascript. The company that I registered our domain name with puts an annoying advertising banner at the bottom of the page. To give you better view of our site, now when you go to raveon.ca you now get a new, clean window. I plan to move away from this company (Register.com) when the current lease expires. For now, let me know if this new popup of the home page is bothersome.

Also, for anyone wishing to book our band, you can go to the when & where page and view a calendar showing available dates. Now you know immediately when we are available instead of having to call us to confirm a date. However, we still ask that you contact us to finalize the booking and firm up the details.

26 January 2003 :: Hello!!!

Welcome to our new site. It was born at some wee hour of the morning around New Year's 2003. I hope it gets you the information you need quickly. It's not as slick as some, but I'll keep improving it as we go. Sometimes simple is best. Let me know what you think!

We've been working steadily, honing our existing tunes and adding new ones. Brian acquired some new gear and his bass is sounding better than ever. I've also added to my Stevie Ray wardrobe. Now that we have a web place, we've finalized our promotional material and sent out a pile of packages to the Blues, Jazz and Rib Festivals and Events in the southern Ontario region. We'll let you know where we're playing here, and if you'd like to be notified of when we have upcoming gigs, please email me and I'll add you to the distribution list.

We hope to have a video (from the CD recording session) soon, and will be working on a video that shows what we do live. Stay tuned and visit often.

That's all for now. Take care of yourselves, and see y'all next time!

            Renny "Ray" Schweiger