“Over The Top”
Song by Ray Charles
“Over The Top” is a lovely song pulled gently along by a laid-back beat and oozing synthesizers that swirl in slo-mo like honey. In anyone else’s hands the song might calcify into dull soft rock irrelevancy but in Ray Charles’s hands it becomes an absorbing thing of beauty.
It’s Ray’s scintillating electric piano that really dominates this performance from his wonderful 1988 album Just Between Us. That keyboard sits high in the mix and provides a conspicuous counterpoint to the warm glowing goo of the synths. Following their own spiky idiosyncrasies, Ray’s expert fingers dial up tasty if unexpected notes and capricious rhythms as they wander up and down the keys.
The lyrics of “Over The Top”, a song written by Tony Colton and Keith Christopher, are an emotional paean to a woman. The marriage of gorgeous melodies and Ray’s exaggerated emotionalism gives the song its direct human connection, the spark that perks up the listener’s ears. Everything works together on “Over The Top”; it’s a lovely and genuine moment from a master at the top of his game.
Listen to “Over The Top”
Songs on Just Between Us