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Roby Duke
American singer, songwriter and producer, born 6 December 1956 in Greenwood, Mississippi, died 26 December 2007 in Brier, Washington. The story behind the man… Roby Duke has been playing music since he was a small boy. Equally renowned as a singer/songwriter/producer, he has long been on the cutting edge of Christian music. His sound successfully mixes his down-home southern roots and current pop trends. Roby and his guitar do more than you would expect from a full band, and his presentation appeals to all ages. Born and raised in the musical hotbed of the Mississippi Delta, the young Roby Duke listened to the magical musical storytelling that only long-time Southerners can spin. Against the backdrop of drawn out, humid summers and a variety of jazz and blues influences, Duke began to fashion sounds all his own, experimenting with all kinds of instruments along the way. “I started playing instruments when I was 8. I was kind of a prodigy and could play well without a lot of instruction,” Duke says of his early musical days. “I could just pick up instruments and go. My dad’s band, The Delta Rhythm Boys, played the clubs and honky-tonks. One day he fired his bass player. I went to work the next night. I was 12 years old. I idolized my dad, and so I knew every song he liked.” In 1990, he moved to Seattle, Washington and built his own studio where he now produces and does specialized recording work in addition to personal appearances. Roby Duke has released 7 albums. His solo debut album originally released under the label named MCA / Songbird, USA, which was established as the Contemporary Christian Music label distributed by MCA. After closing Songbird label, Roby continued to release 4 albums: “Come Let Us The Reason” (1984), “Blue Eyed Soul” (1986), “Down To Business” (1989) and “Bridge Divine”(1994) with Ocean Records, USA. Among his albums, his first, “Not The Same” is said to be a masterpiece among AOR/Westcoast pop music aficionados. Ten years after the “Bridge Divine” album, Roby Duke released “Ghost” in 2004, followed by “Relaxed Fits” in 2006. Roby Duke passed away December 26, 2007 of a sudden heart attack. Two days before, Roby Duke was on stage with his son Brantley for a concert at the Calvary Chapel of Thousand Oaks, California.