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Ray Charles - The Best of Ray Charles: The Atlantic Years Audio CD

A fair review of the Ray Charles "The Best of Ray Charles: The Atlantic Years" Audio CD. Please note that the below review is the views of the authors, and authors only. You can get a complete list of all Ray Charles reviews here, or go back to the Ray Charles tabs.

Ray Charles Band: Ray Charles
Title: The Best of Ray Charles: The Atlantic Years
Rating:
Release Date: 1994-07-19
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: It Should've Been Me 2: Don't You Know 3: Blackjack 4: I Got a Woman 5: What Would I Do Without You? 6: Greenbacks 7: Come Back Baby 8: Fool for You 9: This Little Girl of Mine 10: Hallelujah, I Love Her So 11: Lonely Avenue 12: It's Alright 13: Ain't That Love 14: Swanee River Rock (Talkin' 'Bout That River) 15: That's Enough 16: What'd I Say, Pt. 1 17: Night Time Is the Right Time 18: Drown in My Own Tears 19: Tell the Truth [Live] 20: Just for a Thrill

Atlantic Years- twenty fine cuts!
A prize in my collection, I will probably wear it out! Awesome from start to finish.


Track 19 Is Bad
It goes silent at around 55 seconds and stays silent for the rest of the song. It's a great album, but be warned that track 19 is bad (on the MP3 download version of the album).

I opened a ticket and they authorized my account to download it again, but it was the same. I then spoke to someone on the phone, who said they would refund my credit card (for the full album!) and let the MP3 team know that the track is bad, but that it would take some time to get a new version of the track. So I got (most of) the album for free, but that's not what I really wanted. Five bucks is a great price for the album -- I just want track 19 to play!.


Best Single CD Option To The Box Set


It contains all but five of the hits he had for Atlantic Records from 1952 to 1960, the missing ones being: Blackjack - the B-side to Greenbacks and a # 8 R&B on its own in 1955; Mary Ann - the flip of Drown In My Own Tears and a # 1 "follow-along" hit in 1956; Rockhouse Part 2 (# 14 R&B/# 79 Billboard Pop Hot 100 in early 1959); I'm Movin' On (# 11 R&B/# 40 Hot 100 in late 1959); and Don't Let The Sun Catch You Cryin' (# 17 R&B/# 95 Hot 100 in early 1960]. If you don't wish to spring for the more expensive 3-CD box set The Birth Of Soul: The Complete Atlantic Rhythm & Blues Recordings 1952-1959 [but you should, believe me, if you are a serious Ray Charles fans], this Rhino product is your next best option.

In the insert are seven pages of fascinating background notes written by Billy Vera and a complete discography of the contents which also shows the musicians on each track. There are also several nice photos of Ray, including one of him playing the sax [this genius could - and did - play numerous instruments] with equal proficiency to that displayed at the keyboard]. .


No Way
The sound is muffled and sometimes inaudible. Poorly produced. Ray Charles sounds like he is stoned out of his gourd. Really sloppy work and the only part of it that I enjoyed was listening to Margie Hendrix of the Raelettes (then called the Cookies) belt it out. They even took away her credit. . never even naming her or the other ladies on the CD insert.


Minus 1 star for cutting What'd I Say in half
" There's so much good stuff here, it could easily make two great CD's. This is great stuff, from the novelty hits "Greenbacks" and "It Should've Been Me" to the spirituals-in-soul-clothing "This Little Girl of Mine" and "Hallelujah, I Love Her So.

However, there is one serious problem that keeps this CD from being perfect. . . and that's when What'd I Say stops right in the middle, with the backup singers still begging Ray for more. Instead of the incredible call-and-response climax of Part II, what more than one critic has called five minutes of pure sexual release, the song just stops. And that's just wrong, sort of like. . . well, a novel without the last chapter, The Messiah without the Hallelujah Chorus, the Shawshank Redemption without a prison break, or. . . well, you know.

So buyer beware. You won't be disappointed by what you hear, but you may be left feeling a little unfulfilled.


You can see a complete list of all Ray Charles discography, or go back to the Ray Charles tabs. There is also a good guide on how to read guitar tabs here.

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