James Brown ‘cape man’ Danny Ray dies at 85

Personal assistant worked for Godfather of Soul for 45 years

Danny Ray was just out of the Army in 1961 and hanging out backstage at the Apollo, the Harlem theater known for decades as a center of Black entertainment. He was neither a singer nor a musician, but nonetheless he was looking for a career in show business.

Trim and dapper, he bore a resemblance to Sammy Davis Jr. and was willing to take any work he could find. His first job was as a valet for the Famous Flames, the backup group of soul singer James Brown.

Before long, Brown, known as the Godfather of Soul, hired Ray as his personal assistant, creating the longestrunning professional relationship of the entertainer known as the hardestworking man in show business.

Within a couple of years, Ray began to introduce Brown before each show, with ever more elaborate buildups, creating excitement in the audience with repeated calls of “James Brown! James Brown! James Brown!”

Later in the show, after singing and dancing nonstop for two hours, Brown would collapse onstage, seemingly overcome by exhaustion and emotional distress. Ray would reappear, wrapping Brown in a colorful cape and helping him to his feet.

As Brown staggered offstage, like a beaten fighter, he would suddenly fling the cape aside and resume screaming the final beseeching words of his song “Please, Please, Please” — only to fall to his knees once more. With perfect solicitude, Ray was there to snap open the cape again, gently place it over Brown’s shoulders and slowly accompany him into the wings, as the band kept playing.

It was one of the most unforgettable pieces of showmanship in popular music, and the act never grew old, no matter how many thousands of times it was repeated.

Ray, who was Brown’s most trusted assistant for more than 45 years, died Feb. 2 at his home in Augusta, Georgia. He was 85.

His death was first announced on social media by the James Brown estate and reported by the Augusta Chronicle. The cause was not disclosed.

Ray was more than just Brown’s “cape man.” Often dubbed the “second-hardest-working man in show business,” he managed the singer’s backstage world and organized his wardrobe, which included more than 150 suits and dozens of pairs of shoes.

“My military training made me punctual,” Ray told author RJ Smith for the 2012 book “The One: The Life and Music of James Brown.” “I guess Brown couldn’t find anybody to shine the shoes and clean the five outfit changes he had.”

One night in the early 1960s, at a club in Maryland, Brown’s usual emcee didn’t show up.

“So he asked me, ‘Have you ever been onstage?’ “Ray told the Chronicle in 2011. “I said, ‘Naw, man.’ He said, ‘Well, uh, tonight’s your night.’”