Ray Charles Is In Town - Chronology 1994

1994

 

Commercial for Brasilian beer brand Antárctica; see this.

Photos by Lori Stoll.

Ft. in film Love Affair. See this.
  Interviewed on NBC’s Now (also bootlegged). See this.
In Peugeot commercial (probably shot in March). See this.

Ray Charles taking some rest during the shooting of the Peugeot commercial.

Showroom card?

2 January 1994
Masonic Temple Theatre, Detroit MI.

Photo by Jeff Kowalsky.

29 January 1994
Tribute to new mayor Tom Murphy in Pittsburgh.
On French TV in C'est Votre Vie with Michel Leeb (air date); see this.

26 February 1994
Black Heritage show at the Arie Crown Theatre, Chicago IL.

1 March 1994
Wins Best R&B Vocal Performance, Male Grammy award for A Song For You.

9 March 1994
Herbalife International Extravaganza in Orange County; with Natalie Cole and The Bethune Cookman Concert Chorale.

12 March 1994
Mission Estate Winery, Hawkes Bay, New Zealand.

The CD The Best Of Mission Estate Winery - Sofar 1993 - 2009also has What'd I Say - I guess a copy of one of the old Atlantic versions (as kindly confirmed by the Estate's CEO, mr. Peter Holley); also see this.

2 April 1994
Circus Maximus at Caesar's Palace, Las Vegas NV.

Don Peake, Ray Charles, Peter Turre.

10 April 1994
Sunshine Festival of States at Vinoy Park in St. Petersburg FL.

20 April 1994
Benefit for Vogel Alcove at Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center, Dallas TX (with The Boys Choir of Harlem).

22 April 1994
At Essence Awards (aired on 7 June 1994). See this.

23 April 1994
Receives Lifetime Achievement Award at Ebony's 15th Annual Black Achievement Awards show (aired from April 30 to July 9 1994). See this.

Photo by James Mitchell.

?28 April? 1994
On The Parade Of Stars. See this.

30 April 1994
Sioux Falls Arena, Sioux Falls SD.
Irving S. Gilmore International Keyboard Festival, Kalamazoo.

4 May 1994

Photo by Dominique Jacovides.

Ray Charles planking.

World Music Awards, Monte Carlo (aired by ABC on 31 May 1994). See this.

9 May 1994
On the Late Show. See this.

12 May 1994
Receives Helen Keller Achievement Award from the American Foundation for the Blind,at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York.
Cameo In Wings (air date). See this.

13 May 1994
Ft. in episode of Ray Alexander: A taste For Justice (air date). See this.

Around mid May 1994
"President Clinton was surprised Friday night here during the $ 1,000-a-ticket fundraiser for Diane Feinstein at Ron Burkles' home (Greenacres, the former Harold Lloyd estate) when Ray Charles came onstage to play A Song For You. Clinton had announced on MTV that Charles' rendition of Leon Russell's tune is his favorite" (source here).

1 June 1994
Symphony Hall, Phonix AZ.
 Release of …Take 6, Join The Band, with Ray's contribution to My Friend. See this.

Take 6 with Ray Charles, prob. at taping of  My Friend.

Symphony Hall, Phoenix.


7 June 1994
At a charity event for the disabled.


7 and 8 June 1994
Humphrey's Convcerts by the Bay, San Diego CA.

9 June 1994
Circus Maximus at Caesar's Palace, Las Vegas NV.

10 June 1994
Performing Arts Center, Orange County, Orlando FL; tickets $26 to $44. Read announcement here; read review here.

11 June 1994
Konocti Harbor Resort & Spa, Kelseyville CA.

12 June 1994
Louis M. Davies Symphony Hall in San Francisco CA (sold out).

19 June 1994
Madison Square Garden, New York City NY.

20 June 1994
The Pavilion at Ravinia, Highland Park IL; with Tower of Power; tickets $7-$25.

With Peter Turre.

Summer 1994
(At Artie Shaw's home in?) California.

Double portrait by Jacques Lowe: Ray Charles with his youth hero, Artie Shaw.

21 June 1994
Meadow Brook Music Festival, Rochester Hills.

22 June 1994
Meldoy Fair ("canceled [by RC] because of poor ticket sales throughout his Northeastern tour").

23 June 1994
Oakdale Theatre in Wallingford CT; with Tower of Power("his bobs and weaves, his high kicks and pidgeon-toed dances seem nothing but pure joyful expression. But as one former band member has pointed out, it is genius bandleader at work: he keeps tempo with his shoulders and points at the band with his head"; read this.


24 June 1994
Warwick Musical Theater, Warwick RI; with Tower of Power.

25 June 1994
With Shirley Horn at The New Harborlights Stage,Fan Pier, Boston MA.

28 June 1994
Haifa Soul and Blues Festival, Haifa IL.

29 and 30 June 1994
JVC Jazz Festival; with The Tower Of Power, Avery Fisher Hall, New York City NY ("He didn't play his electric piano much, and his vocals were often drowned out by the 17-piece, brass-heavy Ray Charles Orchestra. But, in the short amount of time he performed [...], Mr. Charles moved many audience members to tears. [...His] emotional impact came from his musical frugality. His slightest keyboard glissando or squeal of delight added more intensity to each song than any horn section could ever have conjured. He played the piano as if it were the third rail of a subway track. Every key his fingers touched sent his body into convulsions. His vocals were just as spare and expressive"; read review here). Both shows may have been taped; cf. this


July 1994
Concert in New York City NY.

Photo by Bill Tompkins/Getty.

1 July 1994
Valley Forge Music Fair, Devon PA (Tower of Power opened the show). The concert was taped from the audience; cf. this.

6 July 1994
Interviewed on Now (NBC; also circulating as bootleg). See this.

7 July 1994
Athens, Greece. See photos here.

11 a/o 12 July 1994
Nice Jazz Festival.

13 and 14 July 1994
The 2nd Moscow International Jazz Festival, dedicated to the 60th anniversary of Oleg Lundstrom's Orchestra, at The State Central (Rossia) concert hall, Moscow RU. Concert on 14^th recorded for tv; see this. Photos (I guess from the 13th) here.

15 July 1994
Rhein-Main-Halle, Wiesbaden DE.

16 July 1994
Belgium Rhythm 'n' Blues Festival, Peer BE.

Embed from Getty Images

Embed from Getty Images

Embed from Getty Images

Embed from Getty Images

Embed from Getty Images

Embed from Getty Images

Embed from Getty Images

Photo by Jos Knaepen.

20 July 1994
Musikhuset, Aarhus DK.

22 July 1994
Stadtpark, Hamburg; with Diane Schuur.

Photo: Ullstein/Getty.

23 July 1994
Revierpark Nienhausen, Gelsenkirchen DE.



This interview was aired by WDR the next day.

24 July 1994
Rennplatz Iffezheim, Baden-Baden DE.

6 or 7 August 1994
At 12th annual We Fest, Detroit Lakes.

13 and/or 14 August 1994
Bethel '94 festival.

17 August 1994
Accompanied by a 40-piece orchestra, and Etta James, backed by her Roots Band, in a concert themed Moonlight and the Blues, at the Hollywood Bowl, Hollywood CA. Read announcement here.

21 August 1994
Summer Nights At The Pier, Pier Theater, Seattle WA; tickets $32 (Seattle Mayor Norm Rice proclaimed August 21 "What'd I Say" Day).

28 August 1994
The Pavilion at Ravinia Festival, Highland Park IL.

29 August 1994
Interviewed for The Comeback & Return Of Singer Jimmy Scott After A Battle With A Rare Disease (air date). See this.

5 September 1994
7th Golden Stag international music festival, on Sfatului Square in the Transylvanian town of Brasov, Romania. ("More than 7,000 people seated in Sfatului Square and more than 18 million viewers watched every night a 2 and a half hour live transmission [...] by Canadian, Spanish, and Japanese television [...]"). See this.

10 September 1994
St. Petersburg, FA.

 

 

Photos by John Stanmeyer.

15 September 1994
Cerbul de Aur, Brașov RO.

16 and 17 September 1994
Columbus Symphony Orchestra's opening night of its Pops Concert Series at Ohio Theater, Columbus OH.

23 to 25 September 1994
The Grand Landmark Theatre, Syracuse NY.

26 September 1994
Attends charity event for Andrews' Fisher House, Washington. See this.

27 September 1994
Guest artist at a concert of Illinois Jacket at Carnegie Hall in New York (also with Hank Jones, Joshua Redman, Al Grey, Milt Hinton); tickets at $20-$40 ("Then Ray Charles came out, and everything truly fell apart, but in a good way this time. Mr. Charles and Mr. Jacquet's band played 'Georgia' perfunctorily, and it looked as if he were poised to sleepwalk through his material. Then he and Mr. Jacquet began performing some blues, and Mr. Charles, a fine, eccentric pianist, began to enjoy himself, throwing ideas around and changing the sound of his electric keyboard to vibraphone and guitar and other, odder electric colors. But it all worked, and when Mr. Jacquet soloed a wild air of improvisation filled the room. Then out came Lionel Hampton, Mr. Jacquet's old employer, and he and the band played "Flying Home," featuring Mr. Jacquet performing the solo that made him famous, and joined by Ray Charles. The music left a good-natured feeling in the hall, and the audience jumped up for a standing ovation. [...]"; read review here).

20 October 1994
Benefit at Long Beach Convention Center, Long Beach CA (tickets at $200).

30 October 1994
Civic Arts Plaza, Thousand Oaks CA.

4 - 5 November 1994
Kentucky Center for the Arts in Louisville KY on the night before the Breeders' Cup Race; with Gladys Knight.

19 November 1994
Benefit at Germantown Performing Arts Centre at Exeter and Neshoba, Memphis TN (710 guests; tickets at $150).


20 November 1994
Interviewed for documentary Joe Cocker: Have A Little Faith In Me (air date). See this.

22 November 1994
Version of The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire), made for the movie Love Affair, released on soundtrack of the film. See this.

2 to 4 December 1994
Foxwoods High Stakes Bingo and Casino in Ledyard, Mashantucket CT.

Japanese tour brochure, 1994.

In concert at Notre Dame in Southband in 1994. Photo by Ray Thoraldson.

'94 ad for Frito-Lay Sunchips. Article in People.

'94 ad for Frito-Lay Sunchips.
Article in People.