As a rock and roll, rhythm & blues, soul, blues, jazz, country and pop musician he helped to shape the sound of rhythm & blues.
He brought a soulful sound to everything from country music ("I Can't Stop Loving You") to rock and roll ("Mess Around"), to pop standards to a now-iconic rendition of "America the Beautiful." Frank Sinatra called him "the only genius in the business."
Ray Charles was born in Albany, Georgia on September 23, 1930. He was the son of Aretha Williams, a share cropper, and Bailey Robinson, a railroad repair man, mechanic and handyman. The two were never married. The family moved to Greenville, Florida, when Ray was an infant. Bailey had three more families, leaving Aretha to raise the family on her own.
Ray Charles was not born blind. He started to lose his sight somewhere at the age of five. He was rendered totally blind by the age of seven. Charles never knew exactly why he lost his sight, though there are sources that suggest his blindness was due to glaucoma, and some other sources suggest that Ray began to lose his sight from an infection caused by soapy water to his eyes which was left untreated. He attended school at the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind in St. Augustine, Florida from 1937-1945 where he developed his musical gift that he is known and remembered for today. His father died when he was ten, followed by his mother five years later.
In school, he was taught only classical music, but he wanted to play what he heard on the radio, jazz and blues. After his mother died, Charles did not return to school. He lived in Jacksonville with a couple who were friends of his mother. For over a year, he played the piano for bands at the Ritz Theatre in LaVilla, earning $4 a night. Charles moved to Orlando, then Tampa, where he played "with a hillbilly band called The Florida Playboys." This is where Charles began his reputation of always wearing sunglasses that were made by designer Billy Stickles.
Charles had always played for other people, but he wanted a band that was his own. He decided to leave Florida for a large city, but Chicago and New York City were too big. He moved to Seattle in 1947 and soon started recording, first for the label Swing Time Records, achieving his first hit with the 1949 "Confession Blues". The song soared to #2 on the R&B charts. He followed his first recording with his only other hit with Swingtime, "Baby, Let Me Hold Your Hand" in 1951. It hit #5 on the R&B charts. He then signed with Ahmet Ertegün at Atlantic Records a year later. When he entered show business, his name was shortened to Ray Charles to avoid confusion with boxer Sugar Ray Robinson.
Breakthrough period with Atlantic Records
Almost immediately after signing with Atlantic, Charles scored his first hit singles with the label with "It Should Have Been Me" and the Ertegün-composed "Mess Around", both making the charts in 1953. But it was Charles' "I Got A Woman" (composed with band mate Renald Richard) that brought the musician to national prominence.
The song reached the top of Billboard's R&B singles chart in 1955 and from there until 1959, Charles would have a series of R&B chart-toppers including "This Little Girl of Mine", "Lonely Avenue", "Mary Ann", "Drown in My Own Tears" and "The Night Time (Is the Right Time)", which were compiled on his Atlantic releases Hallelujah, I Love Her So, Yes Indeed!, and The Genius Sings the Blues. Charles was often cited for using his voice like a saxophone, most notably by the prominent critic Victor Bollo. During this time of transition, he recruited a young girl group from Philadelphia named The Cookies as his background singing group, recording with them in New York and changing their name to the Raelettes in the process.
Crossover success
In 1959, Charles crossed over to top 40 radio with the release of his impromptu blues number, "What'd I Say", which was initially conceived while Charles was in concert. The song would reach number 1 on the R&B list and would become Charles' first top ten single on the pop charts, peaking at number 6. Charles would also record The Genius of Ray Charles, before leaving Atlantic for a more lucrative deal with ABC Records in 1959.
Hit songs such as "Georgia On My Mind" (US #1), "Hit the Road Jack" (US #1) and "Unchain My Heart" (US #9) helped him transition to pop success and his landmark 1962 album, Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music and its sequel Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music, Vol. 2, helped to bring country into the mainstream of music. He also had major pop hits in 1963 with "Busted" (US #4) and "Take These Chains From My Heart" (US #8), and also scoring a Top 20 hit four years later, in 1967, with "Here We Go Again" (US #15) (which would later be duetted with Norah Jones in 2004).
Later years
In 1965, Charles was arrested for possession of heroin, a drug to which he had been addicted for nearly 20 years. It was his third arrest for the offence, but he avoided jail time after kicking the habit in a clinic in Los Angeles. He spent a year on parole in 1966, when his single "Crying Time" reached #6 on the charts.
During the late 1960s and into the 1970s, Charles' releases were hit-or-miss, with some big hits and critically acclaimed work. His version of "Georgia On My Mind" was proclaimed the state song of Georgia on April 24, 1979, with Charles performing it on the floor of the state legislature. He also had success with his unique version of "America the Beautiful."
In November 1977 Charles appeared as the host of NBC's Saturday Night Live. In the 1980s a number of other events increased Charles' recognition among young audiences. He made a cameo appearance in the popular 1980 film The Blues Brothers. In 1985, "The Right Time" was featured in the episode "Happy Anniversary" of The Cosby Show on NBC. The next year in 1986, he sang America The Beautiful at Wrestlemania 2. In a Pepsi Cola commercial of the early 1990s, Charles popularized the catchphrase "You Got the Right One, Baby!" plus he helped in the song "We Are the World" a touching song for USA for Africa.
Despite his support of Martin Luther King, Jr. in the 1960s and his support for the American Civil Rights Movement, Charles courted controversy when he toured South Africa in 1981, during an international boycott of the country because of its apartheid policy.
Charles recorded a cover version of the Japanese band Southern All Stars' song "Itoshi no Ellie" as "Ellie My Love" for a Suntory TV advertisement, reaching #3 on Japan's Oricon chart. Eventually, it sold more than 400,000 copies, and became that year's best-selling single performed by a Western artist for the Japanese music market.
Besides winning 17 Grammy Awards in his career (include five posthumous ones), Charles was also honored in many other ways. In 1979, he was one of the first honorees of the Georgia State Music Hall of Fame being recognized for being a musician born in the state. Ray's version of "Georgia On My Mind" was made into the official state song for Georgia. In 1981, he was given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and was one of the first inductees to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame at its inaugural ceremony in 1986. He received the Kennedy Center Honors in 1986. In 1987, he was awarded the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. In 1991, he was inducted to the Rhythm & Blues Foundation. In 1998 he was awarded the Polar Music Prize together with Ravi Shankar in Stockholm, Sweden. In 2004 he was inducted to the Jazz Hall of Fame, and inducted to the National Black Sports & Entertainment Hall of Fame. Also in 2004, Rolling Stone Magazine ranked him #10 on their list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.
The Grammy Awards of 2005 were dedicated to Charles.
On December 7, 2007, Ray Charles Plaza was opened in Albany, Georgia, with a revolving, lighted bronze sculpture of Charles seated at a piano.
On December 26, 2007, Ray Charles was inducted into the Hit Parade Hall of Fame.
Ray Charles Post Office Building
In 2005, the U.S. postal facility located at 4960 W. Washington Blvd., in Los Angeles, California, was designated the Ray Charles Post Office Building.
On August 24, 2005, the United States Congress honored Charles by dedicating and renaming the former West Adams Station post office in Los Angeles the "Ray Charles Station".
Charles has also appeared at two Presidential inaugurations in his lifetime. In 1985, he performed for Ronald Reagan's second inauguration, and in 1993 performed for Bill Clinton's first inauguration.
In the late '80s and early '90s, Charles made appearances on The Super Dave Osbourne Show, where he performed and appeared in a few vignettes where he was somehow driving a car, often as Super Dave's chauffeur. At the height of his newfound fame in the early nineties, Charles did guest vocals for quite a few projects. He also appeared (with Chaka Khan) on long time friend Quincy Jones' hit "I'll Be Good to You" in 1990, from Jones' album Back on the Block.
Following Jim Henson's death in 1990, Ray Charles appeared in the one-hour CBS tribute, The Muppets Celebrate Jim Henson. He gave a short speech about the deceased, stating that Henson "took a simple song and a piece of felt and turned it into a moment of great power". Charles was referring to the song "It's Not Easy Being Green", which Charles later performed with the rest of the Muppet cast in a tribute to Henson's legacy.
During the sixth season of Designing Women, Ray Charles vocally performed "Georgia On My Mind", rather than the song being rendered by other musicians without lyrics as in the previous five seasons
During his life he received eight honorary doctorates, the last from Dillard University in New Orleans in 2003. Later that same year, he performed his 10,000th career concert at the Greek Theater in Los Angeles.
Charles finalized "Genius Loves Company" a duets album in 2004, which posthumously became the best selling album of his career. Norah Jones, B.B. King, Willie Nelson, Michael McDonald, Bonnie Raitt, Gladys Knight, Johnny Mathis and James Taylor are just a few of the notable artists involved with the project.
Charles was awarded the prestigious "President's Merit Award" from the Grammy(r) organization and was named a City of Los Angeles "Cultural Treasure" by LA Mayor James Hahn during "African American Heritage Month" in a ceremony that he attended. He also received the NAACP Image Awards' "Hall of Fame Award."
Charles died in July 2004 in California. Three months later, his biopic "Ray" opened in theaters. The performance of Jamie Foxx as Ray gave him an Oscar for best lead performance in a feature film.
Recently, a series of slot machines were designed in Charles' name for the visually handicapped and the legendary performer was also named a "living legend" by the Library of Congress.
Charles once told an interviewer from USA Today, "Music to me is just like breathing. I have to have it. It's part of me."
Should Have Been Me
Ray Charles Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
A real fine hotel
A chick walked out
She sure looked swell
I gave her the eye
And started to carry on
When a Cadillac cruised up
And 'swish' she was gone
It should've been me
With that real fine chick
It should've been me
With that real fine chick
Hey hey hey, hey, driving that, Cadillac
A little later on
A theater I passed
I spotted another chick
And did she have class
I was all set
To write her name in my book
When her husband came up and gave me a
Real dirty look
It should've been me
With that real fine chick
It should've been me
With that real fine chick
It should've been me
To have been her chaperone
When I got to the corner
I saw a sharp cat
With a 300 dollar suit on
And a 100 dollar hat
He was standing on the sidewalk
By a DynaFlow
When a voice within said,
"C'mon daddy, let's go."
It should've been me
With that real fine chick
It should've been me
With that real fine chick
It should've been me
Hey hey hey, hey, driving that, DynaFlow
I ate a bowl of chili
And I felt OK
At least until I passed
This fine Cafe
I saw a guy eatin'
A great big steak
While a waitress stood by feedin' him
Ice cream and cake
It should've been me
With that real fine chick
It should've been me
With that real fine chick
You know, it should've been me
Eatin' ice, cream and cake
It should've been me
Gettin' my natural kicks
It should've been me
Gettin' my natural kicks
Hey hey hey, hey, lovin' those, crazy chicks
The song "Should Have Been Me" by Ray Charles is about the regrets of the singer as he sees different people with desirable partners and experiences. The first stanza describes a moment when the singer sees a beautiful woman leave a hotel and decides to approach her, only for her to leave with someone else. In the next stanza, the singer sees another woman he is interested in but is confronted by her husband. The third stanza describes him seeing a man in a nice suit with a classy car and wishing he could have the same experiences. In the final stanza, he sees a man enjoying a nice meal with a waitress doting on him and wishing he could have that experience too. Throughout the song, he repeats the line "It should've been me" expressing his regret for missed opportunities.
The song uses common themes from the blues genre, such as lost opportunities, desire, and regret. The repetitive phrase "It should've been me" emphasizes the theme of the song and creates a sense of longing and despair. The use of descriptive language to paint vivid scenarios, such as the man in the nice suit by the DynaFlow, creates a sense of longing and envy within the listener. The catchy melody and rhythm of the song make it easy to sing along and memorable.
Line by Line Meaning
As I passed by
As I was walking through the street
A real fine hotel
I saw a luxurious hotel nearby
A chick walked out
A woman came out of the hotel
She sure looked swell
She looked really attractive
I gave her the eye
I expressed interest in her
And started to carry on
I tried to flirt with her
When a Cadillac cruised up
A car pulled up beside her
And 'swish' she was gone
And she quickly got in the car and left
It should've been me
I wish it was me
With that real fine chick
With that attractive woman
Hey hey hey, hey, driving that, Cadillac
Driving that luxurious car
A little later on
After some time had passed
A theater I passed
I saw a theater nearby
I spotted another chick
I saw another woman
And did she have class
And she looked sophisticated
I was all set
I was ready
To write her name in my book
To make a note of her contact information
When her husband came up and gave me a
But then her husband approached me and gave me a
Real dirty look
An angry and threatening look
It should've been me
I wish it was me
To have been her chaperone
To have been with her as a companion and protector
When I got to the corner
When I arrived at the street corner
I saw a sharp cat
I saw a stylish and fashionable man
With a 300 dollar suit on
Wearing an expensive suit worth three hundred dollars
And a 100 dollar hat
And a hat worth one hundred dollars
He was standing on the sidewalk
He was standing on the pavement
By a DynaFlow
Next to a car called DynaFlow
When a voice within said,
When a voice in my mind said,
"C'mon daddy, let's go."
"Come on, let's go."
Hey hey hey, hey, driving that, DynaFlow
Driving that car called DynaFlow
I ate a bowl of chili
I had a bowl of chili
And I felt OK
And I felt fine
At least until I passed
Until I saw
This fine Cafe
A cafe that looked really nice
I saw a guy eatin'
I saw a man eating
A great big steak
A huge piece of beef
While a waitress stood by feedin' him
While a waitress fed him
Ice cream and cake
Ice cream and cake
You know, it should've been me
I wish it was me
Eatin' ice, cream and cake
Eating ice cream and cake
Gettin' my natural kicks
Having fun in a natural way
Lovin' those, crazy chicks
Loving those wild and unpredictable women
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: EDDIE CURTIS, EDDIE MEMPHIS CURTIS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@carlosarturosousagarridole9361
Wikipedia:
"It Should've Been Me" is a 1954 rhythm and blues song written by MEMPHIS CURTIS, produced by Ahmet Ertegun and recorded and released as a single by American singer Ray Charles.
Recorded at the same May 10, 1953 session as the boogie-woogie-like R&B hit "Mess Around", which was written by Ertegun and released first, "It Should've Been Me" played on a comedic rap vibe/jive in which Charles talked about certain instances where he was smitten with "fine chicks" only to be dismayed that they had partners causing Charles (and in background vocal, Atlantic session musician and writer JESSE STONE), to say "it should have been (him) with (those) real fine chick(s)." Despite being blind since the age of seven, Ray repeatedly states in the song that he saw different things and different "chicks."
Released in early 1954, the song became Charles' first charted hit for Atlantic Records and soon reached number five on the Billboard R&B singles chart.
The song begins:
As I passed by, a real fine hotel, a chick walked out, she sure looked swell..
JAMES BOOKER covered the song on his album Resurrection Of The Bayou Maharajah (1993) as part of a medley with "Life" and "Wine Spo-Dee-O-Dee".
PERSONNEL
Lead vocals and piano by Ray Charles
Background vocals by JESSE STONE
Produced by Ahmet Ertegun
@lawrencelewis2592
"Ray Charles is proof that God loves us and wants to be happy." - Ben Franklin, 1783
@christophermorales1509
Elvis, it should have been Ray.
@morganfisherart
You gotta give Ray Charles some kudos - nearly the whole song is about things or people he saw. The dude is blind!
@gregorykobb2420
Ray Charles and Stevie Wonder, in many ways can see the world better then most of us
@pawelkuczera9469
Amen.
@pawelkuczera9469
Obviously there was a time when he could see.
@nitelad
Ray didn't write the song or the lyrics to it. But he did make a great piano version
@morganfisherart
@@pawelkuczera9469 from Wiki:
"Charles started to lose his sight at the age of four or five, and was blind by the age of seven, likely as a result of glaucoma."
Maybe a little too young to have been interested in real fine chicks and Cadillacs! 😉
@plasteredbastard
These early Atlantic recording just make me shiver, his technique and flow was groundbreaking, few fit this mold in that time. Ray was doing things no other's were. Bless you Ahmet Ertegun.
@RuddyRuddy
Ray Charles was way ahead of his time with the definitive incel anthem.