RAY CHARLES / “I Can’t Stop Loving You”
After his Atlantic contract ended, Ray signed with ABC-Paramount in November 1959. He obtained a much more liberal contract than other artists had at that time. With the success of his Modern Sounds In Country And Western Music, Ray gained new fame and financial security. His succeeding contract with ABC gave him more control over his creations. All master recordings were to revert to him at the conclusion of his contract. With his continued successful recordings and expanded personal appearances, Ray and his close associate and adviser, Joe Adams, built an office building in Los Angeles. Included was a fully equipped professional recording studio. This move changed Ray’s life forever. Now he had a place to spend all his creative time when not on the road performing. In the beginning he needed help in the studio. A recording engineer was hired. Ray’s main agenda was to learn everything possible about the recording booth and its mysteries. Those familiar with the recording booth know what is involved—tape machines, control board (console), patch boards to connect the many mics to the recording equipment and hundreds of patch cords to make the connections, speakers, amplifiers, and much more. As time went by, Ray mastered his equipment in the recording booth, eventually taking the place of the engineer. He started mixing his own dates, an unbelievable sight. He was still playing by company rules—his own! Before Ray started mixing his own sessions, he, like all other recording artists, was in the studio singing live and playing piano with the orchestra and chorus. After he took over in the booth, a new era started. Now he sat in the booth at the console, balancing and mixing the orchestra dn chorus, who were out in the studio playing. He instructed the individual musicians to adjust themselves to the mics for a better balance. When he felt the sound was just right, he’d call a master take number over the P.A. system and the recording would begin. After some stops for adjustments or changes were made, a finished take was approved after listening to a playback. This same routine continued until all the songs to be recorded were finished. Then the fun began—Ray would set up mics in the studio for his voice and piano. While an assistant started the tape machines rolling he would sing and play—overdubbing his part on the vocal and piano tracks that were left open on the original tape. Ray would listen to the combined tape playback—the original orchestra and chorus plus his just-completed vocal and piano. After his approval of the completed take, the basic recording was finished. Next came the final mixing of the multitrack tapes. Ray did all the patching of the various tracks to the tape machine, which would make the master tape. He’s set each fader (volume slides on the console) to feed the sound he wanted. When he was satisfied with the results, he’s start all the tape machines and make slight adjustments as the machines were playing back and recording. When the final mixed sound was what he wanted, the recording was over. Ray did it all himself! —Sid Feller, liner notesThis music is over forty years old. In 2007 these Country & Western classics might sound safe and even a little tame. But think of the context. 1962. No March on Washington yet. No “I Have A Dream.” We were still living the national nightmare. Blood was in the streets. Literally. Fact is: America was still segregated. De facto. De jure. Day. And night. Western was still the rage. The Grand Ole Opry was on television. But it was a white thing. A white Southern thing. Kissing cousin to the Klan thing. Mississippi Goddamn thing. Plus on the pop side of town, Chubby Checker had everybody, including Frank Sinatra—doing the Twist. Chubby had back-to-back #1’s with Twist songs. Plus, as the high priest of R&B, Ray Charles had church folk tee-totally pissed at him for mixing gospel with the devil’s music. Bishops envied his ability to sermonize, to move crowds of colored folk to heights of delirium previously reserved for Sunday sanctuaries. Despite all the negatives prevalent in those years, Ray Charles was riding high in ghettos all across America. From Boston to Seattle, Chicago to New Orleans, Brother Ray would have people dancing and shouting to “What’d I Say” or drinking and crying to “Drown In My Own Tears.” Black, blind and bluesy, Ray Charles was it—at that time, as far as the inner city was concerned, Ray was bigger than James Brown or any other Black entertainer. All you had to say was: Ray Charles in town. I got a dollar and a quarter and I’m just raring to clown. So, Ray Charles comes out with the biggest record of his storied career: the album was Modern Sounds In Country & Western Music. The single was “I Can’t Stop Loving You.” I don’t know if you heard me. Ray Charles dropped some Country & Western on us and ALL of America, black and white, Klan and civil rights workers. Everybody got with the program.* * *
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When I heard Hank Snow sing “Moving On,” I loved it. And the lyrics. Keep in mind, I’m a singer, so I like lyrics. Those lyrics are great, so that’s what made me want to do it. —Ray Charles, in the liner notes
With his recording of “I Can’t Stop Loving You,” Ray Charles did more for country music than any other artist. —Willie Nelson, in the liner notes
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2 Responses to “RAY CHARLES / “I Can’t Stop Loving You””
August 15th, 2007 at 3:14 pm
Some of us grew up on country music, my Great Grand Mother (Ibaye) was born on a plantation in Alabama her parents were slaves. She played slide guitar sang plantation songs and field hollers. She listend to country music and so did we. (She had the only TV in the house at the time) But as I got older I realized CW and Bluegrass is roots music. If you grew up in the south or black Appalachia it’s what you knew. At almost fifty I still have a penchant for good bluegrass and country, right along side Miles, Donny and the Funkadelics!
September 23rd, 2013 at 9:13 am
My husband (74 years of age) long time owner/operator, truck driver and myself have loved Ray Charles our entire married life – 49 years. He was an incredible talent that everyone could relate to. He made us laugh and cry!
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