History Music / RayCharles

His early life, rise to fame, dalliances with drug addiction and involvement in the civil rights movement are chronicled in the AcademyAward-winning {{Biopic}} ''Film/{{Ray}}'', released only a few months after his death. He was set to attend the premiere had he lived.

Losing his sight to an infection at a young age and educated in music at a school for the blind, Ray became a talented musician and multi-instrumentalist who got his start singing and playing piano and organ with {{country|Music}} and {{blues}} bands in the [[TheForties 1940s]]. Although he recorded a few minor hits, his big break came when he was signed to Atlantic Records in the early 1950s and recorded songs such as "Mess Around", "I Got A Woman", "Hallelujah, I Love Her So" and "What'd I Say", which combined raw, passionate gospel energy with boogie-influenced music and secular lyrics. While this music provoked some controversy at the time, these songs are now recognised as some of the first soul songs and established Ray as the inventor of a whole new genre.

* NationalFervor: Known for his version of "America the Beautiful".

Ray Charles Robinson (September 23, 1930 - June 10, 2004) was a one of first performers to fuse [=R&B=] and Gospel music to create {{Soul}} back in TheFifties and he exerted a major influence on the development of the RockAndRoll genre.

* BreakthroughHit: "I Got a Woman".

Ray Charles Robinson (September 23, 1930 - June 10, 2004) was a one of first performers to fuse [=R&B=] and Gospel music to create Music/{{Soul}} back in TheFifties and he exerted a major influence on the development of the RockAndRoll genre.

* GenrePopularizer: Either "I Got a Woman" or "What'd I Say" is considered to be this for Music/{{Soul}}, depending on who you ask, but either way, it was Ray.

* LiveAlbum: 1959's ''Ray Charles At Newport'' stands alongside ''[[JamesBrown Live At the Apollo]]'' as one of the best live recordings of the early [=R&B=]/Soul era.

* SesameStreetCred

* TheCoverChangesTheMeaning: The lyrics to "Georgia on My Mind" were originally written for composer Hoagy Carmichael's sister, despite it being ambiguous enough to refer to the state or a woman. After Ray made it famous as a dedication to Georgia, it became the official state song.

* SelfDeprecation: He always had a sense of humor about his blindness. Examples include hanging a poster upside down in TheBlueBrothers, having a cameo in SpyHard as a bus driver, and doing a radio ad for some fast food sandwich saying that he felt like going out for one "so you might want to stay off the road."

His early life, rise to fame, dalliances with drug addiction and involvement in the civil rights movement are chronicled in the AcademyAward-winning {{Biopic}} ''Film/{{Ray}}'', released only a few months after his death.

Ray's influence on other singers and musicians cannot be understated; FrankSinatra called him "the only true genius" in popular music, BillyJoel was hugely influenced by his piano playing and singing, the members of TheBeatles all expressed their admiration for his achievements, with PaulMcCartney crediting him as his reason for getting into music, and his song "What'd I Say" was allegedly the first song Mick Jagger performed as a member of Music/TheRollingStones.

His early life, rise to fame, dalliances with drug addiction and involvement in the civil rights movement are chronicled in the Academy Award-winning {{Biopic}} ''Film/{{Ray}}'', released only a few months after his death.

* BlindBlackGuy: If a black character is blind, expect them to be a parody of Ray (or possibly StevieWonder).

* OneSceneWonder: His appearance in ''TheBluesBrothers'' as the owner of the music shop.

Ray's influence on other singers and musicians cannot be understated; FrankSinatra called him "the only true genius" in popular music, BillyJoel was hugely influenced by his piano playing and singing, the members of TheBeatles all expressed their admiration for his achievements, with PaulMcCartney crediting him as his reason for getting into music, and his song "What'd I Say" was allegedly the first song Mick Jagger performed as a member of TheRollingStones.

!!This artist provides examples of:

* EruditeStoner: After kicking his heroin habit, Charles coped by smoking weed '''everyday'''.

Ray Charles Robinson (September 23, 1930 - June 10, 2004) was a one of first performers to fuse [=R&B=] nd Gospel music to create Music/{{Soul}} back in TheFifties and he exerted a major influence on the development of the RockAndRoll genre.

Losing his sight to an infection at a young age and educated in music at a school for the blind, Ray became a talented musician and multi-instrumentalist who got his start singing and playing piano and organ with {{country|Music}} and {{blues}} bandsin the [[TheForties 1940s]]. Although he recorded a few minor hits, his big break came when he was signed to Atlantic Records in the early 1950s and recorded songs such as "Mess Around", "I Got A Woman", "Hallelujah, I Love Her So" and "What'd I Say", which combined raw, passionate gospel energy with boogie-influenced music and secular lyrics. While this music provoked some controversy at the time, these songs are now recognised as some of the first soul songs and established Ray as the inventor of a whole new genre.

Ray Charles Robinson (September 23, 1930 - June 10, 2004) was a blind singer, songwriter and pianist, one of first performers to fuse RhythmAndBlues and Music/{{Gospel}} music to create Music/{{Soul}} back in TheFifties and a major influence on the development of the RockAndRoll genre. Losing his sight to an infection at a young age, Ray learned to play the piano and got his start performing with {{country|Music}} and {{blues}} combos in the [[TheForties 1940s]]. Although he recorded a few minor hits, his big break came when he was signed to Atlantic Records by label president Ahmet Ertegun and label vice president/record producer Jerry Wexler, and had successes with songs such as "Mess Around", "I Got a Woman" and "Hallelujah I Love Her So", which have been credited as some of the first recorded soul songs. His first pop crossover hit was "What'd I Say", which was improvised in a club to fill out the remaining time in a contract after his band ran out of tunes. [[TheBeatles Paul McCartney]] credits this song as the one that got him interested in a music career, and it was allegedly the first song that Mick Jagger sang as a member of TheRollingStones.

After leaving Atlantic and signing to ABC-Paramount, a division of {{ABC}}, Ray Charles began to record songs that demonstrated his country roots, achieving his some of his biggest hits with the album "Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music" and its single, a CoverVersion of "I Can't Stop Loving You". Although he was slightly less prominent in the late 1960s and 1970s, his appearance in ''TheBluesBrothers'' created a renewed interest in his music and he remained popular until his death from cancer in 2004.

His rise to fame is chronicled in the Academy Award-winning {{Biopic}} ''Film/{{Ray}}'', released only a few months after his death.

* DanceSensation: Everybody's doing the ''Mess Around''.

His rise to fame is chronicled in the Academy Award-winning {{Biopic}} ''Ray'', released only a few months after his death.

* GenreLaunch: Either "I Got a Woman" or "What'd I Say" is considered to be this for Music/{{Soul}}, depending on who you ask, but either way, it was Ray.

Ray Charles Robinson (September 23, 1930 - June 10, 2004) was a blind singer, songwriter and pianist, one of first performers to fuse RhythmAndBlues and Music/{{Gospel}} music to create Music/{{Soul}} back in TheFifties and a major influence on the development of the RockAndRoll genre. Losing his sight to an infection at a young age, Ray learned to play the piano and got his start performing with {{country|Music}} and {{blues}} combos in the 1940s. Although he recorded a few minor hits, his big break came when he was signed to Atlantic Records by label president Ahmet Ertegun and label vice president/record producer Jerry Wexler, and had successes with songs such as "Mess Around", "I Got a Woman" and "Hallelujah I Love Her So", which have been credited as some of the first recorded soul songs. His first pop crossover hit was "What'd I Say", which was improvised in a club to fill out the remaining time in a contract after his band ran out of tunes. [[TheBeatles Paul McCartney]] credits this song as the one that got him interested in a music career, and it was allegedly the first song that Mick Jagger sang as a member of TheRollingStones.

Ray Charles Robinson (September 23, 1930 - June 10, 2004) was a blind singer, songwriter and pianist, one of first performers to fuse RhythmAndBlues and Music/{{Gospel}} music to create Music/{{Soul}} back in TheFifties and a major influence on the development of the RockAndRoll genre. Losing his sight to an infection at a young age, Ray learned to play the piano and got his start performing with [[CountryMusic country]] and {{blues}} combos in the 1940s. Although he recorded a few minor hits, his big break came when he was signed to Atlantic Records by label president Ahmet Ertegun and label vice president/record producer Jerry Wexler, and had successes with songs such as "Mess Around", "I Got a Woman" and "Hallelujah I Love Her So", which have been credited as some of the first recorded soul songs. His first pop crossover hit was "What'd I Say", which was improvised in a club to fill out the remaining time in a contract after his band ran out of tunes. [[TheBeatles Paul McCartney]] credits this song as the one that got him interested in a music career, and it was allegedly the first song that Mick Jagger sang as a member of TheRollingStones.

His rise to fame is chronicled in the Academy Award-winning BioPic ''Ray'', released only a few months after his death.