Career

 Ray Charles has had several hit songs that made him famous when he signed with Atlantic Records. Some of these songs are "It Should Of Been Me" and "I Got a Woman." In 1959, Charles' song, "What'd I Say", became his first top ten single on the pop charts, peaking at number 6.  Ray Charles also recorded with ABC Records before he left Atlantic Records. Hit songs such as "Georgia on My Mind", "Hit the Road Jack", and "Unchain My Heart" helped his transition to pop success, and his landmark 1962 album, "Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music." During the late 1960's and early 1970's, Charles' songs were hit or miss, with some big hits and critically acclaimed work.

Before Ray Charles became a big star, he started out singing and playing the piano in school. He established 'RC Robinson and the Shop Boys" where he sang his own arrangement of Jingle Bell Boogie. While working, Ray Charles played at Clubs in Frenchtown and around Tallahassee. Charles later played the [|piano] for bands at the Ritz Theatre in Lavilla earning $4 a night. Ray Charles wanted a band of his own so he moved to Seattle and started recording in 1947. This is where Charles made his first hit, "Confession Blues." He joined Swing Time Records and recorded two more hits in 1952 and 1953. The following year, he was singed to [|Atlantic Records]. Almost right after signing with Atlantic Records, Charles scored his first hit singles, "It Should Have Been Me" and "Dont You Know". But it was "I Got a Womam" that brought him the national prominence. Charles kept making hits for several years and made his own record label, Tangerine Records. In his later years, Charles sang "America The Beautiful" at Wrestlemania 2 and he was featured in the recording of "We Are The World."

Starting in the year 2001, Ray Charles played at shows, including a memorable one in a sold out Teatro Teresa Carreno in Caracas, Venezula. In 2002, Charles headlined during the Blues Passion Cognac festival in southern France. Also, in 2002, Ray Charles took part in a peace concert in Rome with other musicians In 2003, Ray Charles headlined the White House Correspondents Dinner in Washington D.C. April, 11th, 2003 Charles sang "America The Beautiful" at the Red Sox game at Fenway Park in Boston. Later that year, Charles played "Georgia on My Mind" and "America The Beautiful" at a televised annual electronic media journalist banquet held Washington D.C. at what may have been his final performance in public.Ray's final album, "Genius Loves Company" which was released two months after his death, consists of duets with various admirers: B. B. King, Willie Nelson, Elton John, and Johnny Mathis. The album won eight Grammy Awards including five for Ray Charles for best Pop Vocal Album, Album of the Year, Record of the Year, and Best Pop Collaboration. Two more albums were released, "Genious and Friends" in 2005 and "Ray Sings, Basie Swings" in 2006. "Genious and Friends" consists of duets recorded from 1997 to 2005. "Ray Sings, Basie Swings" is consisted of archived vocals of Ray from live mid-70's performances.

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James Nichols