The music of the genius
Ray Charles
The latest
Ray Charles was commissioned to perform the theme song for the 1967 movie In The Heat Of The Night. The result was the first song on the soundtrack LP, and a single was released on ABC Records as well. But fans will need both discs, for they are two completely different versions of “In The Heat Of The Night”. The Movie In The Heat Of The Night The movie starred Sidney Poitier and Rod Steiger. The film, a pissed-off and in-your-face exploration of race in America, won five... [read all]
Ray Charles and Ginie Line duet on the French-language "Ensemble" from 2002. It was released in France as a CD single and the duo performed it live on TV.
"A Bit Of Soul" is a Ray Charles tune recorded in 1955 and released in 1961. Split into two halves, it shows Ray's versatility with a unique arrangement.
"The Sun's Gonna Shine Again" finds Ray Charles in an unconvincingly hopeful mood. It was the A-side of an Atlantic single in 1953, his second-ever.
"Mississippi Mud" is a fun, jaunty singalong that Ray Charles covered on his first album for ABC Records, The Genius Hits The Road, in 1960.
Album of the day
Atlantic released a compilation of Ray Charles singles in September 1959 called What’d I Say (Atlantic 8029); it was the third such compilation after Ray Charles and Yes Indeed! (A fourth, The Genius Sings The Blues, would be released in September 1961.) What’d I Say is, of course, named after one of Ray’s most famous songs, the irresistible and strange “What’d I Say” from June 1959. It was split up into two sides of a single... [read all]
Song of the day
Ray Charles finally dove into full-on country music for his 1980s Columbia Records contract, as can be heard on the rip-snortin’ banjo and fiddle workout “Shakin’ Your Head”, the final song on his Wish You Were Here Tonight LP of February 1983. This is no orchestral version of an erstwhile country tune by Don Gibson; this is real 1980s Nashville country. “Shakin’ Your Head” was written by famed songwriter Micheal Smotherman. (It is indeed spelled... [read all]