Customer Reviews

Ray Sings, Basie Swings

5 star:		(31)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

This CD is the result of an unusual set of circumstances: old tapes of Ray's and Basie's band were found tucked away after years of lying around gathering dust. The Basie tapes were unusable but Ray's vocals could be worked on--and they were restored after a great deal of effort, thanks to Gregg Field and Seth Present. John Burk at Concord Records had the brilliant idea of matching up Ray's restored vocals to the beat of the current Count Basie band. The result is this electrifying CD.

The CD starts off strong with "Oh, What A Beautiful Morning" written by Rodgers and Hammerstein from the musical Oklahoma. An auspicious beginning indeed! The remastering and mixing is done to perfection throughout this CD; you would never know Ray's vocals were actually recorded 30 years before they were matched up with Count Basie's band! The joyous "Let The Good Times Roll" follows with an excellent musical arrangement and Ray's voice is in exceptional form as it is for all of these songs.

Other classic songs on this remarkable CD include "How Long Has This been Going On?;" "Busted;" "I Can't Stop Loving You;" "Look What They've Done To My Song" and "Georgia On My Mind." Another expressive and beautiful song on this CD is "Every Saturday Night" written by Jerry West and Silas Hogan.

Ray also attacks "The Long And Winding Road" written by The Beatles. The result is a very fine, artistic rendition yet it does not surpass The Beatles' original version of the song. This is a comparatively minor disappointment, however, because "The Long And Winding Road" still comes off well and the rest of the CD is very strong throughout.

Patti Austin deserves mention for her excellent vocal arrangements to recreate the sounds of The Raelettes. The ladies on backup vocals do a superb job.

The liner notes tell the story in depth of how this unusual album came to be in an essay written by David Ritz. There are numerous photographs of Ray both in color as well as in black and white. Ooooh, how I miss him! This CD brought back great memories for me of spinning his LPs so much I nearly wore the grooves off the vinyl record albums! SMILE

Overall, I highly recommend this CD for fans of Ray Charles, classic pop vocals, and for anyone interested in how technology can bring about an album under an unusual set of circumstances. Enjoy this album as I have and let us never forget the incomparable Ray Charles!

A 1973 vocal-only recording of Ray Charles at the absolute peak of his powers, matched to an outstanding big-band accompaniment by the "Count Basie Orchestra," a legacy band. The accompaniment was recorded in 2006, two years after Charles' death; William "Count" Basie died in 1984. In my humble, there are a couple of songs where the arrangement doesn't work well ("Every Saturday Night," for example), and I think "The Long and Winding Road" just wasn't a good choice for Ray Charles. That said, though, the album as a whole is simply jaw-dropping, and I play it constantly.

My complaint -- and it's a big one -- is the title, and the marketing. It's clear that almost half the reviewers here think that Count Basie is on this CD. He isn't, of course -- but you have to read carefully to figure that out. If I had first heard this on the P.A. at my local mega-bookstore, I would have stampeded to the counter, purchased it instantly, and then felt angry and betrayed to discover that Basie ain't there at all.

They picked the right band for the accompaniment -- but they have no right to fool people into thinking they're buying Ray and the Count. One star off an otherwise fantastic CD.

For the nay-sayers: I'm delighted that Concord produced this CD. It's the best "new" music I've heard in a long, long time. They found a pristine recording of the vocal track of a Ray Charles concert -- what are they supposed to do, throw it away? Our great vocal performers -- Ella, Ray, Frank, Elvis (make your own list) -- are all gone, and there's no one, NO ONE, out there of their stature and talent. If an unreleased performance turns up, then record companies are doing us a service by producing it -- and if the recording NEEDS enhancement, then do it. All I ask is that they be honest about what the product is. Some pond-scum somewhere would love to make "Sinatra and Madonna: the Duets." I won't buy it, because that WOULD be a travesty (and because it'll suck, big-time).

Ray's dead -- but his voice lives on. The Count's dead -- but his spirit is alive and well in the legacy band that bears his name. Thank goodness for both, and for this CD. I only wish that the package were more honest, and that there were two or three times more material.

Undiscovered genius until now!
From the Fantasy master tape vaults a rare treasure was unearthed. Vintage, never-before-released, absolutely stunning Ray Charles performances; 'Genius' in his prime, singing a bevy of timeless Charles classics including 'Let the Good Times Roll,' 'I Can't Stop Loving You,' and 'Georgia on My Mind.'
The only problem was that-while the power and nuance of Ray's vocals were recorded perfectly clearly-the accompanying big band parts on this 2-track stereo tape were, conversely, quite poorly-recorded and barely audible.
But Ray Charles vocal performances this good just had to be released and heard somehow.
Fortunately, with the benefit of modern recording technology and one of the most swinging big bands on the planet-today's Count Basie Orchestra under the direction of Bill Hughes-these rousing big band arrangements were recreated and re-recorded in sync with Ray's incredible vocal performances, with excellent results.

Who cares how this recording was made? It sounds beautiful! Ray is in EXCELLENT voice, and the Basie Band sounds outstanding as usual. It is still the best big band out there today.

Why criticize the technology when we should be thankful for it. This is a beautiful album for fans of Ray, Basie, or just darned good music.

6 out of 5 stars!

Ray Charles and Count Basie? The R&B genius paired with the master of syncopated swing? Together?? On the same recording? Can it be true, and if so, why was I not informed about this sooner???
In actuality, the title is a bit misleading, but nevertheless, this disk contains some of the best Ray Charles recordings I've ever heard, and that is really saying something. It turns out that a record executive at Concord Records was sifting through the vault when he happened upon a reel-to-reel tape simply marked "Ray/Basie." Thinking that he just struck pure gold, the tapes were accessed, but it turns out that the box contained the two artists performing separately from one another. Furthermore, the Ray Charles recordings were poorly balanced, and presumed to be unusable. Then, the scribbling on the box provided the inspiration for a cure; If the historic recording doesn't exist, why not make it exist? So, two decades after the death of Count Basie, his orchestra was called in to provide instrumental back-up to Charles and his own band.
In theory, it sounds like it could be a mess, but the results are actually stellar. Charles has rarely sounded as inspired. He is at full power and completely in control on each of these recordings. Before hearing Ray Charles sing it, I presumed "Oh, What a Beautiful Morning" to be one of those old standards that has been sucked dry of any possible interest. Here, Charles soars over a hot arrangement. In addition, the versions of "Let the Good Times Roll" and "How Long Has This Been Going On" are, without exaggeration, definitive. Familiar Charles classics like "Busted," "Crying Time," and "Georgia On My Mind" are fabulous as well, losing none of the impact of the original recordings, while adding an ambiance that makes them feel immediate. His version of "The Long and Winding Road" is his best Beatles cover on record, and you simply have to hear what he's done to "Look What They've Done to My Song, Ma."
Do yourself a favor, and put away those terrible duet recordings that Ray recorded with the singing celebrities who called in their performances. Those records do Ray a disservice and don't reflect his genuine talent at all. If you want to hear what the man was about, this is a great place to start. Or finish. A Tom Ryan

Since seeing the autobiographical motion picture, "Ray" a few years ago, I've been feverishly trying to do my best in collecting everything in Ray Charles' long & expansive discography, that I can possibly get my hands on. So, when I found out that a new title, "Ray Sings, Basie Swings" was being released, it obviously got my excited undevided attention. But I became weary, when I started reading press blurbs saying, that it was merely Ray's original vocals being electronically married to new recordings of the current Basie Band. (Apparently the original tapes' vocal was good, but instrumental tracks were unusable.) Suddenly, I had visions of an over imaginative, marketing department, trying to foist some second rate cheese on the late Ray's fans and the general listening public. In the past, I have found such releases (dead artist + fancy, digital studio technology) to be a touch ghoulish and just plain musically bad. Just look into the catalogues of Nat King Cole & Jimi Hedrix for evidence of this. Well even though my 'rip-off radar' was up and running, I decided to throw caution to the wind and give this recording a try. Well, I've got to say not only is this not a rip-off, it's absolutely fantastic! I can see why Concord Records would try to salvage these Ray vocals. 'The Genius' is just totally on! He just hits the mark and gives what I like to call an 'X-factor' performance. By 'X-factor', I mean trancendent. He just takes you to another place. On the faster paced numbers he just falls into a wonderful groove and stays there! Examples include "Let the Good Times Roll", "How long Has This Been Going On" and "Busted". Although some of these tunes were long time regulars in his concert repetiore, he seems to aproach them with a freshness that is just unbelievable. All the fervor and energy Ray puts in gives a feeling like he just discovered these tunes. On the slower paced numbers, Ray seems to just pour his soul into songs such as "Crying Time", and "Look What they Have With My Song". This is a Master at work. As far as the newly recorded instrumental tracks go, all I can say is "Bravo!!" It's just like the title says, when Ray Sings, the Basie Band swings! These guys hit a groove and just stay with it. I particularly like the B-3 organ fills (featuring Joey DeFrancesco), that seem to snake their way in out of the tunes. Also, Kudos to Patti Austin, who was responsible for recreating the back-up vocals of the Raelettes. Pure perfection. As far as the production goes, I'm impressed. There is no 'cheese' here. If I hadn't been told these vocal tracks were from over thirty years ago, I would never have known. Both the vocal and instrumental tracks sound like they were made for each other. This is one of those recordings that is going to spend a lot of time in my CD player. Highly recommended!

Pay no attention the concerns about the asynchronous technology that produced this masterpiece (is it genuine, etc.) My goosebumps are absolutely genuine! Ray is at his best and the Basie band provides the perfect swinging context for him! If you are a fan of either or both, just go with the music and forget these inconsequential technical concerns -- a little imagination goes a long way. You are gonna love this instant classic!

As someone who knew The Count of Basie and had the pleasure of producing 3 Theatre in the Round Ray Charles performances in 1977, the genius of this two performers finally got together to do something that was only dreamt of. The melding of these two giants was far overdue. My only complaint is that it wasn't one hour and 49 minutes long instead of 49 minutes.
The Basie Band has never sounded better especially under the driving beat of Butch Miles. I have been counting the days since I found out about this project and during the first three hours of ownership, I have lietened to it twice. Buy it, even if you only love one of them, by the time it's over you be in love with both. Cudos to Greg Field and all of those involved for this definate GRAMMY AWARD effort.

Steve Grossman

i'm kinda new to listening to ray charles in album form-- i heard a lot of his songs on the radio as i was growing up.
i heard about this record on NPR and was intrigued about the concept. at first i thought it was a session actually WITH basie, but then read the liner notes and saw how it actually came about.
there are a few times where it sounds a little canned, and you can tell he's not actually singing to the band.
this is my thing: all the time singers record to canned tracks of bands and back up music: why can't a band play to the musician and vocals and make it work!? i think they do rather well here. it's all music and taste and opinion after all; isn't it!
ok so there are a few tracks that are kinda "boring" in terms of not being up tempo or whatever.
here's one thing about the sound overall: IT"S BIG! put it on a stereo where you can turn it up loud! who cares what the neighbors think- it's not eminem-- how could you get mad at having to listen to this!
this record will be one that will be a pleasure to listen to for along time. i think it is worth the investment, and it such a refreshing break from all the crap that is being put out anymore!

If you don't like it, don't listen to it. Ray Charles would have loved this. He loved high tech and this just doesn't get any better. What's the difference between someone (the Count Basie Orchestra) backing up Ray Charles Posthumously and YOU listening to a different Ray Charles recording after he is dead ? I'll tell you: Nothing. If it bothers you that much you are probably one of those chronic complainers that just look for something to complain about. Now: Don't listen because I'm going to go turn on Ray Sings, Basie Sings and I am going to love every second because it is THEM and because it is beautiful.