It only takes a quick glance at some of the names Paris Delane has been associated with to realize he is a man with a voice that commands respect. James Brown, Prince, Aretha Franklin, Barry White — the list goes on and on.

But despite the impressive group of references on this man’s r‚sum‚, the person Delane considers his number one inspiration and supporting influence is his mother, Lillian.

“She’s the main driving force behind my music,” Delane says.

Delane’s mother contracted hepatitis C from a blood transfusion after battling cancer for several years and passed away one year ago.

“I found out my mother was fatally ill, and then the [Sept. 11] thing happened shortly after,” Delane says. “Jeff [Grossberg] and I started writing a song called ‘Thank U Mamma’ and a song called ‘Rain Fall’ and both of those songs are dedicated to my mom.”

This hardship was just one of several trying experiences Delane has had in recent years, but his music keeps going strong.

“I’ve been sad for a while,” a now choked-up Delane says. “The death of my mother was the hardest thing, and the woman of my life that I was madly in love with also died two years ago. Playing this music makes me happy.”

Although sadness has been brought into his life, Delane says he makes it his mission to bring a positive message to every show.

“I was in Boulder, Colo., and on stage, I said [to the crowd], ‘I don’t care what’s going on in your life, but whatever you do, do everything in your power to live. Live!,’ ” he says.

“I don’t know why I said it, but after the show, this girl came up to me, and she grabbed my shirt and basically had it in a knot and wouldn’t let me go.

“She kept saying, ‘You saved my life.’ Then she told me how her friends had taken her to the show even though she didn’t want to go, because she was contemplating committing suicide that night.”

“After that, I make sure to say something uplifting at every show,” he says.

Since 2001, Delane has been combining his seven-octave voice with the innovative harmonica styles of Grossberg, otherwise known as Hyper Harp.

The sound the duo creates has been described as a “melting pot of sounds.”

“It’s a fusion of soul, pop, jazz, dance, techno,” Grossberg says.

This broad span of style is made effortless by Delane’s astonishing vocal range.

“Even though you hear this low James Earl Jones voice, I can do the Led Zeppelin voice too,” Delane says. “You never know what we’re going to pull out of the closet.”

The electrifying duo from Chicago will release their first album together in the near future, but not before they bombard Des Moines with a funk-filled live performance Friday night.

“In concert, it’s more jam-oriented. We play different angles on everything we do every time we play,” Grossberg says. “I take the harp out of the mold, as far as what you’d expect to hear.”

Grossberg says he tries to bring intensity to the stage through the use of various effects which create different sounds with his harmonica, and compliment the vocal force of Delane.

“There’s a lot of magical moments throughout the show where we interact with each other and get this spiritual vibe going on,” Grossberg says.

“I don’t know who’s Michael Jordan and who’s Scottie Pippen, but we can both take it to the hoop,” Delane quips. “[Grossberg] allows me to create things with my voice that I’ve always known I could do.

Who: Paris Delane and Hyper Harp

Where: Hotel Fort Des Moines, 1000 Walnut St., Des Moines

When: 8 p.m. Friday

Cost: $20