Magical is the word used to describe Raymond Byron Raposa, the late musician who family and friends praised for his avant-garde style and fearless spirit, which propelled him to leave an indelible stamp on the contemporary music scene.

Raposa, 41, died in his sleep on July 28 while visiting San Diego. His family said all proceeds from the $10 tickets sold at his memorial concert are earmarked for Shoreline Community Services, a nonprofit in Pacific Beach providing homeless services.

Many of the musicians with whom Raposa recorded and toured, including U.S. coast-to-coast, Europe, Australia, and New Zealand concert tours, performed at his Oct. 9 memorial at The Casbah in Downtown San Diego.

One of the performers was Rafter Roberts, who played and recorded music with Raposa for 20 years. Roberts spoke of Raposa’s uniqueness and unmistakable talent.

“He was peerless,” said Roberts. “There was never any redoing anything, second-guessing in the studio. He’d bring songs and whatever any guest musicians did, there was never a feeling of, ‘that was good but let’s try it like this.’ Whatever it was was the right thing. It was an interesting way to approach the creative process, to trust in a lifetime of listening and appreciating, trusting your response that whatever is happening is going to be something you can believe in and just go with.”

Roberts added Raposa had a “wonderful and rare” approach to music. “If you never take that step of overthinking things – you’ll end up in fantastic places,” he said. “Making records with Ray would always end up in pretty magical places.”

Two of Ray’s other colleagues who attended his memorial, Dylan and Mandy Metrano, will always remember his qualities as both a musician and person. “I loved his music,” said Dylan. “He was warm, funny, charming. He was a great songwriter. His music didn’t sound like anyone else’s. I never really understood what he was doing when he was playing. It just seemed like some sort of alchemy. He had a singular vision. As a songwriter, he was very thoughtful.”

Mandy Metrano noted Raposa was “really easy to be around.” She added, “What is so amazing about Ray and his music is that we played festivals, house shows, and in parks, and the crowd didn’t matter. Whether it was hipsters, or in someone’s backyard with elderly neighbors having picnics, his (Ray’s) music resonated with everyone. His songs, punk rockers related to them. And grandmothers related to them. I can’t really explain it There is some kind of magic in that.”

The Ray Raposa Memorial Concert was the second of two put on by his recording label, Asthmatic Kitty. The first one was recently in Portland, a city Raymond enjoyed in his later years after moving from Brooklyn, N.Y.

Raposa was 6 months old when he moved with his mother, Coty Dolores Miranda née Coty Raposa, from northwest Indiana to Mission Beach. His father Ron Raposa, a writer as was his wife, and later his only son, joined them there.

Raposa attended Pacific Beach schools before moving to San Miguel, Baja California, Mexico when he was 14, after enrolling in the San Diego Unified School District’s World Traveler program. The popular surf break was his home for two years.

Raymond began his surfing career at age 9 and continued through his early 20s, winning regularly in SoCal surf meets, acquiring scores of first- and second-place trophies.

He was a self-taught musician, learning a wide variety of instruments. Always interested in different genres of music, he started performing onstage at age 19 and recorded more than 15 albums and CDs under the name Castanets, Raymond Byron, and the White Freighter, and his first name alone.

Castanets was a premiere band in the so-called American Freak Folk movement and included a collective of musicians that were constantly in flux depending on the location of the concert or recording studio.

“He was a poet and storyteller who delivered his imagery through song,” said an Asthmatic Kitty spokesperson.

Raposa’s original songs were also included on several movie soundtracks.

“He always had a notebook with him to jot down lyrics,” recalled his mother. “He was first and foremost a writer, and had been writing short stories since elementary school.”

She said, among her favorite songs, are a Sufyan Stevens and Ray Raposa collaboration “Beyond this place,” written by Stevens, and another of her son’s originals “Out for the West.”

Raposa is survived by his mother, father Ron Raposa, and four siblings: Dianne Ross, JoAnne Scribner, Eric Emlet, and Jessica Stinson who were in attendance at the dispersal of his ashes in early August.

“As a family, we are happy that all proceeds from the Memorial Concert at The Casbah will go to the Shoreline Community Services and the caring work they do to help locals in need,” said Coty Dolores Miranda.

Caryn Blanton, executive director of Shoreline Community Services, added: “Shoreline Community Services is honored to be the recipient of the proceeds from the event. I think this puts light on the fact that we never know the extent of the experience, talent, and passion of those we see on the street. Ray was a gifted man who gave so much to the world – he left us a legacy of creativity and art that will forever be shared and enjoyed. As a community, we cannot keep losing these precious souls who have so much to offer. We are missing out on the gifts they have to give that bring richness and vibrancy to our community.”