Customer Reviews

Pure Genius: Complete Atlantic Recordings 52-59

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Wow. All of Ray's work on Atlantic collected in one place. I was wondering why there was little of this music available last year during the hoopla over the movie "RAY" and I think they were depriving the public of some great music by saving it for a boxed set that is very expensive. But, that is a complaint about Rhino/Atlantic, not Ray Charles or the music contained herein. That said, this music ranks with the Charlie Parker sides from '45-48, late 30's Basie, classic Ellington, Aretha on Atlantic, etc. There is no doubt that it deserves all of the accolades and AT LEAST five stars. I won't analyze all of it but, rather, point out some favorite moments.
Most important is the addition of a DVD of the 1960 Newport Jazz Festival appearance by the Ray Charles Orchestra and Raelettes. For some of us, this is the Holy Grail. You see, any additional music from that particular period and group of musicians is invaluable, especially footage. In this band you have David "Fathead" Newman, one of the finest exponents of the Texas Tenor, and Hank Crawford on alto crying the blues, both at the beginning of long solo careers at Atlantic. In fact, if you like the way this band sounds, find Crawford's first four solo records as they have this band minus Ray but with incredible stripped-down moaning blues and standards arrangements. In addition, on this DVD there is the foghorn baritone sax of Leroy "Hog" Cooper, the surprisingly bluesy John Hunt on trumpet sounding like a combination of Clark Terry and Lee Morgan and the supremely lyrical Phil Guilbeau on flugelhorn. This is THE classic Ray Charles group. Many times I wished I could hear more and see them. Finally. Ray, of course, is Ray: confident, relaxed and at his most soulful. This is an important period because they have not yet left the chitlin circuit for world tours, a big band and Vegas. They may have headed for a honky tonk right after this gig, who knows?
They are tasting real success for the first time and are still hungry. They are tight and right. Analogies? A championship-caliber baseball or basketball team on the rise, taking on all comers, knowing they've got a shot at the Ring.
Other high points in this boxed set include Ray's dirty alto solo during How Long Blues with Milt Jackson, the proto-Rap of It Should Have Been Me, the extremely drawn-out, moaning version of Drown In My Own Tears from the Atlanta concert in '59, Rockhouse Parts 1 & 2, the Quincy Jones and Ernie Wilkins-voiced arrangements from "The Great Ray Charles" album, etc. So many. Long Live Ray and the Orchestra.

This set is great as far as it goes. All of the material is typical RC: wonderful. I was surprised that there weren't more out takes, however. If you have any of the other Atlantic sets there's a fair bit of overlap. (added June 5, 2006: I've since learned that pretty near all the older Atlantic material, including alternate takes, was destroyed by a fire where the material was being stored, which explains the lack of out takes and alternate material.) This set, along with the Rhino Ray Charles country music set makes a pretty darn good overview of Ray's spectacular career.
I was really shocked that so many people don't bother to read the label on the eighth disc, which clearly is marked DVD | Video. Naturally, it won't play on CD players.

Rhino exhausted the Atlantic vaults of its Ray Charles catalogue, added a smart hardcover book, threw in an obscure concert on DVD and packaged everything in a magnificent carry case that resembles a vintage 45-record player. The result is the ultimate tribute to one of the giants of modern music, and raises the bar in box sets.

I don't see how anyone can improve on PURE GENIUS. The 6 CDs (each averaging 78 minutes) of Ray's released music are a sheer pleasure to listen to over and over. Credit Ray but also the sequencing.

Instead of arranging the tracks by album release date (i.e. The Velvet Underground and Cream boxes), Rhino gambles by sequencing according to *recording* date. Remember that until 1967's Sgt. Pepper, pop albums were hodge-podges of songs gathered from various sessions. With Ray's albums, songs spanned entire years. Rhino's approach allows the listener to enjoy each phase of Ray's recording career, from his soul breakthrough on disc one to the big band of disc six.

Another consideration is that Ray recorded in so many genres at once: gospel-tinged soul one week, straight jazz the next and back. Rhino's sequencing highlights Ray's versatility and virtuosity, which you cannot find on any other compilation and certainly not a greatest hits package which compiles only songs. I was expecting soul vocals with the Raelettes, but was blown away by Ray's instrumental jazz, which his big hits have unjustly overshadowed.

Disc seven--of outtakes and sessions (a fire destroyed all other session tapes)--provides a glimpse of an early recording session as well as part of a later one. The disc demonstrates Ray's growing confidence in the studio. However, this disc is for Ray's hardcore fans rather than casual listeners. And for the hardcore, it's a gem.

Another bonus is disc 8: the DVD of Ray's ultra-rare 1960 concert at the Newport Jazz Festival. It's a stationery camera shooting grainy black-and-white footage, but Ray's performance is assured through nine numbers. A 20-minute interview by Taylor Hackford of Ahmet Ertegun (who signed Ray to Atlantic) is another gem.

Liner notes in the hardcover book avoid empty hype and offer insight into Ray's brilliant career at Atlantic (written by biographer David Ritz). A detailed discography is another plus.

Now, what can I say about the packaging? I own several box sets and this one takes the prize for originality. It resembles a 45-turntable. Lift the "turntable" and the book and discs rest beneath. And the handle makes it portable.

A caveat: this box ain't cheap, and it's intended for hardcore Ray fans. More casual admirers should pick up the 3-CD BIRTH OF SOUL or a greatest hits package, but those don't include Ray's magnificent jazz sides.

Obviously, PURE GENIUS was a labour of love by the folks at Rhino. Some box sets are a formulaic mix of greatest hits, a few unreleased tracks, and some live tracks. This goes one further: it places the artist's music in its proper context which makes you appreciate his overall career even more.

If you find this box, get it. I did and it's worth every penny I paid and then some. I love PURE GENIUS.

Ray Charles was ahead of his time in a number of ways...this is most evident in this wonderful collection of his best works...Why some may argue that his early ABC-Dunhill recordings showed his versatility....these Atlantic recordings showcase an artist who was not afraid to experiment with what he was feeling inside...Though Ray's vocals are strong and vibrant, these Atlantic recordings also showcase that Ray was first and foremost a musician...the fact that he could utilize his vocals as an instrument only strengthens his title of genius..This is a must own collection...regardless of the price!!!

Um... I don't own this, but I was looking at buying it. Looking at the reviews, I see two people complained that disc 8 won't play in their CD players. Disc 8 is listed as a DVD, so it won't play in a regular CD player (try your computer). I have to assume there it nothing wrong with the product, but rather, the user. Just thought I should point that out to anyone thinking of buying this. I am giving it 5 stars just to offset the bad (mistaken) ratings

This is the foundation of soul music: all of Ray Charles' finished masters from his 7 years at Atlantic Records. Listening to the sessions in order really gives you a sense of how Ray Charles grew as an artist and set the stage for Aretha Franklin, Otis Redding, Stevie Wonder, Wilson Pickett, etc. Ray starts as a great boogie piano artist - "Mess Around" is his finest early moment, but then, on track 18 of Disc 1, he explodes with "I've Got A Woman," the blueprint for his style and the "feel" of much of Atlantic's soul and R&B artists. It's a driving track that sounds as vibrant today as it did back then.
Ray Charles was a master of both jumping R&B ("What'd I Say") and soulful ballads ("Lonely Avenue,""Don't Let The Sun Catch You Crying") and nearly every cut is a polished jewel. Since this is a "Complete" release of Ray's Atlantic sides, it includes his jazz outings with David Newman and Milt Jackson. They are fine, but interrupt the flow of the soulful vocals.
His live work is well represented with a live set from 1958 and on the DVD with a rocking set at the 1960 Newport Jazz Festival.
Disc 7 is an unreleased "rehearsal Session" with Ahmet Ertegun and shows what an amazing pianist Ray Charles was. I hope there is more of this "acoustic" Ray material in the vault that will get official release. It's like being a fly on the wall at a recording session and I compulsively played the session 3 times in a row when I first got to it. The sound quality is first-rate across all 8 discs - the brilliant Raylettes, Ray's backup singers, never sounded so good.
I've docked the set one star because of the lack of any finished unreleased material from the Atlantic years. There have to be numerous unreleased numbers, instrumentals, and outtakes in the Atlantic vaults and the many Ray Charles fans anxiously await the next box set: "The Complete Unreleased Atlantic Recordings."

For my taste, there seems to be three phases of Ray Charles' career... 1. His early Swing Time days (when he sounded more like Nat King Cole than Ray Charles) 2. The Atlantic Years (where the sound was raw, cutting edge, and powerful) 3. The ABC Years & Later (where the craft was more refined, instrumentally and vocally). What I had longed for was a compilation or box set that focused on those Atlantic days and drilled down past the standard Ray songs that are on just about EVERY Ray Charles CD you can find. For that, this set is unmatched. In addition to some of the more popular "live" cuts, there are a good 50 songs on here that I had never heard (I'm talking beyond the songs on "Anthology" or the movie soundtrack) that are fantastic and are every bit as much a part of my Ray Charles i-pod rotation as "I Got a Woman" or "Mess Around".

The real treat (in my opinion), is the 30 or so outtakes and rehearsal cuts. Here, you get to hear what it was like in the recording studio with Ray Charles... there is actually an 8 minute track that covers the recording of "Night Time is the Right Time", which allows you to experience how particular Ray was with the sound HE wanted. Knowing from past readings that multiple takes on a song were a pet peeve of his, one can actually hear his tone change with the band and the guys in the booth as the takes begin to add up... great stuff for any Ray fan who has wondered (as I often have), "How in the world does he do that?"

The only reason this set gets 4 stars from me instead of 5 is that there are many (as in 25 or so) instrumental tracks. Don't get me wrong, they are all solid jazz tunes (as good as any other jazz CD I own) but I would have preferred more of Ray's vocals. Still, my rating may very well not be fair. Afterall, it is the COMPLETE Atlantic Recordings.

It's quite a bit of money to put down and I pondered it for quite some time, but well worth it if you're looking for more than what you can find on a Greatest Hits compilation.

I bought this box set to celebrate getting my new job. I drove back and forth to work listening to it. Long story short, It's perfect. The remastering sounds like it was done over time. The clarity and detail of the instruments is breathtaking.

I was looking for Brother Ray's Atlantic catalog on individual CDs, and most are not available. This box set catches you right up on his classic years with Atlantic Records.

You may feel that each original album is presented in it's running order, followed by the next release and so on through the set. Actually the set is programed in chronological order, making it very interesting listening. Almost like a glimpse into his mind at work.

It includes a book that presents the original liner notes and art work for each Album. Should you want to hear a particular album in sequence all you need to do is program your CD player according to the text given for that LP.

Disc 7 is packed with demo recordings and interesting studio banter. I found this disc to be worthwhile listening. Coming from me that is no less than earth shaking. I'm not one for demos, I prefer the finished product. I don't return to this disc as often as the others, but I do recommend it for the curious.

Disc 8 is a DVD with an interview with Ahmet Ertegun conducted by Taylor Hackford as well as a 9 song 1960 concert film in B&W. This disc always has me coming back for more.

This is one box set that is really worth the price of admission.

pure genious is a milestone in the story of music, all the people who love music must have one of this. sorry for my english, but i hope that you understand what i say! by the way ... ladies and gentleman ... the one , the only , the genious ... mr. ray charles

This set really does live up to its title, and then some...pure D genius from start to finish...for the scholar, or just casually interested fan, the early jazz sides are revelatory...but it's all good, all zillion discs...the genius in this set never lets up!

A little pricey, but not really, for what you get...the music alone is worth the price, but the packaging really goes the extra mile, too.