The last year hasn't been easy on Danny Ray.

Mr. Ray, known to millions as the voice behind James Brown's singular introductions and the man who, at the apex of Please Please Please would offer his employer comfort and a cape, found himself, after Brown's death in late December 2006, without the gig that had sustained him for nearly 50 years.

Living off a modest Social Security check, Mr. Ray soon was in financial difficulty. In December, with an $18,000 debt, it looked as though he might find himself without a roof over his head.

But Mr. Ray has friends.

On Friday, alumni of James Brown's famously funky touring acts will reunite to perform a benefit concert for Mr. Ray at 209 Music Lounge, 4 Eighth St. Artists scheduled to appear include longtime Bittersweet and Brown protege Martha High; the powerhouse JBs horn duo Maceo Parker and Fred Wesley; Augusta-bred Soul Generals guitarist Keith Jenkins; and longtime Brown musical director Tyrone Jefferson.

Erik Hargrove, Ron Laster, George Nealy, Joe Collier and Venisha Brown also will perform, and former Bittersweets Cynthia Moore, Sheila Wheat, Amy Christian and Kelly Jarrell will provide vocals to Brown tunes in addition to the blues and jazz standards loved by Mr. Ray, a talented jazz crooner in his own right.

Instigated by Ms. High and by Brown's daughter Deanna Brown, the concert represents the ad hoc community of musicians who played with the Godfather.

"When James died, some of the other musicians got work," said Mr. Jefferson, who helped bring the alumni act together. "But there aren't that many jobs out there for guys like Danny, for guys that throw the cape. It's sad but true."

Mr. Jefferson said Mr. Ray's contributions to the James Brown shows, and music in general, are often overshadowed by his employer's dynamic stage personality. He said Mr. Ray did more than merely throw the cape; his dynamic introductions prepped the crowd for the show to come and developed the role of hype man in popular music.

"Danny was also the one that kept things moving on the road," Mr. Jefferson said. "He took care of people. He kept people, kept me, balanced. He's also a walking history book. I mean, anything James Brown did, Danny was there. That was what Danny is, for me at least. If there is anything I can do for this brother, I'm going to do it."

He said attracting talent to play for Mr. Ray wasn't much of a trick, although scheduling sometimes was. Still, he said, family is family.

"This is the right thing to do as far as family is concerned," he said. "And we are going to have a ball. Since James died, we don't really have that reason to come together, as a family, anymore. This is something special."

Mr. Jefferson said that familial instinct transcends the stage. He said that he and Ms. Jarrell have been working on the show and that Ms. Christian and her father have been helping Mr. Ray. Mr. Jenkins said he is putting together a jazz project for Mr. Ray with Greg Hester.

"All I've done," Mr. Jefferson said modestly "is put some musicians together."

Reach Steven Uhles at (706) 823-3626 or steven.uhles@augustachronicle.com.