Ron has been playing his guitar and singing songs in front of live audiences since his late teens back in the Netherlands - as he's one of three brothers and three sisters growing up in a musical family (with instrumental and vocal musical expressions filling the household in Indonesia and back in the Netherlands).
His first band MTS (the Most Terrible Sound) was at technical college . . .
Then Ron started his first touring band Sexy Lexy in his early twenties . . .
. . . as he played the band's music (mostly written by Ron Nater and his musical partner Ron Witte) in the popular concert venues in Holland and surroundings . . .
After Ron's continental European touring with Sexy Lexy - and recording a few tunes at the EMI studios in Haarlem, Holland with his new band . . .
he moved to England in 1976 where he made the occasional music with friends in the local pubs in Northern London and St. Albans - all based on the then locally very popular reggae (with Bob Marley living in London at the same time).
In 1979 Ron moved to Toronto, Canada where he started his family (another bunch of musical folks with his wife, son and two daughters). So, other then making the occasional music at home he left the live touring band life behind for a while to be with his growing family.
However, the live music finally caught up with Ron when the children were old enough for him to join the band life again. So, in the early nineties he started Dutch Touch (with Kevin Lazarus on lead vocals & guitar, Gary Romans on bass & backing vocals and Joe Calabrese on the drums). Eventually Ron's brother Martin would take Kevin's place when Kevin left Canada . . .
In 1979 Ron moved to Toronto, Canada where he started his family (another bunch of musical folks with his wife, son and two daughters). So, other then making the occasional music at home he left the live touring band life behind for a while to be with his growing family.
However, the live music finally caught up with Ron when the children were old enough for him to join the band life again. So, in the early nineties he started Dutch Touch (with Kevin Lazarus on lead vocals & guitar, Gary Romans on bass & backing vocals and Joe Calabrese on the drums). Eventually Ron's brother Martin would take Kevin's place when Kevin left Canada . . .
Later on Dan Allen became the band's lead singer - as it was renamed the Nater brothers - while playing popular rock 'n pop 'n country tunes at shows in Toronto, Kitchener and St. Catharines. The band eventually discontinued as Dan moved back to his home country (the USA) and Martin moved back to his home country (the Netherlands) later on.
So in 2003 Ron joined the Grayceful Daddies . . .
So in 2003 Ron joined the Grayceful Daddies . . .
. . . (shortly thereafter renamed Rhythm 'n Blue) . . .
. . . a bluesy ensemble of Toronto based musical veterans (with bluesmeister Robert Davis on vocals & harmonica & guitar, Andrew Borkowski on vocals & keys, Neil Kitagawa on saxophone, John Ross on bass and John Ansara on the drums & vocals - with Doug Francis taking John Ansara's seat behind the drums later on) regularly playing their tunes in the popular downtown Toronto blues and jazz clubs . . .
With the disbandment of Rhythm 'n Blue in 2005 Ron formed Rizing Tide . . .
. . . with Pauline Nault (who'd regularly guested with Rhythm 'n Blue) on lead vocals, her husband Don Loney on the bass, Don's friend Brian McDowell on vocals & rhythm guitar and Bruce Stolz on the drums.
This was followed by the Ron Nater band in 2006 . . .
. . . with which Ron toured the Toronto area clubs and music festivals for quite a few years - joined by Don and Brian of Rizing Tide and drummer Peter Griffin (who left the band shorty after as Carl Spiteri took his seat) . . .
Paul Zurin joined a little later on the keys & backing vocals. And Brian left the band for a while to return a few years later - with Richard Mattson taking his place in the meantime on guitar, vocals, harmonica and saxophone.
A small club side project was the Ron Nater Jazz Band with Neil Kitagawa on saxophone, Eric Walker on piano & vocals, Don Loney on bass and Carl Spiteri on v-drums.
A small club side project was the Ron Nater Jazz Band with Neil Kitagawa on saxophone, Eric Walker on piano & vocals, Don Loney on bass and Carl Spiteri on v-drums.
Many gifted musicians have made their guest appearances with the Ron Nater band such as Andrew Borkowski on keys & vocals, Robert Davis on vocals & guitar & harmonica and Neil Kitagawa on the saxophone (all three ex-Rhythm 'n Blue colleagues) and Pauline Nault of Rising Tide on vocals. Later Paul Beaulieu replaced Carl Spiteri on the drums as Mark Villmann replaced Don Loney on the bass - with guest appearances by Eric Walker on keys & vocals. For a short while Pat Greisberg joined on lead guitar & vocals . . .
Ron also played with other bands from 2009 to 2011 (while touring with the Ron Nater band) such as Grey Matters (with Brian Thomas on lead vocals & guitar, Rob Thomas on bass & vocals, Rehana Persad on vocals & percussion and Ro Shakoor on the drums) . . .
and Gardiner Westbound (with Ted Harris on guitar & vocals, Mark Villmann on bass and Paul Beaulieu on the drums) . . .
. . . as they've appeared at the local Ontario clubs since . . .
