Kal David obit

Kal David, Musician, Voice of Disney World’s Sonny Eclipse Passes Away

 

He was not on the list.

Sonny Eclipse is and has been a staple at the Walt Disney World Resort, residing in the often-crowded but comforting Cosmic Ray’s Starlight Cafe quick-service eatery.

Sonny Eclipse has played a 27-minute set throughout each day in Tomorrowland since 1995 and is accompanied by his fabulous yet invisible backup singers known as the Space Angels. Guests have the honor of listening to music and hearing Eclipse’s fantastically corny jokes all while they enjoy their meal which is made up of fairly standard burgers, fried chicken, and of course, french fries.

The character of Sonny Eclipse came alive thanks to the incredible voice of singer/songwriter Kal David. Sadly, we have learned that David passed away at the age of 79.

This was confirmed in a tweet from Tammy Tuckey (@TammyTuckey), which you is linked below:

Sad news from Kal David’s family… Kal passed away today. Aside from being a wonderful musician and singer, many of us Disney fans know his as the voice of our alien friend, Sonny Eclipse. He will always be our Bright Little Star!

No reason was given for David’s passing at the time of publishing this article. We will continue to update our story as more information comes out.

There are a ton of places to eat when visiting alt Disney World and the sheer amount of options can be overwhelming, to say the least. Cosmic Ray’s offers a no-nonsense selection of typical theme park food, complete with classic early 1990’s architecture and color schemes.

But perhaps this restaurant would not be anywhere near as special without Sonny Eclipse himself and, more importantly, Kal David, and we are so incredibly heartbroken to see the voice behind this wholly-original Disney Park character pass away. Some of Eclipse’s songs, which are all sung by David, include “Bright Little Star,” “Gravity Blues,” “Yew Nork, Yew Nork,” and “Planetary Boogie.”

David was a large part of the music industry for over six decades and, at one point, was part of the legendary band Chicago. David and his wife eventually started their own band and could frequently be found performing at B.B. King Blues Club in Los Angeles and at the Mohegan Sun Casino in Connecticut.

David was passionately working on his music until he died. In 2018, both David and Bono were inducted into the Connecticut Blues Hall of Fame, as well as the National Blues Hall of Fame.

Born in Chicago, Illinois, United States, Raskin began using the performing name "Kal David" in his late teens as the frontman of his neighborhood band, 'Kal David and the Exceptions', formed in 1961. Its other members were Peter Cetera (bass, vocals), Denny Ebert (drums, vocals), and Marty Grebb (saxophone, keyboards, guitar, vocals). Cetera later joined the Big Thing, which became Chicago, and Grebb joined the Buckinghams. Around this time Kal David and the Exceptions were regular performers at the Interlude Club on Pulaski in Chicago.

Kal David left the group to sign a recording contract with King Records and, later with Tollie Records (a subsidiary of Vee-Jay Records). In 1965, during his stint at Vee-Jay, he formed a new duo, 'The Rovin' Kind', with guitarist Paul Cotton, and the two transferred to Dunwich Records. Following a name change to Illinois Speed Press and a move to Los Angeles in 1968, the duo recorded two albums for Columbia Records, the self-titled Illinois Speed Press and Duet.

In the early 1970s, as Cotton joined the band Poco as its lead guitarist, David decided to leave the West Coast for the East and moved to Woodstock, the small-town/rural New York area, in the vicinity of previous year's iconic Festival. His new group, 'The Fabulous Rhinestones' featuring ex-Electric Flag bassist Harvey Brooks and ex-Buckinghams' keyboard player Marty Grebb, recorded three albums: Fabulous Rhinestones, Freewheelin' (on Paramount Records) and Rhinestones (on 20th Century Records). Friends advised him to visit a club in Woodstock and it was there that he met his future wife, vocalist Lauri Bono, who subsequently accompanied him back to Los Angeles for the next phase of their career, doing sidework for Etta James and Johnny Rivers.