Reviews (page 12 of 13)
Bra!
Good stuff
Not my cup of tea but listened in full and overall it's a background music for me sorta thang. For others I can imagine this being high on their lists.
A great jazz/swing album that you can still feel those country/western elements in, seems like a perfect example of genre fusion
Not for me, but Ray Charles has a remarkable voice.
Me ha gustado bastante.
Uhh it's fine. Definitely sounds like early 60s traditional pop/country. Nothing wrong with it, but nothing I want to revisit really. 2.5/5
1.5
Meh
There's enough amazing classics on here to warrant a 4 I reckon. Some filler, but mostly pretty brilliant. Ray has such a great vooice.
Ça me fait penser à Thomas O'Malley j'aime bien
sympatoche
Nice, but too long
4.5
I enjoyed this a lot. I will have this playing in my apartment when I’m cleaning or if I just want a chill vibe. Go Ray, Go!
This album has so many things going for it: - The concept: country/folk/western songs reworked into pop/soul/jazz is genius, in my opinion. And the execution is great. - The instrumentation: the orchestra! The piano! Beautiful arrangements. - The voice: his voice makes the whole thing work. My only complaint is that it’s a little on the long side to listen as a whole. Doesn’t detract from the actual music though.
It's one of the most significant albums of the 1960's: while the civil rights movement was picking up steam, Ray Charles tore up the rulebook and recorded an album of white music (country standards). His audiences quickly diversified and garnered Charles more mainstream praise than ever before, which is either a testament to music's potential to break boundaries or a indictment of the narrow-minded white folks in the pop market. Still, Charles undoubtedly deserves the praise he gets here. The album begins by alternating big-band swing or shuffles with achingly tender ballads. "Bye Bye Love" = bombastic bounding fun. "You Don't Know Me" = swooning, blooming roses. "Just A Little Lovin" = swaggery sass. "I Love You So Much It Hurts" = among the best of all, a great fluffy pillow of sound. As much fun as the upbeat big-band tracks are, the ballads here really tie the package together. Awash with lush strings and choirs, they're beautifully recorded and arranged, delicately performed and exceptionally sung. Charles seems born to sing this material and does so wonderfully. Yes, it might seem a little cloying at times, particularly towards the home stretch. In 2023, this music has suffered a little from associations with classic Christmas soundtracks or Disney films. This isn't Charles' fault: those are merely the pop-culture touchstones of the 1950s and 60s that have endured the most into modern day. While I had my doubts on the first couple of listens, the one-two finale of the gorgeous "I Can't Stop Loving You", followed by the levity of "Hey, Good Lookin'" seals the deal. (Everything afterwards is from Vol. 2, still pleasant but not what we should be assessing here.) We now take music's diversification for granted, in a world where any genre is at our fingertips and styles as diverse as we like can nestle side by side in a playlist. It's difficult to actually appreciate how radical "Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music" must have been. But it isn't difficult to appreciate that it's consistently enjoyable, and supremely listenable.
track 5 is sound, can't remember anything else tbf
Jazzy, well-articulated, easy going tunes. Ray Charles nailed it. Lush orchestration and classic tunes. A great collection to be made aware of
I've liked Ray for many years but never listened to this one for some crazy reason - maybe I was put off by the title, not thinking that it was still going to be classic fantastic Ray.
I like it. Great mix of country and pop music, although it could have been a little shorter.
Ray!!!
- into it immediately
I like the concept. Country tunes in a big studio orchestra style. Worried Mind is a good one. Hey Good Looking is also great.
I'm not denying the historical importance of this LP. Ray Charles' vocal performance is here technically spotless, and it's nice to witness him pillage the "country and western" repertoire to give it his own African-American spin in it. This albums is a little like an inverted image of what Elvis and his producers had done a few years before, when they appropriated a large chunk of African-American culture and sounds. And if only for that, it should be remembered today. The thing is, I'm still really NOT convinced the end result is for everyone, especially so many decades later. Maybe it's my own tastes influencing me too much (I can't really get rid of them, can I?), bur bar a few exceptions here and there, sugar-coated orchestral strings set to such a fully Disneyfied mode always remind me of what comes out of PA systems in lunatic asylums to calm the crazies. Quite an uneasy experience, to be honest, never intended by this record's production team. Likewise, those Big Band shenanigans for the supposedly livelier cuts quickly bore me to death. It's as if they lost all of their impact with everything that came after 1962. So if I'm being fully candid here, the "emotions" this record provide for me feel like an EEG flatline. In other words, it's not for me. Had "Hit The Road Jack" or other Ray Charles signature songs been included to such a project, maybe I would have woken up a little. But here, maybe it's better to let me sleep until the next LP that will pop up tomorrow. Good night! Number of albums left to review: 658 Number of albums from the list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 169 Albums from the list I *might* include in mine later on: 82 (including this one) Albums from the list I will certainly *not* include in mine (many others are more essential to me): 96
Great songs, clever covers, just kinda started to drag on towards the end of Volume 2, though.
Not a fan of Ray but it’s pretty good
Ray breathed so much life and soul into these country ditties. He’s got the magic touch.
A ton of iconic pop here. Is it Country and Western music? I'll leave that to the musicologists, other than to say the one thing that slightly detracts for me is that a couple of the song selections don't really suit Charles' treatment all that well.
This is not my cup of tea and it sounded a lot like christmas music, but it's undeniably a very well put together crop of songs. The instrumentation is luscious and rich, with the string arrangements being the highlight here. The songs are also more varied and interesting than on the other album of him here "The Genius of Ray Charles". 7,3/10
There’s no denying Charles’ vocal talent, it’s just hard to sustain interest in 1.25 hours of love me/love-me-not ballads in the sub-60 BPM range.
I like did good for listening to when you are on a walk or in the bus in the morning gives you a safe lovely feeling and helps with anxiety, nice just to listen to when you are kinda tired too I quite liked it so I give it a 8\10
I know this album is revolutionary and it’s obviously not my style, but the backing vocals were just really cheesy.
Charles infused RnB with Gospel and then went and infused Country with his RnB. Great stuff.
Country music with saccharine R&B? No thanks - depressingly dark words that lose their wit without the music, and they all basically sound like christmas carols - basically this feels like a cross-over money grab, that, naturally fell flat on it's face. Country and Blues are a dangerous combination.
4.0 + What do I feel hearing a big band version of "You Are My Sunshine"? On one hand, the music - the orchestrations, the playing and the production - is impeccable. On the other hand, from a stylistic perspective, I think this record undersells Ray Charles's magic. He's like a single raisin in a big bowl of oatmeal, taking on a subdued presence within the arrangements - balancing his sweet, soulful voice and piano playing, against a pure white canvas of string swells and Christmas-carol-y background vocals. I want much more of him, and much less of the muzak-y elements. While I can appreciate the concept of forging bonds across musical traditions, the balance between black and white feels off.
Was OK, not the biggest fan but some good songs
Great voice, but it's dated. Strong early Disney films vibes
Not my thing but obviously a very talented man. It made pretty good background music while I worked
This is another album credited with breaking the colour barrier. To be honest, I prefer Ray's music that the white folks weren't interested in. I like the originals of the country tunes, especially Hank's songs, so that's not the problem but orchestration filters on these songs brings them a step down from the originals. The arrangements leave little room for Ray's piano playing and velvety voice to shine through. Hey if it made him famous, who can argue with its being in the list.
I won’t continue with my rant about how 1001 could pick two Ray Charles’ crossover albums over his R&B classics released around the same time and cited by the 60s British invasion bands as being major influences. Anyway, on to the music. My negative attitude heading into this LP changed as soon as I heard the opening track, and I realized that I could warm up to an album (or 2) of up-tempo R&B-tinged versions of country songs. I would have preferred a few more of these over the orchestrated ballads we received, though I think Ray’s voice shines on the ballads. He's a versatile singer and you can tell that he feels a strong connection with country music. There’s much written about how this LP brought the races together and contributed to the civil rights movement. I’m a bit skeptical of this since most of the quotes in this regard (in Wiki) were post-2000. For a great story about race and country music, look no further than Charlie Pride.
Black man covers country and makes it almost listenable. Laudable!
Sonzao, já de entrada
Love lot’s about this but it feels a bit soft round the edges. Prefer Ray Charles when he’s rougher
I can't quite pinpoint why but Ray charles just leaves me cold. I can appreciate that technically everything's very impressive and in the right place but for some reason it doesn't hit the spot emotionally. Weird.
It was well made but not really my thing.
Better than I thought it would be - got a bit samey but a nice listen for a Monday morning. Had quite a few songs I recognised - but also feels quite 'old'.
Enjoyed this interesting album with different takes on songs. Worth your time and effort.
3.75
This surprised me.
Was ok, probably not in the mood for the style of music
Very pleasant but not a classic
Really enjoyable. Close to a 4.
Lovely album
3 cause it's Ray Charles. Boring.
Lekker zoetsappige muziek. Niet bijzonder goede muziek maar wel gewoon lekker om naar te luisteren. Wel een beetje veel nummers aangezien veel op elkaar lijkt
Echt wat een heerlijk album, hoe het je meevoert vanaf de jaren 50 langzaam naar de jaren 60. Ik zag mezelf al helemaal in zo’n geheime bar ergens in the middle of nowhere dansen met zo’n bezwete band en alles is rokerig met rood licht binnen. Favorieten zijn: it makes no difference now, I can’t stop loving you en don’t tell me your troubles De radio na het album was ook 10/10
Mooie muziek, zeker voor deze decembertijd. Maar het voelt niet meer als een soort achtergrondmuziek
Very gentle listening, all very well known songs and stylistically very dated now but not a difficult album to listen to at all
I like Ray Charles as background music so the floor isn't that bad this has none of his best songs though
I would listen again but there’s nothing mind blowing about it
Ok
Nice album for a rainy winter day before Christmas. Reminds me of good Christmas music without being Christmas music
Bien. Muy bien canta. I Can't Stop Loving You
classic
More like a 3.5
Too many love songs.
first listen timeless and nostalgic to me
Soothing and the perfect sound for the holiday season right now! Many recognizable songs on this one.
Decent, enjoyable take on those famous songs.
Great songs, but a tad too long and too much of the same for me to enjoy the whole album in one listen.
Learning about the historical influence of this was interesting, and I can imagine how shocking it was in 1962 to hear this mix. Obviously it sounds much more passe in 2022 in a "Seinfeld is unfunny" kind of way but I can appreciate it.
It's a beautiful album with incredible singing from Ray Charles. There's nothing much to say - I put it on in the back while walking through the city with Christmas illuminations and it was definitely working its magic. It just sounds too generic to me but this is probably due to its old age and being completely outside of my usual area of expertise. Still, a beautiful album with easy listening songs.
wow i did not know ray charles had one song that was 1 hour long. this was so boring???
During the recording of this album, Ray Charles became one of the few black artists in the early rock era to gain complete creative control of their music. He puts that control to phenomenal use here, interpreting folk and country standards with a blistering R&B flair.
I’ll admit this didn’t look like something that I would find remotely interesting but it was amazing to be honest, it was really well produced for the early 60’s and the selection of tracks is brilliant (even if he wrote none of them which does knock off a point for me). So 4/5 very good!
Quite a nice listen today, incredible vocals obviously, lovely big band sound in there, versatility. Enjoyable.
This is a really nice listen - good amount of range, amazing voice, and I do like the big band sound on occasion. But, it feels much more like an anthology than an album, and I get fed up of the style after about 45 minutes. Scrapes a 3, no more than that.
Classic. No notes.
Bien.
Loved it!!!
Negatives: All covers. Again. Also, I’m sure there’s a raw, grizzled side to Ray Charles that isn’t on display at all here. I’m not saying I want 12 Hit the Road Jacks… but maybe I do? Positives: I actually enjoyed listening to this quite a bit. It took a couple of spins to realise they were actually, clearly, country songs at heart. The orchestral arrangements make them sound more like jazz or swing ballads or something, but the combination of rich instrumentation, simple country songs and Ray’s vocals works well. Plus, I got overwhelming Christmas vibes from the whole album, which put me in the festive mood more than all the prematurely erected lights and decorations in town currently do.
Landmark album. It's country, but it's not. It's Soul/Big Band, but it's not. He took White music and made it Black, it's like reverse Elvis. Love it.
Before listening - I have looked forward to this album. Having never actually listened to the album, I have appreciation for Ray Charles’ musical genius and his genre bending endeavors throughout his career. After listening – I absolutely love that some of this is clearly country music but at the same time, most definitely not country music. Good examples of what I mean by this is the song Worried Mind or Take These Chains From My Heart. The jazz beats and bluesy feels bleeding through is lovely but at times moves fully into Frank Sinatra-ish traditional pop territory, which I think is where it falls apart a bit. Overall this album was enjoyed by me.
What a beautiful album. Such a great voice.
Amazing love it
I figured there would be a lot more piano in this. Would have benefited from a more stripped down sound, seems like things get lost in the mix.
Things I hate: 1. Being force fed the music of legends that is NOT AT ALL LEGENDARY 2. Country and western that is not from the 70s 3. Covers of songs I don't care about by artists I don't care about. ✅✅✅
Sounds really old, and not as "country & western" as the title made me expect. Good, but not great, and very long (because it is two albums turned into a double)).
Ok
Ray Charles. He does what he wants. And it's always brilliant.
He is a legend fr fr
GOATED
This was really good! I don't think I would have been able to tell that these were covers of country songs if it wasn't right there in the title, and while they may sound a bit dated for 1960s standards, I have a massive soft spot for a good big band. Favourite: Don't Tell Me Your Troubles
Oldie but goodie
Hard to say anything bad about this. Other than it's a never ending album.
Not what I expected for my first album here but it was a good surprise tbh. The first volume is much softer than the second volume but 1 hour and 14 minutes of jazz was actually very nice. Why is is called country and western though...
Hmm dreaded this when I saw "country" Charles does have his style that's wholly his own and this is so much better than most. However it's still the slow, pondering type music which is country all over. He has a great voice though. 3 but an interesting 3
Don’t like country
Mysigt
Modern jams in jam and bop music
Modern? More like timeless
Wow! Denna ägde
A legendary singer/voice/story teller. I will definitely give this another listen.
This sounds so Christmassy, and really shows his talent at taking songs and turning them into soulful classics. Probably a little over-done by the end but you can't deny that there's not a duff track on there.
hate to see a legend down this path. Does he really make any of these songs his own?
Very nice. Not something I would listen to regularly, but I can definitely appreciate it. 3 stars.
amazing. 5/5
Probably 3.5. but too long.
I do like the big band sound. And I do love Ray. This is what I consider a "context" album: the setting that you hear it determines whether you think it's a great album or, as is my case today, it's just okay.
S-l-i-c-k.
Jamie Foxx
Twas alright. thought it would be better. maybe it was the slower music on a day i needed some pop
Now this is real music
Here’s Charles saying to the Country world, “come I’ll show you the way!” And making history in the process. 70 years later country is still shit but Ray went down in history with this and all of his catalog
First Ray Charles album, but was expecting more
Ну нормально, но это не мое
Such an amazing voice, great tunes...not something I would listen to that often, but definitely a classic
Super solid I dig
Disney princess wibes ELI TODELLA HYVÄ ALBUMI PRKL!!!
Hey this ray guy is pretty good
All very lovely, but I feel quite sick - I'm only 52, not 95 - this is not my bag baby
It’s surprising how many musicians I’m finding that I know the names of, but know nothing about. I could t even say before listening to this what genre Ray Charles comes under. Interested to listen to this. Songs I already knew: some I knew by other artists, but I didn’t know any Ray Charles versions Favourites after listening: Hey Good Lookin’, You Are My Sunshine - I’d go as far as to say these are both vastly superior to the original versions I did quite enjoy this, it often sounded similar to Glenn Miller who I do enjoy. I think I’ve always enjoyed swing music if I’ve come across it organically, but I haven’t tended to actively search for it. Despite being a double album, it was an enjoyable listen from front to back. I admitted did get a little tired towards the end, but that’s the nature of how I’m choosing to listen to these albums.
Very timeless. But thats just to be expected from Ray Charles. Beautiful album
It's not giving country and western imo. The slower songs are giving Etta James
He's such a natural musician. Even though some of the elements are overdone when listened with today's ear, it does not detract from the greatness of this album.
Great oldies rock
I much preferred disk 2. But you can here a progression from a big band sound to more soul
Was very slow throughout and not really a genre that i’ve ever really enjoyed, with only a couple songs giving any appeal. However, not awful and alright to people who prefer the slow country genre.
very good, very fun
This was a good album. The themes/lyrics get redundant but it’s a very chill album that’s easy to listen to. Great instrumentals as always by Mr Charles.
Favorite Songs: You Don't Know Me, Born to Loose, Midnight (dark and mysterious intro) Beautiful voice
Despite its name, I did not dislike this album. Ray Charles definitely makes each song his own. The album has Georgia on it so that helps it.
This is a pretty great album, I guess it's technically 2 put together, so albums. The instruments sound so good and Ray is obviously a talented singer. Yet, I don't feel like I'd listen to this much. Not the entire album anyway. I'd prefer this is bite sized pieces when I need something that sounds like this. Despite how good the songs are, I don't want a whole album of it at one time. I know that's odd, but it is what it is.
It's a long album, and too repetitive!
Good songs and voice. Not a big fan of the big band style.
Good music from a forgotten era
Some delightful Ray
Love Ray, but the back half of this album DRAGS and is very SAMEY. But still... love Ray. Can't in good conscious go less than a 4. If this were just "volume 1" it would be an easy 5.
Not completely what I was expecting when I saw “country” even with it being Ray Charles. Pretty great time to listen to this though. Each song feels powerful and soulful and pushes its message well. 7/10
I enjoyed every minute of this album. Split between jazzy big band arrangements for most of the quicker tempo songs and orchestral arrangements for the ballads the album swings effortlessly from one to the other. Underpinning it all is Charles' soulful singing that elevates each song and makes these country classics his own. It's not my go to genre especially the string arranged compositions, but tht did not get in the way of my enjoyment of the album. An album that should be heard by anyone that loves music. 5 stars.
a little honky tonk for my taste
Man one song in and I'm wondering wtf this is. It's like country songs made into showtunes and sung by Ray Charles and his backup singers? Alright the 2nd song seems a lot better and what I would want to hear from Ray Charles. Okay I overreacted on the first song, the rest of them are classic RC.
This brings back memories. My parents had Volume 1, my grandparents had Volume 2. He was one of the few secular artists my grandmother would listen to. Love hearing him bring some soul to country classics.
Too long and samey. Great voice though
prob other albums by ray that i would like more but good record.
Soul, R &B. Un poco aburrido.
Sounding more ‘big band’ than ‘country’ to my ears, enjoyed this more than I thought I would.
Good vibes tah l'époque j'ai bien aimé, un peu slow et tout, mais je pense 70% des sons ont été sample par des rappeur s et ça c'est cool a+
I don't know how to rate the album... It was really good but in the end it was exactly what I expected from Ray Charles and nothing more to it... I loves the dings but not more than any other song of the album... Solid 4.5/5
Ágætis plata. Ég er ekki mikil countrystelpa, en Ray setur hér sinn svip á gömul og góð slík lög.
Wow. What a once in a generation talent. The way he rewrote/reworked/restyled these standards was so good, quite often amazing..
Christmas already? Oh, not a christmas album but feels like one.
Rather enjoyed this - made me feel like I was in a Scorsese movie! I listened to both volumes 1 and 2. Tended to like the more upbeat numbers more than the slow ones, and vol 2 seemed to have more of those. Fave track - "I Can't Stop Loving You" from vol 1 - that arrangement with the backing choir gives me shivers! From vol 2 "Don't Tell Me Your Troubles" Oh yeah!
Ray Charles brought together many popular songs and reworked them. The work was done quite well just not sure that it feeds my desire to listen to original works.
The songs are really good and well written in a way where you kind of want other artists to cover them in their own style. BBC Radio 1 Live Lounge, I’m looking at you. I don’t think that I would actively go out my way to listen to any of the songs on the album though. They aren’t really my thing and I find some of them just really boring. I really lived the female singer in ‘You Are My Sunshine’ and it’s no surprise that it’s probably the most well known song on the album as it is the best one. 2.9/5
Album number 6 I have on vinyl! I can’t begin to express how much I love this album. It was incredibly revolutionary and progressive for the time, it tore down barriers, and it’s probably Ray’s best or second best album. Holy shit it’s such a joy to listen to. While some of the songs aren’t as perfect as “Bye Bye Love”, “You Don’t Know Me”, or “You Win Again”, I enjoy listening to every single one of them. No filler or bloat whatsoever. If you don’t like this album, I don’t even know what to say to you. I should note that I’m only writing about Volume 1 here, but Volume 2 is equally perfect (if not better).
sleeper. unless I’m at the carniege with a cuban in one hand and a manhattan in the other, it’s a snoozefest. 4/10.
Meh. Some were good and the other 9 were all the same song
This album is interesting in its construction, but for the most part it's not very fun, which is what I come to Ray Charles for. It's definitely not bad, and there's clear musical significance to the approach he took to this album, but it doesn't really make you tap your toes until you get to the last song 3/5
There doesn't seem much point analysing this in 2022, prima facie. Its innovations have diffused so much into music since that it feels, if not quite archaic, then venerable to be generous, or aged to be mean. Ultimately, its status as a transitional work makes it both important and ever so slight. Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music, Ray Charles' 18th album, found Charles taking a significant gamble. A rhythm and blues musician presenting a modified form of country music in early 1960s America carried the risk of bigots treating the album as a provocation. However, Charles succeeded in not only adding new instrumentation, orchestration and direction to country and folk standards, but continuing to develop the nascent genre of soul. But you would have noticed in the first paragraph some reluctance on my part to extol the album. Of course, there's great stuff on this. But the title hints at one of the reasons for my hesitancy: it's a collection of modern sounds, rather than a fully cohesive album. That's hardly the fault of the album or Ray Charles. It's the fault of my own expectations. We have passed through the album era, with its evolution of the album as a unified artwork, so when we look back at the earliest albums, they can seem akin to compilations. Should we seek to cleanse ourselves of these predispositions? Can we? I honestly don't know. I also said that the album was a transitional work, a work whose experiments helped determine the course several genres would take in the upcoming years. However, that carries with it the aspect that not every experiment works. Personally, I don't much favour the numbers drenched in strings and choral singers, finding them mawkish and very dated. I reckon quite a few current listeners would concur with me. This could again be my partialities, or it could be the simple consequence of time on a sixty-year-old album. I don't envisage myself warming to such syrup in the future, but maybe I shouldn't make such a blunt prediction. The critical tenor of this review is perhaps a gnat unfair, since I've spent two paragraphs explaining why I can't fully embrace the album. Be assured that there is much to savour. And one heavyweight point of the album is that music doesn't benefit from segregation, be it imposed or adopted. Here we have a luminous illustration of how rhythm and blues musicians took as much inspiration from country musicians as country musicians took from rhythm and blues musicians. Compare that to George Clinton digging hard rock, Detroit house tipping their caps to Kraftwerk and Depeche Mode, and the inexhaustible phalanxes of rappers praising Phil Collins as a genius. Wait, with that last example, have I demolished my own argument?
Belle le canzoni movimentate
3.5. It's fine. A couple of real classics.
Amazing voice
Big fan of 60s era of music. Ray Charles does some good stuff.
Groundbreaking and talented. I don’t like this music.
Very good crooning and R&B, but a little long. Very cool to see him take western music and reimagine it like this, especially during the civil rights movement. 3 musically, but a 4.5 culturally.
Odd album concept but the songs are certainly great. Some big hits too. 'I can't stop loving you' is one of the altime greats. Culturally this had a big impact too so it should get recognition for that if nothing else. The arrangements are a bit smaltzy by todays standards and not much piano either. A bit like a big band album rather than C&W.
Sweet. A little samey. Not many known songs. Didn't finish.
A rather good album with the sound of the 60s drenching from it, however, there isn't a stand out song. The songs are all just pretty good. 62%
Great, but rather chill.
Good music to sort my vintage cameras to
Really interesting concept, covers of country songs in the style of a big band crooner. Gets a bit repetitive by the end but lots of great #numbers
I'm stunned that the average review isn't higher. Maybe it's a recency bias. This album is exactly why the "1001 albums" project exists. This is a groundbreaking and culturally significant album, that also happens to be pretty darn good. Is it my favorite Ray Charles album? No. Did it have more impact on the course of American and World music than any other Ray Charles album ... and really most any album? Absolutely.
Many Classics, Is That Careless Love An Interpolation Of Silent Night?
Classic Oldies
Cool!
des moments plaisants mais c'est blind spot le reste du temps
Brilliance
I appreciate the musical ability, vocals, and production but found the album difficult to enjoy.
Some people may have thought it a risk for Ray Charles to record a Country album. Obviously they were very wrong. Partly because this really isn't a Country album. Charles thought that the lyrics and overall feeling of Country songs were similar to R&B. It was ingenious for him to put this album together - a combination of Country, R&B, and even Big Band. It was a pleasure listening to this music. Charles was definitely ahead of his time in combining genres. My favorites were "You Are My Sunshine" and "Careless Love."
Honestly really liked most of it.
Dry and not for my day and age but romantic for someone like rag Charles but definitely not the music he was known for , more reflects the day and period he was in
Ray sounds great. Not much of a fan of the choral style backing vocals. Good songs.
S'écoute bien, c'est du Ray Charles, on connait bien, mais rien de particulièrement remarquable non plus dans cet album.
Not much to say, no faults, all of his genius encapsulated.
2.
Easy listening
Perfectly nice but not my sort of thing
Just some boring old shit
Country, folk, 1962. This record is a vast collection of interesting and danceable songs and also commercial successes like "I Can't Stop Loving You". Maybe it's not an artistically sophisticated album but it's definitely a good one in every aspect of its composition.
Solid stuff here
Not a good album
Hadn't heard most of the songs before, but found myself nodding or tapping my foot through most of it. Good stuff
Not what I expected for Ray Charles, but nice
Great album for chilling. Mr Charles has a great voice
C’est l’fun et c’est bien fait, mais c’est un album de covers... et ça devient redondant après 5-6 tounes. Tsé le country, ça tourne en rond pas mal.
La production est superbe, tout comme la voix de Ray. La réappropriation des pièces est majoritairement bien réussie, quoi que datée quand on écoute ça aujourd'hui. Bien qu'il y ait 2 volumes, pour moi c'est un peu trop long. Pas certain que je vais y revenir.
always a good listen, amazing vocals and orchestra
not my thing
loved it. good singer, good music, good lyrics. def enjoy this kinda stuff.
This is a great album that's not for me.
I know this must be foundational in many ways but I just usually can't get into the big band sound
Track 1 - Bye Bye Love: I felt this track pretty hard. It was like almost eerie to me, to hear this kinda up beat sounding song and backing vocals with such a sad message. It felt like a song I'd hear in a nightmare. I relate to it a lot Track 2 - You Don't Know Me: I swear if this whole album is gonna be sad tracks about love... I don't relate as much to this song currently, but I've definitely been there, feeling like I wanted to be with someone and they had no idea. Track 3 - Half as Much: ah, all about love then. sadge. Track 4 - I love you so much it hurts: yeah....guess we're crying at work lmao track 5 - just a little lovin: sadge track 6 - born to lose: lol i wanna kms. this is not okay, again all the music in this album has just been creepy and eerie to me, I know its not intended to be and its just an anachronism from the time but jeez track 7- worried mind: This is a sad song too, I just don't happen to feel this resentment, or those feelings of like, they did something wrong. I know it was my fault if anything. track 8 - makes no difference now: So I see that this album is kind of taking shape maybe, telling a story possibly of Ray's journey through love and loss and coming to terms with it track 9 - you win again: no charles, you need to leave, shes a bitch. Dont put up with her fucking other dudes track 10 - careless love: BUT YOU ARE BLIND track 11: i cant stop loving you: okay this is it, this is the song that encapuslates me and my feelings. Everyone tells me to move on, and that time will fix things. but they dont help me right now, so just let me be sad and miss her please. Its depressing and lonely and pathetic but its what i want to do right now, because moving on would be too hard right now. track 12 - hey good lookin: A nice change of pace for the music, a little bit more fun and hopeful. Also god dammit if it isnt time appropriate, a two dollar bill being used as common place, goddayum. also charles again, you are blind my guy! disc 2 track 13 - you are my sunshine: STOP CHARLES, ITS TOO RELATABLE :( track 14 - no letter today: god dammit track 15 - someday: good for you ray, you found someone else track 16 - dont tell me your troubles: yeah fuck that bitch track 17 - midnight: mhm track 18 oh, lonesome me; yeah trueeeee track 19 take these chains from my heart feel that track 20 your cheatin heart get out bro track 21 ill never stand in your way yah feel that track 22 making believe just very sad and relatable track 23 teardrops in my heart sad track 24 hang your head in shame im sorry ray
Ray Charles is great and all but some of these 60s albums just really make it plain how much popular music has progressed since then.
I love Ray Charles but this is a big miss for me. It probably sounded good at the time but 60 years onwards it just sounds quaint and old-fashioned.
Just a bit too much Ray in one go for me.
What can anyone say, its Ray Charles. The man was a hell of a performer. Bit cruel of to have made him sing some of the lyrics in careless love, mind. One thing I will say about this is that you should listen to it in two goes. It does get challenging after a while.
Its fine
Brings back some memories - a lot of these songs were sung by my mom when I was growing up.
Ray is great. I’m not a fan of country standards though.
By some quirk, yesterday Ray Charles album was followed by another Ray Charles album today - and I wasn’t disappointed. More beautiful arrangements, singing and playing; evocative of a certain era; charming, delightful and satisfying. These are recordings of the highest quality from a wonderfully talented artist.
trök
Well, now, this is certainly an unexpected offering from the great Ray Charles. He's such a talented performer. Really nice to listen to this one.
Interesting, for the time culturally groundbreaking. I have to say, not very keen on this style of background chorals. That said a few great tracks, but not really a consistant album for me. I love Ray Charles, this as a whole is not great for me
Hij heeft een prachtige stem en ik kan me voorstellen dat de jeugd in de jaren 50 dit helemaal geweldig vonden! Voor mij prima te luisteren, maar niet mijn favoriete muziekstijl. ***
As I was listening through this album, I developed a boatload of flawed assumptions about how this album (a country album by a soul singer) came to be. I figured that a bunch of studio bigwigs forced Ray into this path in order to line their pockets. Reading through the Wikipedia article for this album though, I found out I was dead wrong, and my appreciation for what this album is has appreciated all the more for it. The truth is that Ray was the mastermind behind this cross-over and through this work the popularity of country music on the whole was significantly improved. An enjoyable twist on many levels. The music and the performances are fantastic, and Ray brings his characteristic charisma and soulful touch to each track. Perhaps 24 tracks does feel a touch long, but it can be forgiven.
Hard not to love Ray's voice and a big band backing him up. From a different era that I'm happy to revisit from time to time, so classy...
The idea behind Ray Charles’ “Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music” was to put a modern spin on some classic country songs. But a lot of the album is slow jazz or a more traditional R&B style, and doesn’t seem modern in 1962 when R&B, blues, and rock and roll music were evolving so rapidly. Charles is always a great performer, but this isn’t the style I prefer from him.
Save me the Ray Conniff singers and give me more of Ray’s bangin’ piano solos and this could be a five star effort. Still, it’s a textbook example of jumping, swinging, heartfelt blues.
I’m going with stcarp on this one. The upbeat stuff is great. The slower stuff is nice, but I’m unplussed. Less slow, more upbeat. Mr. Charles is quite the talent.
4/5
Ray Charles 18th overall album featuring country, folk and western music standards reworked in popular song forms - R&B, pop and jazz. This album got lots of airplay on both R&B and country music stations. Ray said he didn't see a lot of difference in blues and country music. Given a lot artistic freedom the idea came to do this album which is absolutely incredible. His A&R man, Ray Feller went through 250 country songs to pick from. The songs are mostly love and heartbreak ballads as you would expect. The backing music are strings, horns, Ray's piano and voice and great backing vocals. Every song on this album is worth listening to. He creates an extremely unique style. I would like to go back and compare the original country version to Ray's. Two standout tracks are both near the end. What a great vocal delivery on "Careless Love." His voice just soars with the strings in the background. "I Can't Stop Loving You" is a classic example to the point that there really isn't much difference between blues and country. This song fits both...just great backing vocals and probably my favorite Ray Charles song. This was an historically important album crossing racial borders in a very racially-charged time. A timeless performance and album.
Helt ok.
Chill
høyres ut som musikken i gamle disney-filma
Such an alluring, legendary sound. Ridiculous album title.
Ray Charles is his own genre. He saw no barriers.
Respectable stuff, not something I always wanna hear but it all sounds great. A cool tidbit from Wikipedia: "The album's integration of soul and country challenged racial barriers in popular music at the height of the Civil Rights Movement. In the process of recording the album, Charles became one of the first African-American musicians to exercise complete artistic control over his own recording career."
Took forever, good for the background though
An enjoyable album that has a pretty low ceiling. Ray Charles is a legendary musician however the songs are a little dated and his style doesn’t have much variance. They are executed well and he’s a good singer/pianist. The double album gets a bit dull towards the end just due to my personal taste. I’d listen again but sparingly. 6.4/10
Some good songs but a little one note. I like the other styles of music that mr Charles dabbled with
man i just love a ray charles album, this was really nice
not bad but not my style
Like the shit you accept listening to at christmas. Don't want it outside of december ta. Dated. Lovely voice, but everything else is so dated and slow.
R&B lento. Tostón. Se me ha hecho bola. Un 2.
Gar nicht so schlecht aber kein fan von diesen Balladen ich penn ein
A bit boomery but enjoyable
Too swingy
I enjoyed this album, popped it on in the background, don't think I stopped to listen to any specific tracks
Feels like the soundtrack to a Disney film, gentle, warming, but a powerful voice and I love it. "Just a Little Lovin'" my favourite track on the album.
Gorgeous album, and I can understand why my dad calls contemporary music mere “noise.” This album breathes!
Loved this. Super solid and fun. Been a fan of Ray Charles for a long time.
String arrangements are boss. I feel old to say this/think this, but pop songs used to be really complicated! I love that. Some still go to the trouble--like I've noticed on Silk Sonic's music-- but most do not. It's such a lovely pleasure to sit down with stuff like this. I can't say I prefer Charles' versions of anything over others, but they're all lovely and this gets plenty of bonus for breaking barriers.
I enjoyed this for the most part.
J'ai bien aimé l"album, c'est très classique et les chansons sont super bien arrangés par Ray Charles, une légende. Cependant, ca manque un peude punch à la longue avec une durée de 1h15, ca tourne ne rond un peu vers la fin. 4*
What a gorgeous album. To say my usual of, "it blends [x] genres well," would be doing a disservice. It's amazing what Ray Charles is able to do here, between picking some real country weepers, changing them entirely, and keeping the soul of the songs. My only nitpick is the chorus: they're a little bland and sometimes bring down a song pretty heavily. Favorite tracks: "Half As Much", "Just a Little Lovin'", "Careless Love"
Wow Ray Charles such a legend! I love the upbeat bops on this album!! Super fun big band tracks, there's no matching the cool of Charles' voice. I mostly didn't love the slower songs but You Don't Know Me is such a great tune which I love from the film My Best Friend's Wedding hahaha so I enjoyed that one!
Wow this was quite a lot one! I really enjoyed the upbeat ones but started to find the slower ones a bit sad, samey and depressing
Good stuff, nice and boppy
Some very engaging tracks . I love his voice
I just knew I was going to like a guy when it he played this album on vinyl the first time I went over to his house. Sigh, Ray Charles makes everything good, better.
Sometimes you need a little vinegar with the honey. A tad too schmalzty for my liking - veers into Disney soundtrack territory. Best Tracks: You Don't Know Me; Just a Little Loving (Will Go a Long Way); You Win Again
I can recognize the talent of the voice but I really really dislike the arrangements.
Just a good album start to finish.
Good stuff
Ray Charles er æðsilegur söngvari og þessi production er mjög sjarmerandi, kántrí slagarar með heilmiklum strengjum og þykkum kórbakröddum. Þetta er ekki plata sem talar beinlínis til mín, en hún er mjög áheyrileg.
not for me
Jazzy
This album filled me with an urge to break LP's. This really does nothing for me, just makes me annoyed
This is where classic swing, soul and blues meet. I liked this quite a bit more than I thought I would. Great arrangements with chorus and sweeping strings, yet with a melancholy undertone make for an irresistible mixture of music. 4/5
An enjoyable listen. Not my time but great Xmas music
Отличная музыка и для тех дней, когда тебе плохо, и для тех, когда хорошо.
Liked this a lot more than I would. Nice chilled out background music.. had it on while going through work emails. Standout track is the cover of 'You Are My Sunshine"
Good… not much more to say on this one.
Thought it was going to be some shocking country but wasn't too bad. some cool songs
Entenc l'imprompta revolucionària que segurament va causar en aquell moment, en uns temps molt diferents als de la segona década dels 2000s, però em fa la sensació que ha envellit molt malament. Els arranjaments sonen molt passats, els temes han viscut millors versions i l'únic que destaca és la veu de Charles, i el seu esperit
This is just one of the many albums Ray Charles has created, but it is one of his later and more popular ones. This album is tuned more towards country, folk, and Western music, instead of his usual R&B or jazz music. Ray Charles remixed popular country songs into a soulful R&B style. Something that appealed to every type of music lover at the time. The album was coined during a time of racial tensions in America as being a "blending of white & black music". Also, this album has been certified gold in the US. Modern Sounds went on to be one of the most popular albums of 1962, almost winning Album of the Year at the Grammys. It has since been inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999. The album broaden the appeal for country and R&B music to new listeners that may have never given these genres a chance. For this reason alone, this album is important. You'll love this album!
Rating: 7/10
I am not familiar with a lot of country music. This I can get used to.
Am I going to hell for thinking Ray Charles is boring? Incredibly talented but boring. And the choir sounds exactly like an old Disney film.
A true delight.
great voice, songs and arrangements very much of its time
Billy Joel said it best about this album. A black man taking the whitest music and making it his own. It's easy to lose sight of what a big deal this was at the time, and a lot of these songs have become such Ray Charles standards that a listener might not appreciate the significance of its existence. Seeing the album title alone, you'd be forgiven in thinking this would be a country album. In that respect, I prefer Charlie Pride over this. But it's NOT a country album. Billy Joel was right: It's a Ray Charles album. Old Ray made sure of that.
Enjoyable big band sound
First, stop and think about all the grief Lil Nas X got for doing country a couple of years ago. It wasn't even recognised as country till he got a cosign from Billie Ray Cyrus. Now consider that Ray Charles recorded this, against his labels wishes SIXTY YEARS AGO. Dude was brave or mad. It opens fun, with a song I know better by the Every brothers. His version is fun, especially as he waits a full minute before his beautiful voice jumps in. Maybe he wanted to give the racists a surprise! Then it pivots into the more mellow, sad, lovelorn side of country, and hits the right notes there too! It's all really good. It's rare I'm this hungry for more after an older album - but I was glad there was a second lp of this recorded!
It seems quaint that this album is titled 'Modern' when the music would not seem out of place in a 1950s motion picture soundtrack, or a Hanna Barbara original animation. But top musicianship shines through nonetheless
My first album from Ray Charles, I can definitely say I am not disappointed. This has aged very well, still feels like an era gone by with the background vocals and orchestration, but I do mean that in the best way possible.
Delicious
Good enough!
I really like this one. Especially for Ray Charles to come around talking all this shit about how he's a better musician than most. To be honest, he is. However, for me I am not super sure his sound is super my ideal sound. Like I did this big band orchestral sound. But I also like the low down and simple stripped country.
Ahhh.. better when it is soul
03/04/2022 He's an icon for a reason. A bit repetitive towards the end, but that's not a mark on his talent, just the songs in general.
Great album, with great sounds and incredible balades
Loved it
couldn't be arsed with this one at all.
Dannii Minogue once told me that she likes fingering herself to the sound of Ray Charles, so it must be good.
Better than I was expecting based on the title. Well sort of. I'm losing confidence now. Bored. It's gone.
Country and western music ma hairy hoop. This isn't like any country and western music I have ever heard. I'm not sure if that's a good or a bad thing but I didn't think this was up to much either way. Cocktail bar background music at best.
its not bad sounding but i think its incredibly generic 60s rock music while also just taking classic songs and making them lose their qualities in the process
Not too bad! Didn’t dislike any of it
I have always known of Ray Charles, as a legend and an icon of soul and other genres from the 50s onwards. When i hear his name i think of the Blues Brothers movie - i guess thats when i first heard of him. i didnt know this album. have enjoyed listening to it. When i started i assumed it was from the 1950s, but as it turns out it was 1962, which i guess means the music would have probably sounded like a collection if old classics. By a guy who has his own style and mood, it is not really my thing, kind of an old fashioned hollywood vibe. i guess to appreciate it it should be considered in its historical context, early 60s, civil rights movement era, yet mainly “ white” music by a pioneerning black blues / soul singer. i can see how it belongs in a list of albums to listen to before you die, but i dont see myself coming back and lisrening to it too often. Careless Love was a stand out to me for mood and feel. And You are My Sunshine more of a histroical artefact,
Really enjoyed this.
This was an enjoyable album, but I found myself a bit bored when I reached disk 2. I think this more a dancing than a listening album.
Enjoyable
So so soulful yet precise. True synthesis of great American art forms.
The incredible thing about this album is the fact that you cannot tell that these songs were originally country songs. I'm not sure if it's intended, but this album is a testament to the fact that genre is something to be transcended. People often define their musical tastes by genre, and this album subverts that assumption completely. As someone who enjoys country music, jazz, and R&B, this album is a celebration of music period. This album is very deserving of the praise it gets.
It didn’t really grab me, but musically it was fine. Don’t know if I would go back and Re listen but I can see the appeal
It was good to hear some of those classic songs and in the main they were good versions, reminded me of my parents. Having said that I probably wouldn’t seek them out so a solid 3*
I have this album so obviously thought it was alright before. This time it rubbed me up the wrong way although I think that was because I was having a bit of a day and needed something with more pep....