#83: Linda Put The Coffee On by Ray Materick

City: Hamilton, ON
Radio Station: CKOC
Peak Month: January 1975
Peak Position in Hamilton ~ #7
Peak position in Vancouver ~ did not chart
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ did not chart
YouTube: “Linda Put The Coffee On”
Lyrics: “Linda Put The Coffee On”

Ray Materick was born in Brantford, Ontario, in 1946. His father was an evangelical preacher and multi-talented musician. Ray followed in his fathers’ musical footsteps. While he was in high school, he was part of a band that played high school dances named The Chevron Sextet. He moved to Toronto in 1970, and spent several years in the coffee house circuit. At the age of 25, he released his first studio album titled Sidestreets. It was hailed as a stellar example of roots-folk. The Toronto Star wrote, “Just remarkable. Ten autobiographical song sketches that make emotional participation mandatory and inescapable.” From the album came a single titled “Season of Plenty”. It was released on Kanata Records 1010, with the B-side, “Goodbye”. But it didn’t chart nationally, though the B-side charted in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. Kanata re-released the song on Kanata 1013.

At last, “Season of Plenty” began to appear on the Canadian RPM Top Pop Singles Chart on October 7, 1972. The B-side, “Hard Life Alone”, was a hit in Edmonton. Another track from Sidestreets, “Dear Christine”, was released on Kanata 1016. But it failed to crack the RPM Top Pop Singles chart. As Ray Materick was getting some traction from his album and single releases, his record company folded.

This was followed in 1974 with the album Neon Rain. A single release from the album was “Linda Put The Coffee On”.

In “Linda Put The Coffee On”, Ray Materick describes a guy outside in the sunshine, having red wine with a friend. Seems they spent a bit too much time taking it easy. He’s had enough wine that when he gets back home he’ll need some coffee to clear his head. He also gets some other women checking him out. But, he knows the place he belongs is back at his home with Linda. One more reason to put the coffee on, and be true to the woman who is “his favorite face.”

“Linda Put The Coffee On” peaked at #7 in Hamilton, and charted in the Top 30 in Ottawa.

In 1976, he released his third studio album titled Best Friend Overnight. From the album came two single releases. The first was “Northbound Plane”, which stalled at #70 on the RPM Top Pop Singles chart in August 1975. The second, “Feelin’ Kinda Lucky Tonight”, nudged up to #57 on the RPM pop chart in April 1976. That year, Ray Materick appeared in concert in Vancouver at the Old Roller Rink on November 9, 1976.

A second studio album in 1976 was released titled Midnight Matinee. The album featured a new musician named Daniel Lanois, who played mandolin. From the album came the single release “Ride Away”. But the single failed to get much attention. In 1978, Materick released Fever in Rio. Daniel Landis was back in the recording studio with Ray Materick on this album as well. Three singles were released titled, “Only A Fool,” “Fever in Rio”, and “What You Want.” But with the singer-songwriter genre fading in the face of the disco craze, these singles got passed over by most DJs.

In 1981, Ray Materick was with a new record label and released a self-titled album. It contained the singles “Bring On The Light” and “Heartbreak.” However, he faced the same reluctance from radio stations to play his singer-songwriter tunes. Even though disco was fading, it was being replaced with new wave and other cutting edge musical styles. In 1981, Ray Materick was passé.

The Canadian Bands website states that Ray Materick “did a few shows around the GTA, but then vanished from the business all together.” In 1993 he reappeared to release the album Harley Bro. But then he vanished again. Suddenly, in 2001, Ray Materick reemerged with two studio album efforts: The Songwriter and Violent Flood.  In 2004 he released his Live at the El Mocombo album made at a concert at the El Mocombo in Toronto. A Christian-themed album in 2006, titled The Book of Love, was his next output. This was followed by Ragged Kingdom late in 2006.

In 2012 Ray Materick released the album Peace on Earth. Most recently, in 2019, Ray Materick recorded a gospel album titled One Man Talkin’. In many ways, Ray Materick has followed in his father’s footsteps, inviting listeners to contemplate things spiritual. In 2019, Materick also released an acoustic album that year titled Common Man Cool. 

May 10, 2024
Ray McGinnis

References:
Ray Materick, Robert Pally, “Ray Materick,” Canadian Bands.com, April 11, 2022.
“Ray Materick,” citizen freak.com
“Ray Materick — Concert Dates,” setlist.fm.
“Ray Materick – Bio,” raymondmaterick.com.

CKOC 1150-AM Hamilton (ON) Top Ten | January 22, 1975