Unreleased
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October 12, 2014
The Preacher (With The Ray Charles Quartet)
Read moreUnreleased. In February 2003 Ray Charles opened his concert in Melbourne with this Horrace Silver tune. He was accompanied by Turre on drums, Tom Fowler on bass, Brad Rabuchin on guitar and Jean Michel-Bernard on Hammond.
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October 12, 2014
The River Charles
Read moreUncertain title; unreleased. In 1989 Ray Charles had a role (as God, or as the archangel Julius*) in the movie Limit up (MCEG 0970449925). At the end of the film (“under the titles”) he played a long solo on his alto, starting at 1:25 in the clip below. Clipping from Jet, 30 October 1989. Rich Martini informed me that […]
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October 12, 2014
The Sandblaster (The Ray Charles Orchestra)
Read moreUnreleased. This theme, written by Roger Neumann*, was played for many decades every time that Ray Charles entered the stage.** The audience-tape of the San Carlos concert in 1971 captured one of the few known full versions. Ray Charles – piano; the line-up of the band must have been very similar to the known personnel of the October 1971 […]
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October 12, 2014
The Shadow Of Your Smile (The Ray Charles Orchestra)
Read moreUnreleased. The Johnny Mandel tune, in a robust arrangement for big band, penned by Steve Huffsteter. Live: ’69 LC Paris ’84 LC Ithaca ’90 LC ArtPark ’90 LC Antibes ’94 LC ValleyForge 02 LC Pasadena
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October 12, 2014
The Team (Ray Charles Orchestra)
Read moreUnreleased. There may be a studio-recorded version from 1978 in the vaults of the Ray Charles Foundation (see below). The tune was first recorded during the 2 p.m. (televized) concert at the Warsaw Jamboree on October 27, 1984. Composed by trumpet player Tim Ouimette, who played in the Ray Charles Orchestra between 1978 and 1980. Ouimette […]
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October 11, 2014
The Thirteenth Floor (Ft. David Newman)
Read moreUnreleased (it’s uncertain if Ray played on this one with the combo, and if a recording has survived ). The tune is mentioned as Thirteen floor in the Montreux Jazz Festival’s database, as a part of the Ray Charles Meets Dizzy Gillespie concert on 13 July 1978. It was no doubt added to the setlist by Fathead (see below), who […]
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October 11, 2014
The Truth Comes Out (Commercial Jingle)
Read moreUnreleased. The campaign for Scotch’ Master I, II and III premium line audio tapes started in 1977, and still ran in ’79. The agency was Foote Cone & Belding. The theme was The Truth Comes Out, which also was the jingle’s catchline, sung by Ray. In 1978 “Jim Johnston directed Ray Charles in a pair of 30s for Scotch recording […]
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October 11, 2014
There’s A Long Long Trail A-Winding
Read moreUnreleased. Ray sang and played an unplugged version of this tune as a 1-minute intro to Crying Time during the 1980 Northsea Jazz Festival on July 13 at the Congresgebouw in The Hague.
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October 11, 2014
Things Ain’t What They Used to Be (And You Better Believe It) [Intro: Untitled Blues] (With Marian McPartland)
Read moreUnreleased. On 9 January 1990 Ray Charles was a guest at Marian McPartland’s NPR radio show Piano Jazz, taped at the Manhattan Beach Studios in New York (first broadcast on April 6, 1991). One of the many good things that happened was a brief version of this tune (music by Mercer Ellington and lyrics by Ted […]
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October 10, 2014
This Masquerade (With George Benson And Chaka Khan)
Read moreUnreleased. Fun rendition of this Leon Russell tune, with some help of Chaka, videotaped at a concert on the first night (16 July) of the 1991 edition of the Montreux Jazz Festival.
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October 10, 2014
Undecided
Read moreAlbum: The Great Ray Charles, Atlantic 1259, August 1957. A fine instrumental (solos by Fathead and Ray), recorded at the Coastal Recording Studios in New York on 26 November 1956 with Joe Bridgewater, John Hunt – tp; David Fathead Newman – as, ts; Emmett Dennis – bs; William Peebles – d; Roosevelt Sheffield – b. Arranged by Quincie […]
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October 9, 2014
Untitled Blues (With Tony Franciosa)
Read moreUnreleased Ray Charles appeared to play something like a hotel pianist in the double episode I Love You, Billy Baker of the series In The Name Of The Game (aired on 20 and 27 November 1970). In a scene at the swimming pool he fools around with a few scripted blues clichés until the Jeff Dillon character (played by […]