Born October 13, 1926, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Ray Matthew Brown took piano lessons from the age of eight, but after noticing how many pianists attended his high school, he thought of taking up the trombone, but was unable to afford one. With a vacancy in the high school jazz orchestra, he took on the upright bass. As a young man Brown became increasingly well known in the Pittsburgh jazz scene, with his first experiences playing in bands with the Jimmy Hinsley Sextet and the Snookum Russell band. After graduating high school, having heard stories about the burgeoning jazz scene on 52nd Street, he bought a one-way ticket to New York. He arrived in the city at the age of 20, met up with Hank Jones, with whom he had previously worked, and was introduced to Dizzy Gillespie, who was looking for a bass player. Gillespie hired Brown on the spot, and he soon played with such established musicians as Art Tatum and Charlie Parker. Between 1956 and 1965, Ray Brown released a number of albums on which he performed as leader or co-leader. He made four records alongside Barney Kessel and Shelley Manne between '57 and '60, performing as The Poll Winners, and in the early sixties made two with his old buddy Milt Jackson. Brown was later adopted by the rock and pop fraternity and has appeared on albums by Steely Dan, Linda Ronstadt, Barry Manilow, Maria Maldaur, Elton John, Lionel Ritchie, Stephen Bishop, Nick Lowe and Elvis Costello. While never reaching the status of many of his contemporaries, Ray Brown's legacy is virtually unparalleled in the history of jazz, having appeared on literally hundreds of albums during his lengthy career, and remaining a name to drop in all the right circles. This delightful 4CD set features many of Brown's finest early albums, up to the mid-1960s, and includes recordings he made alongside Ella Fitzgerald, Milt Jackson, The Pollwinners, and of course all the records from this era on which he performed as leader.
Double vinyl LP pressing in gatefold jacket. Reissue of this 2006 release. Ray Sings, Basie Swings is an album that mixes previously unreleased Ray Charles vocal performances from 1973 with newly recorded instrumental tracks by the contemporary Count Basie Orchestra.
Ingredients In A Recipe For Soul proved that Ray Charles didn't so much ignore genres, but, by the '60s, had become a genre unto himself. An academic might want to separate this stack of songs into neat little buckets-country, jazz, standards, blues, pop-but those are just the ingredients. Ray Charles sings whatever he likes and whatever he sings comes out as a Ray Charles song, with a flavor all it's own. Two hit singles, "Busted" and "That Lucky Old Sun," made Ingredients In A Recipe For Soul an instant Top Ten when it was released in 1963. Bootlegged across Europe for decades, this is the fi rst and only legitimate reissue of this essential album on vinyl (and it's fi rst appearance on CD since the 1990s), now fully restored and remastered with the full cooperation of the Ray Charles Foundation.
RAY CHARLES - Come Live With Me (First Vinyl Reissue In Over 50 Years - CD - Come Live With Me represents a creative peak that sounds fresher in 2025 than it may have in 1974. The first album on his Crossover label, it lives up to the label's name by showcasing the man's singular ability to cross over to any audience by making songs from any time or genre undeniably his own. Each side of Come Live With Me sets a seamless mood: Side 1 is a romantic suite of lush, latenight ballads, while a non-stop soul party is cooking on side 2. This two-sides-of-a-Saturday-night concept let's Ray Charles blend modern sounds and timeless traditions in ways no other artist ever could. Removed from the trappings and tropes of the mid-'70s music scene, and fully restored and remastered in cooperation with the Ray Charles Foundation, Come Live With Me is finally ready to be appreciated as the masterpiece it always was.
Released at the dawn of the 1970s, Love Country Style finds Ray Charles fully embracing his love for country music-delivering heartfelt renditions of songs by Mickey Newbury and Jimmy Webb with his signature blend of soul and sophistication. Backed by lush gospel-tinged arrangements, the album highlights Ray's unrivaled ability to transform country standards into something unmistakably his own. The record became a fan favorite and remains one of the finest examples of Charles' country crossover work. Long out of print since it's original release, this album finally returns to vinyl and CD, fully restored and remastered in cooperation with the Ray Charles Foundation.
Limited orange colored vinyl LP pressing. Released at the dawn of the 1970s, Love Country Style finds Ray Charles fully embracing his love for country music-delivering heartfelt renditions of songs by Mickey Newbury and Jimmy Webb with his signature blend of soul and sophistication. Backed by lush gospel-tinged arrangements, the album highlights Ray's unrivaled ability to transform country standards into something unmistakably his own. The record became a fan favorite and remains one of the finest examples of Charles' country crossover work. Long out of print since it's original release, this album finally returns to vinyl and CD, fully restored and remastered in cooperation with the Ray Charles Foundation.
In late 1964, ABC-Paramount prepared to release Ray Charles Sings For You. The album was assigned catalog number ABC-500, with liner notes and artwork completed. However, the release was shelved in favor of issuing Ray Charles Live in Concert in January 1965. As a result, Ray Charles Sings For You remained unreleased, and it's tracks were scattered across various compilations over the years. Now, for the first time ever, this lost album is officially restored and released as the artist originally intended. Featuring tracks like "My Baby Don't Dig Me," "Without Love (There Is Nothing)," and "Worried Life Blues (Someday Baby)." The album's significance lies in it's historical context and the quality of it's performances, offering listeners a glimpse into a prolific period of Charles's career.
In late 1964, ABC-Paramount prepared to release Ray Charles Sings For You. The album was assigned catalog number ABC-500, with liner notes and artwork completed. However, the release was shelved in favor of issuing Ray Charles Live in Concert in January 1965. As a result, Ray Charles Sings For You remained unreleased, and it's tracks were scattered across various compilations over the years. Now, for the first time ever, this lost album is officially restored and released as the artist originally intended. Featuring tracks like "My Baby Don't Dig Me," "Without Love (There Is Nothing)," and "Worried Life Blues (Someday Baby)." The album's significance lies in it's historical context and the quality of it's performances, offering listeners a glimpse into a prolific period of Charles's career.
Track Listing 1. I Don't Know Why (I Just Do) / Love Me Or Leave Me 2. When I Take My Sugar to Tea 3. I'll Be Around 4. Strictly For the Birds 5. Before Love Went Out of Style 6. Soft Shoe 7. Smilin' Through 8. I Can't Give You Anything But Love 9. It's Easy to Remember 10. Play It Again Sam 11. Be a Child
Personnel: Cleo Laine (vocals); Dudley Moore (piano); Ray Brown (bass); Nick Caroli (drums).
This album is the result of two giant entertainers from the British Isles getting together in London in 1982 for a session of ballads and traditional pop. Dudley Moore was more famous, at least in the United States, for his comedic roles in a number of films. But he was a pianist and composer of no mean skills. Cleo Laine had been a singing talent of the first order since the 1950s and often performed and recorded with husband and sax player John Dankworth. Dankworth is present on one cut on this album. While Moore dashes off some nice solo work on such cuts as "When I Take My Sugar to Tea" and an Erroll Garner-like "I Can't Give You Anything but Love," it's Laine's wide-ranged, full-throated, expressive, and clear-as-a-mountain-lake voice that dominates the session. She sets the table for "I Don't Know Why I Just Do," recalling a few lines from "Love Me or Leave Me," and squeezes every ounce of feeling from "I'll Be Around." Then there's a fun, hip, overdubbed, scatting 1960 girl-singer rendition of "Before Love Went out of Style." The album's highlight track is a bluesy "Soft Shoe," where Dankworth chips in with his soprano sax and Laine and Moore engage in congenial patter. Moore's fellow rhythm section players are the inestimable Ray Brown and Nick Ceroli, which is the icing on a tasty musical cake that this album serves up.
Track Listing 1. Any Place I Hang My Hat / It's A Grand Night For Singing / Good Morning / It's A Lovely Day Today 2. I'm Shadowing You 3. Crazy Rhythm 4. Primrose Colour Blue 5. We Are the Music Makers 6. You Spotted Snakes 7. Methuselah 8. When I Was One and Twenty 9. Sing Me No Song 10. Triboro Fair 11. You've Got to Do What You've Got to Do 12. He Was Beautiful 13. Turkish Delight 14. Never Let Me Go 15. Hoagy Carmichael Medley: Georgia On My Mind / Lazy Bones / The Nearness Of You / I Get Along Without You Very Well / My Resistance Is Low / Stardust 16. I Want to Be Happy
Personnel includes: Cleo Laine (vocals); John Dankworth (alto saxophone).
Good set celebrating the 10th anniversary of the sensational 1973 Carnegie Hall concert that was an acclaimed two-album set. Laine is a dynamic, versatile entertainer who isn't a jazz singer in strictest sense, but does possess incredible timing and a remarkable ear. Her diction and enunication are admirable, and her stylistic range includes theatrical songs, pre-rock pop, English and Scottish folk tunes, and more. ~ Ron Wynn
Always armed with wisecracks, umbrella, and a bowler hat, Erik Satie was not only on the outside one of the strangest figures in the early 20th century French avant-garde; he was a composer, designer, church founder, PR pioneer, and master of witty remarks. In playful episodes, the documentary illuminates the overall phenomenon of Satie. His countless imaginary advertisements evolve into real commercials, and his drawings take on a life of their own as cartoons. Divas, dogs, puppets, and children, as well as pianists playing pianos stacked on top of each other are featured in scenic interludes, while performers turn into “musical furniture” in swimming pools, factories, or at train stations. Interwoven with accounts by Satie’s associates and music experts, the film offers a unique insight into Satie’s cosmos of word and sound.
With Jean Cocteau, Man Ray, Henri Sauguet, Georges Auric, Pierre Bertin, Virgil Thomson, Steffen Schleiermacher, GrauSchumacher Piano Duo, Jean-Pierre Armengaud and Patrick Le Mauff
Languages: English, French Subtitles: German, French, English, Korean, Japanese Bonus: Music by Erik Satie (La Belle Excentrique, Valse du Chocolat aux Amandes, Ce que dit la petite Princesse des Tulipes, Nocturne No. 4), Stock Market Report à la Satie Bonus Running time: 15:17 min Bonus Languages: German Bonus Subtitles: English
Number of DVDs: 1 Picture Formats: 16:9 NTSC Sound Formats: PCM Stereo, Dolby Digital 5.1, DTS 5.1 Running time: 56:22 min
RAY CHARLES / Now Playing (SYEOR24) [Blue Vinyl] A music legend beyond compare, who almost single-handedly laid the groundwork for soul music, American artist Ray Charles proved his mastery with countless jazz, country, R&B, and pop masterpieces during a career that spanned seven decades. In 2004, Rolling Stone ranked Ray number 10 on their list of "The 100 Greatest Artists of All Time" and was voted number 2 on their list of "The 100 Greatest Singers of All Time" in November 2008.
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