Ray has played the drums since his first lesson on his thirteenth birthday. However, Ray views this as a late start to his musical career, "I wanted to play drums as early as the age of six, but I couldn't get my parents to cave in until my thirteenth birthday. Even then, I think they were kinda hoping that my interest in banging drums and shaking the house wouldn't last!"

Ray played with various rock bands as a teen including one that dedicated itself to playing "Rush" songs almost exclusively. This allowed Ray to perform the drum parts of his favorite drummer and biggest musical influence, Neil Peart.

After many ups and downs with these endeavors, Ray ran into Tom Staab in 1988 while they were both visiting their old high school in Queens, NY: "I remembered Tom and knew that he had been in a band that was similar to mine when we were in high school, but I never knew much more than that." Ray joined Tom and another high school classmate who played keyboards and they formed a group called "Passages". It was here that Ray started singing many lead vocal lines along with Tom. They worked on many various harmonies as well as a pair of two very complimentary voices. Passages went through a couple of bass players and had a somewhat limited exposure only playing out in public a handful of times. After another bass player exited and other time constraints weighed down, Passages disbanded. However, Ray and Tom each felt that they would do music again one day.

About a year or so after Passages' demise, Ray and Tom got together with the intention of playing some "Simon and Garfunkel" and the like. Tom would play guitar, Ray would provide some light percussion through the use of his "drumKAT", and both would sing: "I don't think Tom or I ever imagined this thing going as far as it has. I thought that we might play a few lizard lounge bars on a rainy Saturday night or something!"

Little by little, background percussion transformed into thunderous drum parts and "Simon and Garfunkel" shifted into "The Who" and other modern day Rock bands. And by late 1993-94, Rhyme & Reason had become a full sounding rock band.

Ray says that both he and Tom rely a lot on technology to enhance their sound but he proudly states that "everything you hear is performed by us in one way, shape or form." A great example of that technology is the "Mickey Mouse" looking drum pad that Ray plays. The "drumKAT" is a multi-surfaced drum pad that allows the one playing it to program each individual pad to make whatever instrument sound he or she wants it to make. This allows Ray to, not only play drums lines, but also bass, voices, keyboards, piano, as well as a variety of percussion sounds. Ray says that he likes to make good use of the possibilities this instrument brings. The featured song of Ray and his "drumKAT" is "The Who's 'Baba o'Reily'" which Ray plays all of the music and sings, all virtually by himself!

Ray says that, in many ways, Rhyme & Reason has been the most satisfying, fun and successful effort of his musical career. He hopes it continues for a long time!

Tom, the co-lead vocalist and guitarist, recalls how he got his start in music. “The earliest recollection of my interest in being a musician is watching my oldest brother, Peter, practice the guitar when I was three. I was fascinated by it. Then, when I was five, I tried to play myself, with absolutely no idea how. I’d pluck the strings for an hour trying to get something that sounded good. Once, I had to stop because I had blisters on all ten fingers. I begged my parents for lessons, but everywhere we checked said I was too young. Finally, when I turned eight, the lessons began. That was 1977 and I’ve never looked back.”

During the eighties and early nineties Tom was lead guitarist and vocalist for such local bands as “Oneway”, later for “Passages” (with Ray), and bassist for "Insufficient Data". At the present time Tom is also still a front man of the popular German American Alpine Rock band "die Schlauberger" (The Wiseguys).

“I began singing when I was in ‘Oneway’ in 1984. It was mostly for backup and harmonies. Looking back, I really didn’t have much of a voice then. I was fifteen, had little control, and my voice was just beginning to change. At the time I was a little jealous of my brother, Klaus because he always had a great voice and was a natural at singing. But I kept at it, not to be outdone.”

“My focus has always been to follow my own road and broaden my horizons. That’s why what we’ve developed with ‘Rhyme and Reason’ interests me so much. I think Ray and I have stumbled upon a unique sound and setup. Many people do what we do, but not the way, or to the extent that we do it. We use technology itself as an instrument, but to sound natural… not mechanical. I’ve noticed that people really do pick up on that.“