I can sit here and attempt to tell you about Ray Charles. The reality is, it wouldn’t be extremely knowledgeable. I only know the man based on the music I’ve heard. To put it lightly it’s very easy to say he was the essence of music. No question about it.
Ray! the movie was my education on his life. Sad isn’t it? That I had to learn about his genius from a hollywood movie. Thus I know that some of it was played up, some of it was true, and other parts were just for show. What I did enjoy was how they explained the concept of how he related to sound. It would make sense that if you were blind that you might ‘see’ your world in sound like that. Raises the hairs on the back of your neck is what it does.
Like many musical masterminds Ray had his share of trouble getting his career off the ground. But once it got off the ground it sure seemed to soar. He wasn’t without his fair share of controversy. Not to mention having a passion for women. He was a complex character.
I think his most lasting contribution to music was his fusing of Soul, RnB, and Gospel. At the time he did it, it was unheard of to mix styles, especially a religious one with blues overtones. It sure did work though. There is no doubt about it.
This particular version of this song comes from the Ray! soundtrack. The link above is to the album Genius Love Company. Not exactly the same version, but either way it’s a great song. I can’t imagine being a musician or even a lover of music and not owning any Ray Charles. It’s like a rite of passage. You have to know him, you have to have his some of his material.
Go Now. Get it.
(** Disclaimer: If Ray’s label decides they want to know me a lot better, I’ll have to force of the server to forget the audio for the song. The post will remain to show that I would like to know the man. **)