A Peace That We Never Before Could Enjoy

Album: Love And Peace, Crossover/Atlantic 19199, September 1978.
Single (B): Crossover/Atlantic 3473, March 1978, b/w Game Number Nine.

Written by Mable John and (her son) Joel Webster. Recorded at RPM International in Los Angeles.

(Track #7):

Give The Poor Man A Break

Album: Love And Peace, Crossover/Atlantic 19199, September 1978.

Recorded at RPM International in Los Angeles. Scott von Ravensberg on drums.

(Last track):

Is There Anyone Out There

Album: Love And Peace, Crossover/Atlantic 19199, September 1978.

Recorded at RPM International in Los Angeles (that choir sounds BIG, though).

(Track #8):

No Achievement Showing

Album: Love And Peace, Crossover/Atlantic 19199, September 1978.

Disco! Recorded at RPM International in Los Angeles.

(Track #6):

Riding Thumb

Album: Love And Peace, Crossover/Atlantic 19199, September 1978.
Single (B): Crossover/Atlantic 3527, October 1978, b/w You Forgot Your Memory.

Recorded at RPM International in Los Angeles.

Not at all a typical Ray Charles song, but he must have loved it to pieces. When he called the "Big 3" for a concert, it meant that his part of the program would open with Riding Thumb, Busted, and Georgia (in the "Little 3" Riding Thumb was replaced by Sadies Tune).



Edmonton 1981 (starts at 1:05):


Live:
'79 TV Douglas NM
'79 TV TS
'79 LC Viareggio
'81 LC Edmonton - Released
'81 LC Rome
'81 LC Sanremo
'82 TV KFBE
'82 LC Beacon
'82 LC Japan
'83 CL Antibes
'84 LC Austin
'84 LC Viareggio
'84 LC Warsaw - Released
'84 LC Ithaca
'85 LC Antibes
'88 LC Oklahoma
'88 LC Masson
'89 LC Ghent
'89 LC Osaka
'90 LC ArtPark
'90 LC Lloret
'90 LC Caneção
'95 LC Tramps - 2x
'96 LC Montauk
'97 LC Philly
'99 LC NewOrleans NM
'00 LC Basel

She Knows

Album: Love And Peace, Crossover/Atlantic 19199, September 1978.

Recorded with members of the Ray Charles Orchestra and strings at RPM International in Los Angeles. Magnificent trumpet solo by Johnny Coles.



The live version had an even slower and further stripped down arrangement (like a 'duet between Genius and bass'), and an even more virtuoso end (see the Warsaw clip, below).
Bass player Nils Johnson remembered "[...] him singing the falsetto end of She Knows with a head cold and all sorts of congestion on his vocal chords. His elbows pushed into his sides as he simply nailed it. It seemed impossible in his condition but he did it anyway!"
After suffering an acute laryngitis in '99, however, Ray had to stop performing the song.

Warsaw 1984:


Live:
'78 TV Exclusif
'79 TV Douglas NM
'79 TV TS
'79 LC Antibes
'79 LC Viareggio
'80 LC Pops
'80 LC Northsea
'81 LC Prague
'84 LC Nancy
'84 LC Warsaw - Released
'84 LC Ithaca
'86 LC Lugano
'86 LC Rio
'90 LC ArtPark
'90 LC Lloret
'90 LC Tokyo
'91 LC BlueNote

Take Off That Dress

Album: Love And Peace, Crossover/Atlantic 19199, September 1978.

Recorded at RPM International in Los Angeles.

As usual in these years, Ray worked with The Raelettes, members of his Orchestra and session musicians; Scott von Ravensberg on drums.

Track #2:

We Had It All

Album: Love And Peace, Crossover/Atlantic 19199, September 1978.

Recorded at RPM International in Los Angeles.



Live:
'78 TV Exclusif

You 20th-Century Fox

UK single.

Album: Love And Peace, Crossover/Atlantic 19199, September 1978.
Single (B): Crossover/Atlantic 3611, August 1979.

Recorded at RPM International in Los Angeles.
The musicians were not credited (but James Gadson was on drums).

Love And Peace (1978)

1. You 20th-Century Fox (James Gadson on drums)
2. Take Off That Dress
3. She Knows
4. Riding Thumb
5. We Had It All
6. No Achievement Showing
7. A Peace That We Never Before Could Enjoy
8. Is There Anyone Out There
9. Give The Poor Man A Break

Love And Peace was the first Ray Charles album produced on 24 tracks, at RPM. Ray used them all.

The musicians remained uncredited. As usual in these years, Ray worked with The Raelettes, members of his Orchestra and session musicians.
Peter Turre, Ray's drummer for many years, informed me that Steve Beskrone (bass) played on a lot of the tracks, with studio ace Paul Humphries and funkmaster supreme James Gadson on drums. Drummer Scott von Ravensberg recalls re-recording the drum tracks on #2, 4, 7 and 9. I guess that means that Paul Humphries can still be heard on on She Knows, We Had It All, No Achievement Showing and Is There Anyone Out There.

Crossover/Atlantic 19199, 1978-09.

Complete album (audio only):