The Best Of Ray Charles: The Atlantic Years [Import]

Ray Charles, Ray Charles And the Count Basie Orchestra | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (November 10, 2010)
• Original Release Date: July 19, 1994
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Import
• Label: Rhino/Wea UK
• ASIN: B0000033BP
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #53,047 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #70 in Music > Imports > Blues
  • #88 in Music > Blues > Piano Blues

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Twenty choice tracks from Ray Charles' years at Atlantic, June 10, 2004

By 

Lawrance M. Bernabo (The Zenith City, Duluth, Minnesota) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

This review is from: The Best Of Ray Charles: The Atlantic Years (Audio CD)

Ray Charles died today and that means a lot of people are going to be listening to his music and enjoying the first great American soul singer. For those who do not have a Ray Charles album in their music library they will be looking for a good hits collection and while it seems strange to recommend one that does not have "Hit the Road, Jack" on it, this Rhino album of "The Best of Ray Charles: The Atlantic Years," which brings together twenty of his best songs from his years at Atlantic Records in the late 1950s is still my top recommendation because it represents the crucial and groundbreaking period when he defined soul music, even if the term was not in use when most of these songs were recorded. But from this vantage point there is no other single word that better describes the singing of Ray Charles.

That is not to say that you will not recognize the best of these tracks. If you want to point to a specific song and say this is where soul music begins then it would have to be 1954's "I've Got a Woman," where Charles blends rhythm & blue music with gospel singing. The song, which would be covered by Elvis Presley and countless others over the years, features baritone saxist David "Fathead" Newman, who would play tenor sax on a lot of Charles' best albums. "What Would I Do Without You?" features a great sax solo by Don Wilkerson and exemplifies Charles' ability to merge country and gospel (the piano playing particularly sounds like it is from a church service). There is also a cover of Henry Glover's "Drown in My Own Tears," which became one of Charles' signature songs. For younger listeners the most familiar track will probably be "Night Time Is the Right Time," which was used to great effect on "The Cosby Show," while for the rest of us "What I'd Say, Part 1" is another obvious classic and the song that made Ray Charles a household name (in the right households, anyway).

So, yes, there are more hits out there and better collections of the "best" of Ray Charles if you are going by the Billboard charts. But if you want to listen to the sound of Ray Charles creating the sound of soul music that this is the one album that best accomplishes that goal. What starts off as "jump" blues with "It Should've Been Me" and "Greenback" because pure soul sung as only Ray Charles could sing it on songs like "Hallelujah, I Love Her So," "Lonely Avenue," and "This Little Girl of Mine." This stuff is so good that after "The Best of Ray Charles: The Atlantic Years" you might go back and start picking up his original albums from the Atlantic period instead of picking up a hits collection focusing on his 1960s work.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must-Have for Ray Charles Fans, July 17, 2000

By 

Penny Brooks (Missouri) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Best Of Ray Charles: The Atlantic Years (Audio CD)

The soulful singing of Ray Charles makes this album a Must-Have for anyone who enjoys today's modern R and B. Charles infuses each word he sings with emotion; he focuses not on cheap theatrics but on word-play, tone, and feeling. This particular compilation contains some of Charles' better known songs, like "I Got a Woman," and "What'd I Say," and some that should be better known. Charles paints the picture of lost love in "Lonely Avenue"; a beautiful yearning tinges "A Fool For You"; and "Tell the Truth" sounds as if all the participating recording artists had the time of their lives. This is an album that introduces newcomers to Ray Charles and keeps them fans; and for fans, it keeps them marveling at his genius.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Love It!, February 22, 2000

By 

Joan (Phoenix, AZ) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Best Of Ray Charles: The Atlantic Years (Audio CD)

This is a collection of Ray's bluesiest cuts. Some of my very favorites. Naturally, it is just one of several cd's by Ray that I own, but it's the one I listen to most.