Ray Charles is back! :)

[simpleserenade89]

He’s a classic, an absolute legend in the music world and he has a new album out right now that is awesome, after all these years he’s still got it!

[MooseMoore]

Ray is awesome!!
So much soul and heart.
Ray has got it. Somehow even still. He just got it.

[jettrink]

No question that Ray Charles is a classic genius. I hope everyone is familiar with some of his jazz work too. For example, "Genius Plus Soul Equals Jazz." Too bad he died shortly before the bio-pic was released. "Ray" is a great movie and it's difficult to believe that Jamie did a lot of his own singing in Ray's style. Check out everything Ray ever did.

Joe

[Derek]

I love ray charles! whats your favorite album?

[jettrink]

I love ray charles! whats your favorite album?

It's impossible to name a single favorite album by Ray, as it is with anyone who was so prolific and who was active for so long a period, but among a few of my favorites I would have to include the under-rated "Listen" on the obscure Tangerine Records label released in the early seventies as I remember. Great takes on standards, or songs from the Great American Song Book as some of us call them, and the beautiful "Yesterday" of course. The already noted above "Genius + Soul = Jazz,""The Genius After Hours" with all that great piano work of Ray's and of course any of his live recordings for Atlantic (who can ever forget "What'd I Say?") Ray was one of those rare artists, who's rightly called "genius" and to me that means that everything he recorded is essential for listening again and again. Same with, oh, I dunno, say just as with Mozart, Bach, Beethoven, or Art Pepper. I really was unhappy with only one Ray Charles album and that was the release after his death of a phony session with a Count Basie ghost band as Bill Basie was also long since gone. (Mort Sahl noted to me once that Bill was the correct way to address Basie because..."only the squares call him 'Count'.") Hank Williams, Jr. singing a duet over-dubbed with his late dad was original in the 1980s and certainly Natalie Cole's duets over-dubbed with her dad's hits such as "Unforgettable," etc., are fantastic but I thought it was really cheap to give us an impression that the record company had uncovered an old Charles/Basie session which was incorrect. It wasn't until I was at the checkout line that I noticed (in very small print on the back cover) that it was The Count Basie Orchestra led by Frank Wess (I think it was) and that's no knock on Frank Wess who was a superlative sax man and mainstay of Basie's groups for years. Check out the work Frank did (with an orchestra under his own name) in the 1990s with "The Velvet Fog" Mel Torme...dynOmite stuff. By the way don't overlook Nat Cole's great work with Billy May on "Nat 'King'Cole - The Billy May Sessions" on Capitol...two CDs of simply wonderful singing and fantastic instrumental backing and section work.

Hahaha. Don't get me started...I mention one artist and it gets me to thinking of so many others. How about sharing some other Ray Charles favorites gang?

Joe

[blonde]

yeahhhhh !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[jettrink]

A short correction to my earlier post re the film "Ray." Mr. Charles did live long enough to "see" (hear) the film. Watched it again the other night and it's simply wonderful.

Joe

[DrewC]

Ive always loved Ray Charles. His combination of soul, church music, blues, jazz, and r&b is incredible. Its really unique to him alone.

[rcj726]

yes! the new ray charles "rare genius" is awesome!

[musiclistsareus]

He’s a classic, an absolute legend in the music world and he has a new album out right now that is awesome, after all these years he’s still got it!

I've got a lot of RC's stuff-he rarely disappoints.