The Genius Of Ray Charles
Album by Ray Charles
Having made his first two studio albums instrumental jazz excursions, Ray Charles tried something new for his third and last Atlantic LP, The Genius Of Ray Charles of October 1959 (Atlantic 1312): a collection of standards, one side with a brass band and the other with an orchestra. Applying the “genius” epithet for the first time (not Ray’s idea, though as he said there are worse things to be called), The Genius Of Ray Charles is possibly the greatest LP Ray Charles created.
It was certainly a surprise to fans, who had only known the R&B singlemaker and the jazz LP artist. The Genius Of Ray Charles was in neither of these guises: it was a new, gentler Ray, and the depths of the music he recorded for this album remain nearly unequalled in recorded music.
Side 1 is the brass side, and it begins big and strong with “Let The Good Times Roll”, where Ray lets the band elevate his unmoored screams and shouts to a loud, overpowering force. Otherwise, Ray tends to the quieter side: performances like “It Had To Be You” and “Two Years Of Torture” are absolutely riveting.
Side 2 is even better than Side 1, somehow — it’s perfect. From the opening “Just For A Thrill” to the dramatic finish of “Come Rain Or Come Shine”, Ray Charles takes the listener on a soul-baring ride through his musical psyche. No wonder that several of these tracks always end up on Ray compilations. They probably all should.
Reissues
Rhino reissued The Genius Of Ray Charles on vinyl in 2009, and my guess would be that this is a good release to get. (I was lucky enough to find an old sealed Atlantic pressing for $10 on eBay so I don’t know about pressings.) DOL has released the album a couple times on vinyl in Europe, including once on clear vinyl, but these cheapo copyright-expired editions are to be avoided, however nice the packaging may be. Get the best sound on an Atlantic original.
Record covers
Record labels
Singles with songs from The Genius Of Ray Charles
“Let The Good Times Roll”
b/w
“Don’t Let The Sun Catch You Cryin'”
“Tell Me You’ll Wait For Me”
b/w
“Come Rain Or Come Shine”
Track listing
Side A
1. “Let The Good Times Roll”
2. “It Had To Be You”
3. “Alexander’s Ragtime Band”
4. “Two Years Of Torture”
5. “When Your Lover Has Gone”
6. “Deed I Do”
Side B
1. “Just For A Thrill”
2. “You Won’t Let Me Go”
3. “Tell Me You’ll Wait For Me”
4. “Don’t Let The Sun Catch You Cryin'”
5. “Am I Blue”
6. “Come Rain Or Come Shine”
Listen to The Genius Of Ray Charles
Get your own The Genius Of Ray Charles on LP, CD or MP3 from Amazon. Or get the complete Atlantic recordings 7xCD box set.
