Michele Meets: The man behind the soothing sounds

St. Mary’s CMO Michele Arnold, MD, gets to know volunteer guitarist Charles Murray.

Charles Murray with Michele Arnold, MD, St. Mary’s Chief Medical Officer

Need a little pick-me-up in the middle of a rough day? Drop by the St. Mary’s main entrance on Tuesdays and Fridays between 11:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. You will probably find Charles Murray sporting a fedora, a bloomy guitar, and a small amp filling the space with harmonic salve. 

“I play what I sense the guests need,” he says. “They stop and tell me their stories. Music heals – they tell me they feel better.”

Charles says has enjoyed playing guitar as a St. Mary’s volunteer for the past five months, but he was coy when asked exactly how long he’s been plucking the strings.

“Let’s just say at least 50 years,” he says. In that time, he's toured Albuquerque with his band The Gospel Express, accompanied vocalists in Italian restaurants, played The Ballroom in Reno, and has been commemorated in many recordings. On Sept. 30, he will be playing at St. Mary’s Ball, A Night for Heroes, benefitting St. Mary’s Medical Center Foundation.

Previously a bank executive (and lots of other things), Charles is now retired and lives with his wife, Jeanne Loo, and the other love of his life -- a 1968 Gibson ES-175D hollow body electric guitar, affectionately dubbed ‘my baby.’ (Google it, folks!)

Charles told me he takes song requests, so come by for a free dose of endogenous dopamine. In the words of Jimi Hendrix: “Technically, I’m not a guitar player; all I play is truth and emotion.”