It’s been a long road since the seventies, when Ritenour’s legendary
Tuesday night appearances at the famed Baked Potato, with a band
including Dave Grusin, Patrice Rushen, Harvey Mason and Ernie Watts
became part of the musical landscape for five years. Eric Clapton, Jeff
Beck, George Benson, Al Jarreau, Joe Sample, and even Bob Dylan and Joni
Mitchell could be seen in the audiences that would pack the house till
the wee hours of the morning. From rock to blues to jazz, his diverse
music became the foundation of over 3,000 sessions as a young guitarist
with a broad spectrum of artists such as Pink Floyd (The Wall), Steely
Dan (Aja), Dizzy Gillespie, Sonny Rollins, Joe Henderson, B.B. King,
Frank Sinatra, Simon & Garfunkel, Ray Charles, Peggy Lee, Aretha
Franklin and Barbra Streisand. Not to forget the dazzling array of
talent appearing on his solo works and collaborations, notably– Phil
Collins, Brazilian greats Ivan Lins, Caetano Veloso, Djavan and Jao
Bosco, George Benson, Chaka Kahn, Herbie Hancock, Michael McDonald and
opera great Renee Fleming.