Crate Diggers: Ray Charles
Showing posts with label Ray Charles. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ray Charles. Show all posts

Tuesday, June 13, 2017

Anniversary of Ray Charles' Death

“Love is a special word, and I use it only when I mean it. You say the word too much and it becomes cheap” - Ray Charles
(Ray Charles)
Ray Charles was born as Ray Robinson on September 23rd, 1930 in Albany, Georgia, USA. As a baby Robinson moved to Greenville, FL. Charles was raised by his biological mother. At age 3 Robinson learned how to play piano. At age 4 he started to lose his sight. When he was 5 he witnessed his younger brother drown. At age 7 Robinson completely lost his sight. In 1937 Robinson attended school at the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind in St. Augustine, FL. When Robinson was 14 his mother died. In 1945 Robinson moved to Jacksonville, FL. At age 16 he moved to Orlando, FL. In 1947 he moved to Tampa, FL. He got a job being apart of 2 bands. In 1948 he moved to Seattle, WA. He then met Quincy Jones.
(Robinson in 1948)
In 1949 he had his 1st national hit "Confession Blues”. In 1950 he moved to Los Angeles, CA. In 1951 he started going by “Ray Charles”. In 1952 he signed to Atlantic records.
(Charles in 1952)
In 1953 he released “Mess Around”. In 1954 he had hits with "It Should Have Been Me" and "Don't You Know" which became his first chart success for Atlantic. He also released “I Got a Woman”. It reached No. 2 on the R&B charts. In 1955 he had hits "This Little Girl of Mine" and "A Fool for You”.
(Charles in 1955)
In 1956 Charles recruited a young all female singing group named the Cookies, and reshaped them as The Raelettes. In 1959 Charles reached the Billboard Top Ten with "What'd I Say”. He then signed to ABC Paramount Records. In 1960 he released  “Genius + Soul = Jazz”. He also released the single “Georgia on my Mind”. He then received 4 Grammy awards. He then released the hit song “Hit the Road Jack”.
(Charles in 1960)
In 1961 Charles had expanded his small road ensemble to a full scale big band. Also in 1961 Charles faced a near death experience when the pilot of his plane lost visibility, as snow and his failure to use defroster caused the windshield of the plane to become completely covered in ice. In 1962 he founded his own record label Tangerine Records. In 1963 he had major pop hits with "Busted" and “Take These Chains From My Heart”. In 1965 Charles was arrested for possession of heroin.
(Charles in 1965)
He went to rehab to avoid jail. In 1966 he released "I Don't Need No Doctor" and "Let's Go Get Stoned”. In 1967 he released “Here We Go Again”. In 1972 he released “America the Beautiful”.
(Charles in 1972)
In 1974 he signed to his own label Crossover records. In 1977 he signed to Atlantic records again. Also in 1977 he hosted “Saturday Night Live”.
(Charles in 1977)
In 1979 Charles’ song “Georgia on my Mind” was proclaimed the state song of Georgia. In 1980 he appeared in the movie The Blues Brothers.
(Charles in The Blues Brothers (1980))
In 1981 Charles was criticized for performing at South Africa's Sun City resort during an international boycott of its apartheid policy. In 1983 Charles signed with Columbia records. In 1985 he was apart of the song “We Are the World”.
(Charles (Center) with Stevie Wonder (Left) and Michael Jackson (Right))
Also in 1985 he performed at Ronald Reagan’s inauguration. In 1990 Charles had a duet with Chaka Khan on the song “I’ll be Good to You”.
(Charles (Right) with Chaka Khan (Left))
In 1993 he released the album “My World”. Also in 1993 he performed at Bill Clinton’s inauguration. In 1996 he released the album “Strong Love Affair”. In 2002 he released the album “Thanks for Bringing Love Around Again”. In 2003 he was inducted into the songwriters hall of fame.
(Charles in 2003)
He also had hip surgery. In 2004 a movie on his life was released called Ray.
(Charles (Left) and Jamie Foxx (Right))
On June 10th, 2004 Ray Charles died of liver disease in Beverly Hills, California, USA. He was 73 years old.
(Charles’ funeral)
Today is the 13th anniversary of his death. Take time to remember this great musical artist today.

Albums by Ray Charles
  • “Ray Charles” (1957)
  • “The Great Ray Charles” (1957)
  • “Yes Indeed!” (1958)
  • “Soul Brothers” (1958)
  • “What’d I Say” (1959)
  • “The Genius of Ray Charles” (1959)
  • “The Original Ray Charles” (1959)
  • “The Fabulous Ray Charles” (1959)
  • “The Genius Hits the Road” (1960)
  • “The Genius Sings the Blues” (1961)
  • “Soul Meeting” (1961)
  • “The Genius After Hours” (1961)
  • “Dedicated to You” (1961)
  • “Ray Charles and Betty Carter” (1961)
  • “Genius + Soul = Jazz” (1961)
  • “Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music” (1962)
  • “Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music Volume Two” (1962)
  • “Ingredients in a Recipe for Soul” (1963)
  • “Sweet & Sour Tears” (1964)
  • “Have a Smile with Me” (1964)
  • “Together Again” (1965)
  • “Crying Time” (1966)
  • “Ray’s Moods” (1966)
  • “Invites You to Listen” (1967)
  • “A Portrait of Ray” (1968)
  • “I’m All Yours Baby!” (1968)
  • “Doing His Thing” (1969)
  • “My Kind of Jazz” (1970)
  • “Love Country Style” (1970)
  • “Volcanic Action of My Soul” (1971)
  • “A Message From the People” (1972)
  • “Through the Eyes of Love” (1972)
  • “Jazz Number II” (1972)
  • “Come Live with Me” (1974)
  • “Renaissance” (1975)
  • “My Kind of Jazz Part 3” (1975)
  • “Porgy and Bess” (1976)
  • “True to Life” (1977)
  • “Love & Peace” (1978)
  • “The Tender Side of Ray Charles” (1978)
  • “Ain’t It So” (1979)
  • “Brother Ray is at it Again” (1980)
  • “Wish You Were Here Tonight” (1983)
  • “Do I Ever Cross Your Mind” (1984)
  • “Friendship” (1984)
  • “The Spirit of Christmas” (1985)
  • “From the Pages of My Mind” (1986)
  • “Just Between Us” (1988)
  • “Would You Believe” (1990)
  • “My World” (1993)
  • “Strong Love Affair” (1996)
  • “Thanks for Bringing Love Around Again” (2002)
  • “Genius Loves Company” (2004)

Films starring Ray Charles
  • Swingin' Along (1961) as himself
  • Ballad in Blue (1964) as himself
  • The Big T.N.T. Show (1966) as himself
  • The Blues Brothers (1980) as Ray
  • Limit Up (1989) as Julius
  • Listen Up: The Lives of Quincy Jones (1990) as himself
  • Love Affair (1994) as himself
  • Spy Hard (1996) as Bus Driver
  • The Extreme Adventures of Super Dave (2000) as himself
  • Blue's Big Musical Movie (2000) as G-Clef

Videos of Ray Charles




P.S. sorry for the late post
Posted by at No comments:
Labels: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Tuesday, March 14, 2017

Happy Birthday Quincy Jones

“I tell my kids and I tell proteges, always have humility when you create and grace when you succeed, because it's not about you. You are a terminal for a higher power. As soon as you accept that, you can do it forever” - Quincy Jones
(Quincy Jones)
Quincy Jones Jr. was born on March 14th, 1933 in Chicago, Illinois, USA. Jones was first introduced to Gospel music from his mother when he was 5 years old. He also started to play his neighbor’s piano at 5 years old and fell in love with the instrument. When Jones was young his mother was committed to a mental institution. In 1943 Jones’ family moved to Bremerton, WA. In 1945 his family moved to Seattle, WA. By 12 years old Jones started to become a good trumpeter and music arranger. At 14 Jones began playing with a National Reserve band. During this same year Jones met a 16 year old musician from Florida named Ray Charles. In 1951 Jones won a scholarship to Seattle University. Jones then transferred to Berklee College of Music in Boston on another scholarship.
(Jones in 1951)
He then left his studies after he received an offer to tour as a trumpeter with the bandleader Lionel Hampton. Jones then moved to New York City, NY. He then started to arrange songs for artists, Sarah Vaughan, Dinah Washington, Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Gene Krupa, and Ray Charles. At 19 years old Jones traveled with Lionel Hampton to Europe. This trip altered how he saw racism in the US. In 1956 Jones toured with  Dizzy Gillespie to the Middle East and South America.
(Jones (Right) with Dizzy Gillespie (Center))
Jones then signed with ABC-Paramount Records and started his recording career as the leader of his own band. In 1957 Jones moved to Paris, France. Jones did a European tour that ended in 1960. During the 1960’s Jones worked as an arranger for Billy Eckstine, Sarah Vaughan, Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, Nana Mouskouri, Shirley Horn, Peggy Lee, and Dinah Washington. Also during the 1960’s Jones’ albums were very successful and during this time Jones became the founder of the Institute for Black American Music (IBAM). Jones’ 1962 song “Soul Bossa Nova” is Jones’ most famous song used in various forms of media and pop culture. In 1964 Jones became the vice president of Mercury Records, becoming the first African American to hold this position. Also in the same year Jones composed the music for the movie The Pawnbroker. Also in 1964 Frank Sinatra hired Jones to arrange and conduct Sinatra’s album “It Might as Well be Swing”.
(Frank Sinatra (Left) and Jones (Right))
After the success of the movie The Pawnbroker, Jones left Mercury Records and moved to Los Angeles, CA. In 1965 Jones composed music for the movies Mirage and The Slender Thread. Jones was in constant demand as a composer. In 1966 Jones conducted and arranged Sinatra’s live album “Sinatra at the Sands”. Also In 1966 Jones composed music for the movies Walk, Don't Run, The Deadly Affair, in 1967  Banning, In Cold Blood, In the Heat of the Night, in 1968 A Dandy in Aspic, For Love of Ivy, The Hell with Heroes, in 1969  Mackenna's Gold, The Italian Job, Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice, The Lost Man, Cactus Flower, John and Mary, in 1970 The Out-of-Towners, They Call Me Mister Tibbs!, in 1971 The Anderson Tapes, $, and in 1972 The Hot Rock, The New Centurions and The Getaway. Jones also composed music for TV shows such as Sanford & Son, Ironside, Banacek, The Bill Cosby Show, the opening episode of Roots, and Now You See It. In 1974 Jones suffered a life-threatening brain aneurysm. In 1975 Jones founded Qwest Productions. In 1978 Jones produced the music for the movie The Wiz.
(Jones in the film The Wiz (1978))
In 1979 Jones produced Michael Jackson’s album “Off the Wall” which sold 20,000,000 copies. In 1982 Jones produced the highest selling album of all time (Over 110,000,000, copies worldwide), Michael Jackson’s “Thriller”.
(Michael Jackson (Left) and Jones (Right) in 1984)
In 1985 Jones’ did the score for the movie The Color Purple. Jones also produced and arranged the song “We Are the World”, which brought together the biggest musical artists of the 1980’s for charity to help Ethiopia’s famine.
(Jones (Left), Stevie Wonder (Left Center), Michael Jackson (Right Center) and Lionel Richie (Right) in 1985)
In 1987 Jones again worked with Michael Jackson to produce Jackson’s “Bad” album, which sold 45,000,000 copies. In 1988 Quincy Jones Productions joined forces with Warner Communications to create Quincy Jones Entertainment. Jones signed a ten-picture deal with Warner Brothers and signed a two-series deal with NBC Productions. Jones produced the TV shows Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, In the House, and Mad TV. In 1990 Jones hosted an episode of Saturday Night Live.
(Jones hosting Saturday Night Live in 1990)
In 1991 Jones made an album with Miles Davis called “Miles & Quincy Live at Montreux”.
(Miles Davis (Left) and Jones (Right))
In 1993 Jones joined forces with Salzman and renamed his company as Quincy Jones/David Salzman Entertainment (QDE). In 1999 Jones appeared in the movie Fantasia 2000.
(Jones (Right) in the movie Fantasia 2000 (1999))
In 2001 Jones published his autobiography, Q: The Autobiography of Quincy Jones. Also in 2001 Jones became an honorary member of the board of directors of The Jazz Foundation of America. In 2004 Jones helped launch the We Are the Future (WAF) project, which gives children in poor and conflict-ridden areas a chance to live their childhoods. In 2013 Jones sued the estate of Michael Jackson for 10 million dollars because MJJ Productions and Sony Music Entertainment, improperly re-edited songs to deprive Jones of royalties and production fees. In 2015 Jones appeared on Dr. Dre’s The Pharmacy on Beats 1 Radio.
(Jones (Left) and Dr. Dre (Right))
Today is his 84th birthday and we would all like to say happy birthday Quincy Jones.

Albums by Quincy Jones
  • “Jazz Abroad” (1955)
  • “This is How I Feel About Jazz” (1956)
  • “Go West, Man!” (1957)
  • “Quincy’s Home Again” (1958)
  • “The Birth of a Band!” (1959)
  • “The Great Wide World of Quincy Jones” (1959)
  • “I Dig Dancers” (1960)
  • “Around the World” (1961)
  • “Newport ‘61” (1961)
  • “The Great Wide World of Quincy Jones Live” (1961)
  • “The Quintessence” (1961)
  • “Big Band Bossa Nova” (1962)
  • “Quincy Jones Plays Hip Hits” (1963)
  • “Golden Boy” (1964)
  • “I Had a Ball” (1964)
  • “Quincy Jones Explores the Music of Henry Mancini” (1964)
  • “Quincy Plays for Pussycats” (1965)
  • “Quincy’s Got a Brand New Bag” (1965)
  • “Walking In Space” (1969)
  • “Gula Matari” (1970)
  • “Smackwater Jack” (1971)
  • “You’ve Got it Bad Girl” (1973)
  • “Body Heat” (1974)
  • “Mellow Madness” (1975)
  • “I Heard That!!” (1976)
  • “Sounds...and Stuff Like That!!” (1978)
  • “Quincy Jones Live at the Budokan” (1981)
  • “The Dude” (1981)
  • “Back on the Block” (1989)
  • “Miles & Quincy Live at Montreux” (1993)
  • “Q’s Jook Joint” (1995)
  • “Basie and Beyond” (2000)
  • “The Original Jam Sessions 1969” (2004)
  • “Q Soul Bossa Nostra” (2010)
Books by Quincy Jones
  • Q: The Autobiography of Quincy Jones (2001)

Videos of Quincy Jones

Posted by at No comments:
Labels: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)