Reviews (page 9 of 12)
Never heard this before. No gems here, but likeable songs with likable singing and likable arrangements. Not sure a double album was necessary. Would probably rate higher if the best songs were on a double album.
A good album to ballroom dance to....
I kind of like Bye Bye Love, Half as Much, Just a Little Lovin’, Hey Good Lookin’
He has a clear and beautiful voice and successfully blended several genres. Although his music is not my particular style, I can appreciate it, especially given the time period in which he recorded and released this one.
I prefer funkier - Ray Charles but you can't argue with the feeling I'm that voice. Definitely transports to a different place.
all good
Look, Ray Charles had an incredible voice. He sounded great on this album. The problems I have with it are that it is 1. A double album and over an hour long and 2. Every single song is about a woman that he either can't have or broke his heart in some way. Every. Single. Song. Like seriously can the man not come up with some other material to sing about? Is there nothing else in his life or the world that captivates him? It just makes for a very long 74 minutes when every song has the same topic.
Interesting album, worth it for me just for the version of “Born to Lose”. Strangely the Spotify version only had 5 songs. I listened to all of those and a few more, but moved on before I got through the entire album.
Album sounds great, Ray's a hell of a singer. I just kinda got bored halfway through it.
To me most of the songs sounded like extensions of the same song, probably because i am not familiar with the genre.
All right, well, it feels like cheating to include a two-volume set on this list? I like the upbeat songs, even when not particularly cheery in substance ("Don't Tell Me Your Troubles," for example).
Great songs, great voice, great production
I'd listened to this before and enjoyed it- need to revisit again at some point cos I was quite tired yesterday
Fully understand its importance as a massive crossover hit plus cultural significance. Much of the two records leaves me cold. Ray is in fine voice, some of the arrangements enjoyable, but some of the strings and almost all of the backing vocals are annoying as hell. I could condense the two into one better record, at least to my taste.
Ok - who doesn't like Ray Charles? Some good stuff.. but stalls as a rare double album.
Never really listened to him but he is delightfully entertaining. Lyrics are so-so but the instrumentals are fire.
This poor man seems to have had his heart broken more times than Taylor Swift.
2024-09-11...
Reading the Wikipedia I understood why this is an important album.. breaking down a musical divide and the contribution to the civil rights movement was an interesting piece of context. Overall it's very chill to listen to. Pleasant strings, it sounds like music one might hear in a 40s Disney animated movie. I know nothing about jazz in case that wasn't obvious. It wears a bit thin over the 74 minutes but I appreciate the vision to do this to a bunch of country songs. Maybe I'd score it higher for the invention if I knew more than a handful of the originals
I was really looking forward to blues and soul with Ray Charles. Unfortunately, my expectations were not fulfilled. The album title actually says it all: country and western music. I can't usually get into these genres. But hey, it's Ray Charles. so give it a try. And there were also 2 or 3 very nice tracks on the album. However, the music mainly reminded me of somewhat corny film music from classic western films in black and white. After just under an hour, I'd had enough. I probably won't listen to this album in its entirety. 3/5
so loooooooooong
Cool that it exists. The best parts are when Ray cuts loose with the jazzy or bluesy piano, but ultimately the arrangements are a little too polished or something
I really liked this at the start. Just charming nice bluesy tunes. But I didn't need a double album of it - waned and got repetitive. Didn't get much from the second disc. Fave Tracks: Bye Bye Love, Just a Little Lovin' 3.3/5
First, I need to note that I had to play this album in mono. For whatever reason, the mixing in spotify put all of the vocals into my right ear which just felt off. Anyway, this album is super ambitious and honestly cocky by Ray Charles. He is not really know for his "Country and Western Music" so proclaiming he was putting forward the most modern sounds is ballsy. Overall, I do think he hit the target, but maybe not the bullseye. Many of the songs feels samey, and even cover basically the same themes. While I liked the blues influence, the big band nature of some of the songs doesn't feel like country to me at all. More stripped back songs on this album seem to have actually influenced country music to come in the 70s, 80s, and 90s. Best Songs: Just A Little Lovin', I Can't Stop Loving You, Your Cheatin' Heart, You Are My Sunshine Worst Songs: NA
I acknowledge its importance and love Ray’s voice and piano. But I hate the strings.
Not bad
Bien. Muy bien canta. I Can't Stop Loving You
Never heard this before. No gems here, but likeable songs with likable singing and likable arrangements. Not sure a double album was necessary. Would probably rate higher if the best songs were on a double album.
I particularly enjoyed the arrangements for the tunes I knew from Hank Williams and the Everly Brothers and such. Probably would enjoy it even more if I knew more of the original recordings.
Cozy album, but didn't really stand out to me in any way from other big band music. Weak 3.
A cool album with country standards made jazzy. I get that in a historical context this is a major album as country widely was (is) white music and blues/jazz was black. This was breaking new ground at the time (for a contemporary version i guess Lil Nas releasing "Old Town Road" is the same). Does it hold up? Kind of. I mean if you want to listen to some jazz/blues I think there are more iconic and better albums. Same goes for country I guess. But still, it's a nice window in to another time and interesting at that.
Bros old
Not the modern I'm used to that's for sure
Pretty sleepy jazz/blues. Second album started off hot then went back to the same boring choir songs. Not bad just wanted some more upbeat stuff
Songs are nice to listen to in the background
Music is mostly good, no songs really stood out for me.
Meh, jolly and easy to listen to but nothing special
Creí que iba a encantarme y la verdad me aburrió un poco. Además está larguísimo. Me gustaría ponerle 3,5 estrellas pero esta cosa no acepta medios puntos así que ni modo. Se va con 3.
I think this proves that country is mainly in the delivery rather than the songwriting. I liked the big band songs more than the strings/chorus ones, but in all cases, Charles' delivery is impeccable.
I haven't actively listened to Ray Charles unless it's Christmas stuff in a playlist. Though I recognize the significance on cultural history especially for a black man in the 1960s, thematically I was a bit tired of the same "Longing for a love who doesn't want me/ wants more than me" theme halfway into the album. maybe I'll appreciate it the more I listen to more things from the era.
Some real classics and interesting versions of well-known songs.
Ray Charles’ voice is amazing. His piano is amazing. I love the trumpets. But the backing vocals and orchestration make me cringe. I really want to like this album - but the more I hear the sound built around the voice and the piano, the less I like it.
Ganz ok - aber diese langsamen Hollyood 50s Songs sind viel zu viele. ***
This is too long. The songs all start to sound the same.
This is Ray Charles. An important album, an undeniable classic, but it not tingle my senses so it's 3 stars.
Mad pipes on this dude Always dig a good standard Sad boi <3 you are my sunshine
Pretty good, but at some point every song started to sound the same to me.
Heerlijke jazzy, bluesy plaat dit. Ray Charles heeft sowieso een fantastische stem! Dus dat is puur genieten. Maar mijn god, ik vind een dubbel album vrijwel altijd te lang, nu dus ook. Er staan genoeg mooie nummers op, maar ook behoorlijk wat nummers die me totaal niet pakken. Toch jammer, omdat de highs ontzettend high zijn. Ik denk dat als je hier een album van 10-15 nummers van zou maken dat ik het gemakkelijk een 4 of een 5 zou geven, nu kom ik helaaas niet boven de 3 uit! FAVO: You dont know me, just a little lovin will go a long way, I cant stop loving you, Oh lonesome me, Take these chains from my heart
i dont even have a weasoling for this
Solid 50's "country" album. No complaints.
pretty good. the album got off to a good start and finish. lulled in the middle a bit. felt more like christmas music at one point.
Sounds in Country and Western Music is exactly what I expected it to be. Its slow, somewhat jivey, and kinda hits the bones a bit. However, EVERY song sounded the same to me. I really can’t expect much from a album that predates the moon-landing, but it is what it is. One disparity I noted was the outro, Hey Good Lookin’. All in all an alright album that might get a play or two in a movie soundtrack.
Not my favorite era of Ray Charles but at least interesting to listen to more big band type arrangements prior to the funk and soul.
Ray expands the great American songbook, and rightly so, but these arrangements don’t always do the songs justice.
Inventive for its time, but not so exciting to listen to today.
I love his voice and vocals, but the album had so much strings accompaniment that it felt like I was listening to Andy Williams
ein
Very exciting start but is followed by much the same thing over, and over…
3☆/5 06.29.2024
Was pretty good but songs started sounding the same after the first few.
TRUMPETS tbh, this album is putting me to sleep 3/5
I liked it but this ain’t country
Some of these are great, the rest are a derivative of “oh my lovvveee” with the backing vocals acting like angels. 2.5
Niet z’n beste werk, en ook gewoon niet zo goed. Snap niet dat dit er in staat
Good vocals and I understand the cultural importance of this album but it drags a little especially in the middle. Favourites: bye bye love, half as much, just a little lovin (will go a long way), oh lonesome me, take these chains from my heart. Very soothing but could use some editing. 3/5
good but not my thing!
Just a Little Lovin’ Worried Mind Hey, Good Lookin’ Teardrops In My Heart Hang Your Head In Shame I don’t know why but I kept feeling like the album was Christmas vibes to it. Whole album was solid. Hard for my to not like ray charles.
A landmark recording in American music. By Ray Charles and his wonderful baritone voice, singing county, folk and western songs reworked to his formula. Nothing more to say, just a decent album.
Never been a big Ray fan, however these big productions suit him well. This is a fantastically fun record, where the big band more than makes up for any of Charles' deficiencies.
This doesn't sound like any Country or Western music I've ever heard, though it is a pretty good R&B album. Now I didnt like it as much as some of these 50s/60s R&B albums I've received so far on this list, though it is undoubtedly good. My favorite is probably Half As Much.
Important artist and no doubt an important album. But I liked it, didn’t live it. Probably ought to revisit some other time, when I’m more in the mood for this sort of thing and can give it my whole-hearted attention. Not the right music for me, right now., on the day it happened to come my way.
The whole thing obviously does not sound modern in 2024, and the angel choir seems a bit out of place after all these years. That said, Ray Charles' voice is phenomenal and there's certainly high quality here. All in all, hard to pin down. It feels like a Christmas album without being one to me.
i liked this album. not my vibe, but i dont felt the urge to skip any song. its a good sing. and i can see the influence of some song in others i have been listening
He has a great distinct voice although you’ll enjoy more if you don’t listen to the lyrics much. For whatever reason the last five songs have the exact same sound
Corny string instrumentations -- trying to appeal to mainstream audiences?
I haven't listened to enough Ray Charles to have an informed expectation; however, this was far from what I expected tonally. While book-ended by two upbeat swinging dance tracks (Bye Bye Love and Hey, Good Lookin'), the entire mid-section is comprised of more reserved tracks that pull from the country standard repertoire. Kind of interesting they made the decision to start and end in such a jarring way relative to the rest. In any case, this isn't a style of music I know a lot about. I find most entries to be enjoyable enough with a few exceptions that stood out for the better. The one track that stood out to me was Born To Lose. Just a fantastic and beautiful song that makes use of slow country caper with sweeping strings that buoy the whole arrangement. All around though I'd say this falls somewhere in the high 3 for me from a personal enjoyment level. Never something I would put on by choice, but also never something I would be mad about being made to listen to.
Ray charles is the man
Definitely found myself toe tapping a bit to this. Ray Charles voice is so velvety smooth he makes every song sound like a Christmas carol. Little on the slower side for my liking especially after lunch but great nonetheless.
This was a recent album Top tracks: Hey Good Lookin, You Are My Sunshine
More “Important” and “interesting” than “good” for me. Still worth a listen.
This was a good listen. Not really my thing but it certainly sounded great.
This was pretty fun! The background choir reminded me of Christmas music from the 40s and 50s LOL. I'd listen again, but only if I was really in the mood for this type of music.
God bless Ray!
Classic Ray Charles. Love when it’s just him and the piano. “I can’t stop loving you” brings back memories of listening to this song with my Aunt Annie. I get how the string instrument intro was standard for the times, but it was annoying. Background singers felt like listening to the Lawrence Well show. Just Ray and the piano. That’s all there needs to be.
Not a fan of the schmaltzy background singers. Too locked into that dated 50s style, and I prefer Ray’s music from his earlier Atlantic years with the funkier Raelettes as background singers, and Ray more rooted in R&B and Jazz where he damn near created modern soul on his own. But he was flexing here, a fuck you to the “establishment” that wanted to pigeonhole him in “black music” 🙄 so I respect him for what he was doing. A couple of highlights, but most of these country/folk songs sound better by the original artists.
Liked the album. Was a little slow at times, but Ray’s voice is iconic and I enjoyed some of the songs he covered. 3.5/5 Might listen again
The strings, the chorus date the album. But the smooth voice, the piano leads and sax breaks are great. I'm finding I like the 50's, 60's choices more than much of the contemporary stuff. Maybe time has filtered the older stuff more. My issue with this album is the length.
This is fun!
Ray Charles assuredly deserves his notoriety within the American lexicon, and his seamless bridging of R&B, soul, pop, folk and country music into one solid sound is certainly to be praised. However, over sixty years later, the album gives off an unintended side effect of being too homogenized to sound like anything remotely worth talking about. It has its hits, it has his voice, and it has a swinging production not unlike Sinatra's best, but something just feels bland. Music's ability to vary and shift is one of its best features, and to mold it into one blob does wonders for bringing people and taste together, but only damages the songs inside. It is an album with tons of passion, but nothing to truly call remarkable, and I can only imagine this issue worsens with each passing decade. Good music of the past, but still definitively music of the past, and I can't help but think this rang true only a couple of years after this release.
It’s really good, was smooth listening.
Pleasant enough, good background noise. Easy listening. Too long of an album for my liking.
I appreciate the artistry in this album and I'm not likely to seek it out. Overall, I found the strings to boring, though well textured. Ray Charles for me is a mandatory part of a good record collection. But for me, a best of collection would tick that box.
Great instrumentation. Would play in background on a weekend morning. Would not listen to intently as rhythm and melody feel too dated sometimes.
BL: I liked the first Ray Charles I had on the generator maybe 6 months ago or so now, so it'll be good to hear this album. I'll see if it matches up to how good the first one I listened to was. AL: Volume one was very good, quite standard - not as much innovation as the previous record, but still very good and listenable, the use of the falsetto backing vocals add a eerie vibe to it which adds to the lonesome country twang which resonates throughout. Volume two was much of the same, and its welcome had worn a bit thin by the end. Still incredibly good music, just not sure if I'd ever want to consciously listen to an hour of it again. "Midnight" was the true standout track in these two volumes FT: "Half as Much", "You Win Again", "Midnight", "I'll Never Stand in Your Way" 3/5
I'm 150 albums in and I'm way over thinking this. I went into listening to these albums purposely avoiding Wikipedia until after I listened and rated them. However.. I don't really know how to rate this. It's not an album i'd ever listen to because it just doesn't really do anything for me. But it feels "important" At the same time I don't even know the cultural significance of this album to quantity why it's important. I think these are covers. Would it be more important to put the albums of the original artists on this list to add context, or does ray Charles significantly altrs the music enough to warrent the album to exist being on this list even with the album being context free? Then does any album on this list follow that? I'm sure there are plenty of albums I like on this list because of the context it exists and I like the album BECAUSE of the cultural significance that I do understand. What even makes a great album. Maybe I need to get a copy of this stupid book. Anyway I have it a 3 I don't know
Lavish and impeccably produced collection of sixties hits reproduced with an authentic big band feeling. Very good for what it is. Added to my library and will wheel it out at Christmas.
I enjoyed it :)
2.83
Depressing songs and lacks the normal energy. 5 stahs
I've heard better old music. Stand-out: Hey, Good Looking
Probably something really neat when it was released, but not something I found particularly compelling. 3/5
Nice voice good tunes
Happy to listen to once, but won't be coming back for the album
Tappin my foot!
Best Song: You Are My Sunshine. I like hearing what someone as talented as Ray Charles is capable of doing with a song that everyone knows like this. Worst Song: No Letter Today. What an energetic dump after the preceding song. Total snooze. Overall: Obviously Ray Charles has a lot of talent, but I prefer to hear him in a more stripped-down setting, where his own soul and talent shines through more. I could almost imagine Frank Sinatra using these arrangements, which I feel undersells what Ray Charles is capable of.
classic Ray Charles, can't go wrong
So I like jazz and I like old country but this just seemed like old pop music. Maybe at the time it was revelatory but it just seemed like old forgotten songs. I would much rather listen to many of the originals.
Gran voz pero unos arreglos orquestales muy desfasados y pelín recargados.
Lounge music, more jazz, very similar, but okay for wait room music
Croony and classic, lots of love ballads
3.5
3-stars
3.5 stars. Opposite of some other albums on this list where the music is great but the singing is the downfall. Some fairly boring/generic country and western tunes but Ray Charles' voice makes it all a pleasant listen nonetheless.
Hmm. Not sure country and western means what you think it means.
I guess
Is this the first pre-Beatles record we listened to? It definitely sounds like it. I love when an artist gets big enough to do whatever the fuck they want, and this record is great. It's not held up well to time though so only a mid rank.
If I had a nickel for every time I’ve learned to respect country music within the last twenty-four hours, I’d only have two nickels, but it’s weird that it happened twice.
decent
Nice chill listen. RC broke barriers for his music. Was fun to listen to but dunno if i would seek it out
i had to sing Bye Bye Love for Chorus and hated every second of it because there was only four of us in the baritone section and I hated Chorus because I was shy as FUCK lmao You are my sunshine is a classic
It's okay - I can't express how much I hate the song You Are My Sunshine and should be a 1 just for including that.
It's fine.
It was pleasant to listen to, but didn't really catch my interest
Im not crazy about Ray Charles. All these songs sound like they were written and performed better previously by someone else. Also sounds like a performance while you eat dinner at a tableclothed dinner theater in the 60s drunk on martinis and champagne. But i know hes amazing and these do sound great but the horns and band over power any sort of piano playing going on if any.
pretty good
Good 3.5
Mostly good
Do not listen to when depressed. Otherwise pretty good album.
Heavy on the violins and 60’s background singers and some big band. But damn, what a voice.
Mid
Decent work by Ray Charles was with the listen
If you’re looking to grab your old lady by the waist and swing away around the fireplace on a cozy winter night, this is your stuff. If, on the other hand, you’re looking to do virtually any thing else, this is not your stuff.
This was alright. Might be a tad too long, but it's not a major issue. Best song on it is It Makes No Difference Now.
Great vocals, chill vibes, some nice love songs. Didn't exactly rock my world, but it was a decent listen, and I'd much rather listen to something like this than to a certain heavily 'overrepresented on this list' genre for the 10000th time. Could have been a bit shorter imo, but it's ok.
Oh, man. While I don't love a big band, I can't deny the likely influence of Ray Charles on songs like "Under the Boardwalk" (1964) by The Drifters and "(Sittin' On) the Dock of the Bay" by Otis Redding (1967). I lit up listening to "I Can't Stop Loving You" in mono and found myself switching between each L/R earbuds to hear the different parts of the song. What a trip. I preferred Disc 1 to Disc 2. By the time I made it to the second half of the album, I couldn't help but wonder who hurt this man. Who broke his heart? There were at least a half dozen songs in a row lamenting a lost love, and it felt like a hasty breakup. 60s music tends to remind me of Christmastime, and it's not my favorite. But I did like the album, all things considered!
Superstar talent on a subpar album.
Some classic tunes on here. Didn't hate it.
Angestaubter Rythm and Blues
It was really long. I can see this being his genre, and maybe all the albums sound like this, so I don’t see why it wouldn’t be split into a few album. Every song sounded mostly the same, but they were good.
hes one of the goats ong really cool concept fuckin with this heavy rn it would be criminal to give this any less than a 3 so much passion in his voice truly a man enjoying himself only thing preventing it from gettin a 5 is it is quite slow at times but shits vibey
Ray Charles sounds great here. Some good interpretations of the standards he re-worked. There are sections of the album that can feel repetitive–particularly during a string of slower songs–but once the more up-tempo songs kick in, there's more variety in the sound. Kind of wish the country and western was more prominent in the musical arrangements to create a stronger fusion of the worlds he was bringing together.
It was nice, and had a good vibe for certain situations, but not something I would go to unless ready for that situation.
Not super exciting, but a beautiful expression of the mainstream jazz tradition. In addition, there is something to be said about the whole blending of soul and country, which must have been pretty radical at the time. Great performances, great arrangements (its Marty Paich and strings, duh) and a nice way to start the day.
Just goes to show you that a great musician can even make the dumbest country, western and folks songs sound passably cool. Totally unnecessary though.
ein paar banger dabei
It’s hard to rate albums like these. All of the songs are good but they sound SO similar.
A great Hifi album
Swing wie Franky!
Sorry boys, my review disappeared
kan ikke lige se mig selv finde den her frem igen, men det er nogle gode arrangementer og ray charles har en fed stemme!
Pladen var nem at høre og stilen var lige præcis hvad jeg forventede af den her plade.
Gorgeous and like listening to a piece of history. A little too sad for my taste and current mood!
Songs from the primordial ooze of modern popular music. A little sleepy for my taste honestly but Ray is a great performer.
Kalle ankas jul
A bit too long but I loved it, it’s a great comfort album for a Winter day. [0137/1001]
Bien. Muy bien canta. I Can't Stop Loving You.
While hardly an unpleasant listen, and having a collection of standards on a list like this makes sense, I really don't see myself returning at all. Bye Bye Love is the highlight for me, though moreso because I recognize it from Simon and Garfunkel's cover on Bridge Over Troubled Water.
I really like this kind of music and appreciate what Ray Charles tried to do here, but I just couldn’t get behind this album. I’ve heard some of these versions over the years and they just never clicked with me. Still, three stars for the musicianship.
I really enjoyed I Can’t Stop Loving You, Hey Good Lookin’, and the cover of You Are My Sunshine, which is pretty good version. Generally, the music was fairly listenable, but Jesus cheer up, Ray! Maybe if you sing about something other than women leaving you or wanting to fuck other guys, they might stick around a bit longer! Good album to listen to if you’re struggling with a breakup, I guess. Or terrible maybe.
Pretty nice stuff. Simpsons reference: I think so PS. I need to start putting more effort into these reviews.
Gave me Christmas movie vibes. And Disney movie vibes.
Ray has got a good voice. This is a really good album when you are chilling out. Really like, you don't know me, the rest of the album was okay
im sorry ray, its not you its me. im just not feeling it of late. im not usually like this! or maybe this record is just a bit tepid? who knows. anyway today i learned i dont like mahler 8
Good album but wasnt the vibes for today
Bigband ravintola musiikkia. Aika tasapaksua. Herkkää
Really calm love music it’s pretty sweet shit. 3.3/5
3.2/5 Best Track: I Can't Stop Loving You
Should probably delve deeper!
As with many of these albums, it wouldn’t be my go to, but it wasn’t bad.
Ray Charles is a great musician. I like his music and enjoyed this album- possibly more of a fan of his more blues and jazz works (“Georgia On My Mind” and “Hit The Road, Jack” come immediately to mind) but this is good stuff. Have you ever played improv on the piano with your eyes closed the whole time? It’s a great experience. Ray Charles was a legend. Three and a half stars.
The songs on this album are big nostalgia from my teen years. I love it! That being said - it's been a while since I listened to the whole album all at once, and I didn't realize how... samey it sounds? Like it sounds like maybe two really long songs. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but I actually am finding I wasn't necessarily blown away by the album as a whole. Still a great listen though, and it made me remember what it was like to be a kid and wish I was a hacker.
I'm not usually a fan of country and western but I quite liked this, especially the more upbeat songs. High 2/low 3.
очень скучно (хоть и никаких претензий к вокалу)
There are some really good songs on this but I’m not a fan of the old, weirdly intervaled harmonies. Like the endings of (at least) the last 5 songs on the album. It’s a 3 star album with some 5 star songs.
Unsure if I would want any of these songs in my rotation. But I enjoy live music, so hearing this in the bars would be entertaining. Although, maybe I am not the biggest fan of this album because he is so sad. I wish he was more happy. I enjoyed hearing the backup vocals, and would be interested to see this integrated in modern music.
Some good songs,.
I mean I cant find anything bad about it but I did not enjoy it and got bored a couple songs in. I was googling Ray Charles while listening and unsurprisingly he was a huge womaniser.
It was a fine enough album, Ray has a good voice and the songs are crafted well enough but there’s not a whole lotta country going on here so the title is a bit misleading. For the lack of variety here it’s way too long at an hour and fifteen. Pleasant enough to listen to I suppose but I won’t be returning 2.5 stars
It is Ray Charles - enjoyable music and vocals. Just not riveting - it's good music for the background but nothing i really feel like i need to focus on. I do like "I can't stop loving you" but definitely not the best Ray Charles album
Bien. Muy bien canta. I Can't Stop Loving You.
La voix est belle et sentie, les arrangements réussis, mais ça reste plus d’une heure de Ray Charles qui se lamente, se victimise et shame les femmes de sa vie.
This album is a neat take on country western songs. The sentimentality of 1950s country songs fits well into Ray Charles’ Big Band style. Though I didn’t take any songs from this album, I appreciate the experiment. One other note, is that many of the songs have a 1950’s Christmas song vibe.
Typical slow rhythmic classic jazz, chill
I feel like I need to give this a closer listen. Had it on in the background at work and it was super pleasant but I've only dug in a little to what makes it great. Interesting part is that it's a Country western album with a big band, but the songs are so obviously country songs/themes. Can't wait to dig in again. It will prob get a higher rating next time. I think I like disc 2 better.
I like Ray Charles singing the blues, Country and Western is not mine. To be honest - the album sounds a little bit better than expected. Therefore 3 stars…
gute Substanz, bisschen viel Geigenschmalz, heute altbacken
Fun album but a bit monotonous.
Early and easy Soul. I like the voice and the slow music
Liked it for what it was, but not exactly my favorite
didnt get to listen to the whole thing but from what I heard I really enjoyed it, Ray Charles a legend fs
This wasn't what I expected. I like this genre of music, it's nice to listen to in the background when working or studying. Will listen again probably
Classic!
Solid piano, repetitive
Every Ray Charles hit but sound quality poor. Would love to hear every one of those hits remastered!
its all so sad. his ventures in love never panned out. he was always on the losing end. poor guy. didn't care for this grouping even though I like ray Charles.
Damalige Hits in Richtung Swing oder Rhythm and Blues gecovert. Ganz nett, aber nichts was mich vom Hocker haut. Damals sicher etwas besonderes, weil jeder die Originale kannte.
I think I enjoyed the history of this album more than the album itself
Pleasant, well instrumented mix of standards with excellent production, instrumentation and backing vocals.
Very well executed covers of c&w songs, most of which are better than the originals.
Not owned: Streaming I’m not as versed in Ray Charles as I probably should be? I think this is one of my brother’s favorites (will ask him tomorrow when I see him!) To point out the obvious, the vocal performance is superb. Arresting on “I Love You So Much It Hurts.” Production is clean. Prefer the band over the strings; recorded in two separate sessions? Strings eventually sound like Xmas music. Length is apparent when songs sound similar. 3/5
Lovely love songs with a kind of Christmassy vibe for some reason
Jazzy show tunes from my parent’s era. Very pleasant and easy to listen to.
Good for the christmas vibes, a few good songs but Also a lot of meh
Bye bye love is an excellent opening track. I like the big band style orchestrations and the harmonisation of the backing vocalists is very nice. I’m not a huge fan of the slower songs and find them all to be too reminiscent of an old Disney movie in terms of their openings and orchestrations. The vocal harmonies and strings are not what I expected. Ray Charles has an incredible voice which carries most of the songs.
Basically Day Charles singing loves songs in the big band style. Pretty good stuff.
actually felt a lot like a xmas album. this is one of those albums where its pointless to score because its just not to my taste but its ray charles so i know its good
I’m sure it was groundbreaking at the time and some songs show a great blend of blues and country, while others are schmaltzy and too polished.
Classique mais efficace, un peu trop auto-similaire cependant.
I respect the concept behind repackaging country music into a big band jazz sound. Sonically it sounds like Ray Charles does Sinatra. But I miss the r&b Ray Charles. Maybe there’s one of those on this list too.
Very calming music.
I'm going to make a note of this album for when my mother-in-law visits. She's always asking us to play something else, like the oldies. This fits the bill. 😂 Fun listen through. Not something I'd gravitate towards usually, but I've always loved a good piano player. 😏
3.5
Pleasant, but sounds relatively the same throughout.
4/12, 33%
Chill, men ikkje så moderne som han påstår
Listened to it in a lovely cottage in a village in the Peak District, which probably helps elevate this to a good mark. Quite a bit of it washes over me, as so much of this trad blues work does. I Can't Stop Loving You is a corker though. It took me quite an irritatingly long time to work out why I knew it so well, until I remembered that Elvis did it in his Vegas shows. I then went down a deep hole of watching Elvis' late-era Vegas performances on YouTube and marvelling at how good he was. I don't know how much I can really credit Ray with all that, but he sent me in a nice direction.
Very good but just not my thing
Ray Charles has a wonderful voice, and there are some great tracks here. Overall album is a bit long, a few snoozers for sure.
Pas vraiment la musique que j'écoute d'habitude, mais c'était très agréable (surtout pour faire de la traduction). Comme une impression d'être dans un vieux film, et, étrangement, ça m'a donné envie de réécouter Michael Kiwanuka !
Bra album, men det er nok neppe et album jeg kommer til å vende tilbake til. Joda, jeg hører det har kvaliteter, men det er så absolutt ikke noe jeg kommer til å lytte til aktivt.
Interesting take on some country oldies
- A great classic sound, but how can every jazz album ever in existence be one of the 1001 greatest albums of all time - Good fusion of soul and jazz - 2.5
- great voice
good background music while playin fortnite
Mmm, trompetes... xD Atsit 50. / 60. gadu balles dejas.
sample ass mūzika :D
Talented dude. Lots of slow jams. Beautiful album but not my bag.
Overall good vibes, seemed like it might be good for dancing or background music, but just listening was okay.
classic! between 3-4, lots of the same sound but beautiful and obviously done well
Boring old country western songs with a little Ray magic. Some pretty good, some he couldn’t save. Some actually better as country western
Feel like I don't have a lot to say about this one. It's more of Ray Charles just doing what he's really great at. He really makes all of these old standards his own with that voice. Similar to the Genius of Ray charles, the instrumentation kind of falls into the background for me, but maybe thats the point? I'd say none of the songs on here really reach the high moments of Genius of Ray Charles. I did enjoy the integration of more country style music with his gospel like vocals (particularly on I Can't Stop Loving You). Not really anything bad here, but no big standouts either for me. All in all it's another great album if you're looking for that 50s dim lit, smoke filled jazz club vibe.
I'm behind on reviews, I listened to this and realized I didn't enjoy this as much as the previous one in our list. Just something about it lost it's charm? It kind of all blended together at some point. Still a good listen, just not as wow-ed as the Genius of Ray Charles
so good, what a voice! some absolute classics
Very jazzy, good to hear in background while studying
Good album but not exquisite
It just lacks punch for me. It was pleasant but not engaging experience for me. Also It doesn't help that most of songs seems to be about love.
Great voice and some good sings, but felt pretty dated.
it's all beautiful but it's just not my speed at all
nit my fave genre but I do love the classic songs
Best song - It Makes No Difference Now
I like Ray Charles but... over an hour of ray Charles is way too much ray Charles.
None of his notorious songs are on here and a lot of it is sappy. He is a brilliant artist but as others have said, this album is pretty long!
Ray Charles is great - that being said this album is too long. I got stuff to do like listen to 1000 more albums here.
There are approximately 800 songs on this album. It's not bad stuff but kinda boring overall.
Next 5 songs played by my Spotify Algorithm: Bill Withers - Ain't no Sunshine Otis Redding - (Sitting On) The Dock of the Bay Sam & Dave - Hold on, I'm Coming James Brown & The Famous Flames - I'll Go Crazy The Temptations - My Girl
It’s ok. Mainly too slow for me. If I had to date my grandmother, I’d play this to get her in the mood
This one didn't enrapture me as much as I expected - maybe because I couldn't devote myself fully to it today. There are some great original tracks and new versions but I'm not a huge fan of big band (I can see why it would have been pretty pioneering in its time).
I feel like the importance of this album is kind of lost on me 70 odd years removed from it coming out. I can appreciate the arranging and performances, but I don't know, It just sounds like a great soul album to me, not one of the greatest of all time.
Decent but to my ear nothing extraordinary
Not really what I hoped for when generating a Ray Charles album. A bit boring
Started great, after a while started feeling like it was a bit too long
Bit too boring, but just okay enough
Covers many great songs. Sometimes awesome in execution, sometimes a bit draggy
First time really listening to any soul music. It was beautiful and calming, but not quite my taste. Possibly would enjoy more without a house of young screaming kids.
#14. This one was pretty good, but not the kind of thing that I'd listen to regularly. 3/5: acceptable
Viel me wat tegen, ik had meer funk verwacht. Dit was heel erg Bing Crosby, opzich wel mooi maar op veel plekken toch ook wel redelijk saai. Dit is zo'n album dat wellicht beter een enkel album had kunnen zijn ipv dubbel. Maar misschien dat het in die tijd super was, maar ik ben bang dat het de tijd niet echt overleefd heeft.
Only listened to volume one but is a great 60s country album, not the kind of album I'd actively listen too but I'd never complain if it was played.
Excellent album however I am not a fan of this music. I don't know if I should rate this off quality of music or my taste but I am going to give this a 3/5.
Cool, but not world-changing cause I already know him. A bit too short of songs and mainstream.
Once again I find myself impressed by the influence I hear in later music but mainly wanting to listen to the later music. B sides started to branch out a bit more.
I cant find the country anywhere in this, but its still pretty good. it does conjure a romantic movie set during the gold rush on the praires though. Born To Lose is a good example, hits the earmarks of a country ballad without the country, its odd.
Interesting to hear Ray Charles take on some of these country covers. Notable Songs for me: Oh, Lonesome Me Your Cheatin' Heart I'll Never Stand In Your Way (Big Sad)
i wish i appreciated this album more, but maybe i just don't have a refined enough palate (ear?). but i did find i enjoyed it far more when i listened closely and with headphones on - the lyrics are clever and often funny.
Good enough for something cool. 3.5
Some classic songs. Fun listen. Background singers can be a bit much over the course of the whole album.
rilassante, natalizio
Something to note about American popular music back in the day is that there were effectively two kinds of music: "white" music and "black" music. The latter was primarily blues, jazz, r&b, and soul, while the former was country, western, traditional pop, and various folk subgenres. Racial segregation was still a pretty powerful force of American life which is why there had become a distinction between the "white" and "black" music. This isn't a completely futile exercise though, as racial segregation had effectively made it so that distinct cultural movements would grow separately. As such, there's a variable depth of interplay worth analysis in the grand scheme of American culture as it developed in the early 20th century. Enter Ray Charles. His body of work throughout the 50's and early 60's (with Atlantic records) was best known as jazz, soul, r&b, and the like. When he signed with ABC-Paramount, we wanted to do something different: Ray Charles would cover country songs. Everyone told him he was crazy, and by all rights he probably was. However, Charles handles these songs with such grace and humility, it was hard not to appreciate. Audiences also appreciated his efforts, and it was a crossover hit with both black and white demographics. Considering how Charles was able to bridge the gap, even a little bit, easily makes this an important album for the list.
I own each of these volumes on vinyl. I think it’s technically two albums and this is just them “packaged” together. I enjoy these records and liked this relisten. Ray Charles is one of the all time greats, obviously, and his fantastic singing is especially on display here. I do prefer his more rock and roll piano driven recordings.
I do like Ray Charles. I do like Country & Western. I do feel, however, like he’s hammered all the C&W out of these tunes though which I’m not sure about. Bye Bye Love is supposed to be sad and infused with feeling. Not upbeat big band bebop. That pretty much set the tone and I felt discomfited about it for the rest of the album. These are songs that everybody knows so well but I don’t feel particularly passionate about. I’m all for pushing the boundaries of genre and I admire the C & W getting a soul makeover but I really couldn’t get into this.
Definitely sounds like a classic. It is important to read the history of the record to appreciate the era this records unifying impact.
I'm a Ray Charles fan. Lots of great songs on here, but I agree that he's often too low in the mix.
Years ago I had read about this album and it's history and was quite excited to listen to it. I'll admit I was quite disappointed. I've since gone back a few more times and while I'm familiar with more of the songs I still don't love this album. It's simply the production, the orchestral and chorus arrangements just doesn't work for me. Many times it really drowns out Rays voice, it's such shame.
There's a couple of good songs on here, but it's not great. It's not bad, either.
Ray Charles is strangely a gap for me, so I'm pleased to sit with this one. With RC's singing and piano at the center of a selection of mostly ballads, this oscilattes between genres depending on the accompaniment from upbeat Swing & Jazz with horns (bye bye love, half as much, just a little loving, don't tell me your troubles) to slow-burning Scmaltz with strings (you don't know me, born to lose, I love you so much it hurts). It's as if the album was constructed to demonstrate how much better one style is than the other. The schmaltzy stuff is really pretty dire - as good as RC's vocals are they only rarely (I Can't Stop Loving You, I'll Never Stand in Your Way) elevate this tedious plodding chintzy 50s crooner crap. The horns songs really rip though, punctuating the vocal performance with jazz riffs, the odd solo, and lots of energy to go with the walking bass and swinging drums - providing the classic counter-part to the lovelorn ballads. "Worried Mind" brings the two sides together into a cool blues with strings supporting a jazzy piano-forward arrangement. In a nod to the album's title, "You Win Again" brings a country-inflected gospel sound to support another unbelieveable vocal performance. Another Hank Williams Classic, "Hey Good Looking" is re-invented as a really lively big-band swing, while the childish "You Are My Sunshine" becomes a fully adult motown soul track. His "You're Cheating Heart" is less successful: it's slowed way down and uses swelling strings and thick harmony from the backing singers that takes too much of the honkytonk life and cheekiness out of the original. No surprise, but the singing really is the star here - reaching and tender but always in control - we hear hints at the latent virtuosity, but always delivered in service of the song.
Wanted to like this more than I did, strong moments but I found the whole thing a bit cloying
the material seems beneath him and some of those background vocals are really cringe
Charles was one of the most monumental talents in music. I remember covering What’d I Say at live shows with an old band of mine. I grew up on his music, so of course I was excited to see this album pop up. It’s great, but of course it’s great. This album transformed the cultural definition of pop music. It’s a monstrous record loaded with some of the most recognizable (and covered) tracks ever written. Let’s get personal. I don’t care for this album that much. It’s overlong and pretty stale. I always dug on Ray’s early material more. But let’s be clear, just because I don’t care for an album too much doesn’t mean it’s not great.
The gravity of Ray’s genius helps exalt what often sounds like 24 versions of the same song.
I really enjoyed some parts of this however a lot of the songs towards the end sounded the same. I liked the orchestration and Ray’s voice is incredible. It’s between a 3 and 4.
Album: Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music Artist: Ray Charles Year: 1962 Album #: 228 first impressions: yay ray charles should be fun and energizing for a monday morning after listening through: i'm so bored i could cry post-reading reviews/wiki: well, it sucks that an album that broke down so many barriers and was so influential has so many moments that just sound dull without context. i would have gone into this expecting an easy 5 stars had i read this first but i just.. can't motivate myself to relisten. i appreciate the idea of this album but the songs themselves were just like...proof that this era of country music is not for me! recommended for: soothing elderly people
p54. 1962. 3 stars. This really shouldn't work but... somehow it does. Points docked for the occasional saccharine over production and for being overly maudlin.
Not my favorite of his albums, but still classic Ray.
Very well executed covers of c&w songs, most of which are better than the originals. Unfortunately, the album is just way too long to stay interesting.
This isn't what I would usually gravitate towards and I don't think I will return. However, after several listens the album definitely exudes that soulful warmth and I can appreciate the appeal and progress Ray Charles made in the genre. At 24 tracks long and averaging 3 mins each, I felt there could have been more variety and lyrical depth. No particular highlight.
Not really modern I love Ray Charles and his music, but he is a liar
great voice, but showtunes
Duger väl till vardags.
This is a little too "old-timey" sounding for my taste. Might be nice for a certain scenario. A cocktail hour or some sort of dance function.
Absolutely not the right Ray Charles album to put on a list like this, but it still ain't bad.
Nice to have in the background. I'd have to be in the right mood to listen to it - having a drink in a dark bar or something rather than working in an office in the middle of summer!
Just some nice music to have on in the background but I wouldn't listen to it otherwise
Nice enough album. Good for casual dinner parties, slow evening dancing, and folding laundry.
Fun
Three or four well known great songs but for me the rest is a bloke singing and a choir in the background.
Yo is this some mfing jazz/big band shit? Some of these songs are songs I could see myself jamming out to in a Fallout game, others are kind of super boring. It's generally the much slower songs that really drag this down. The more upbeat jazz songs are really good though. Overall it's an ok album that gets dragged down by it's slower songs and bloat. A solid 3/5
Doesn't sound much country to me but good.
UN discUn disco qeu se siente suave, al fin y al cabo es un compilado de canciones. Se suman sonidos esperables por parte de ray y es una escuhca bonita sobre todo 6/10.
Ray Charles har utvilsomt en god stemme, og soul er behagelig å høre på. Men det er ikke noe jeg kommer til å høre på selv, så da blir karakteren deretter. Albumet bytter litt mellom uptempo moro og "ballader", som gjør at det ikke klikker helt for meg.
I’m really not sure how I feel about this one. I was looking forward to Ray Charles and this just didn’t hit with me.
Although I get why this is culturally important, the sound - the orchestration and vocals in particular - just sounds so dated. Like it should be on a Saturday evening BBC Christmas special for old folks. And I like big band music and jazz. Give me these reworked by Pink Martini and I'll probably be happy. Put this in context: The Beatles first album came the following year and this is five years after Here's Little Richard and The Chirping Crickets. It's the *same year* as Booker T and the MG's Green Onions ffs. There are some saving graces - Hey, Good Looking' holds up entirely and I quite like the version of You Are My Sunshine. I don't actively dislike it, and might not skip some of the tunes if they came up on a playlist, but this isn't something I'll want to listen to again. It gets 3 stars for the cultural significance (and because it's clearly better than My Bloody Valentine).