I just heard that Ray Charles passed away today sometime in the last few hours.


R.I.P.


We have lost several of the true legends of music in the last month.

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. - Ray Charles, the Grammy-winning crooner credited with creating American soul music with a blend of gospel and blues in such crowd-pleasers as "What'd I Say" and "I Got A Woman" and heartfelt ballads like "Georgia on My Mind," died Thursday. He was 73.

Charles died at 11:35 a.m., surrounded by family and friends, said spokesman Jerry Digney.

Charles last public appearance was alongside Clint Eastwood on April 30, when the city of Los Angeles designated the singers studios an historic landmark.

Blind by age 7 and an orphan at 15, Charles spent his life shattering any notion of musical boundaries and defying easy definition. A gifted pianist and saxophonist, he dabbled in country, jazz, big band and blues, and put his stamp on it all with a deep, warm voice roughened by heartbreak from a hardscrabble childhood in the segregated South.

"His sound was stunning — it was the blues, it was R&B, it was gospel, it was swing — it was all the stuff I was listening to before that but rolled into one amazing, soulful thing," singer Van Morrison (news) told Rolling Stone magazine in April 2004.

Charles won nine of his 12 Grammy Awards between 1960 and 1966, including the best R&B recording three consecutive years ("Hit the Road Jack," "I Can't Stop Loving You" and "Busted").

Like Ronald Reagen.

yeah i'm just reading the headline now...

i remember my dad telling me he saw charles at the apollo theatre in the 50s... he was the only white face in the building... he got lots of looks from people but everyone was there for the music (and he wasn't alone)... the way he talks about it makes me think it was one of the best shows he's ever seen...

Ray Charles was a musical giant of the 20th century. His influence on music will be strongly felt long after every single one of Ronald Reagan's "accomplishments" are assigned to the "ash heap of history".

Gee Rev...what brought on that little rant? Why don't you compare Ray's legacy to a few more deceased presidents while you're at it? Might as well throw in a few senators too!

I just think it's a shame that Ray Charles' passing will be totally eclipsed by this orgy of pointless patriotic idolatry that's going on.

you obviously never heard Reagan's cover of "Blue Suede Shoes!"

You're alright, ol' pal.

Too true!