Thanks For Bringing Love Around Again (2002)

1. What'd I Say ["new arrangement"]
2. Can You Love Me Like That (with The Raelettes)
3. How Did You Feel The Morning After
4. I Love You More Than I Ever Have
5. Really Got A Hold On Me
6. Thanks For Bringing Love Around Again
7. Save Your Lovin' Just For Me
8. I Just Can't Get Enough Of You
9. Ensemble (with Ginie Line)
10. New Orleans
11. Mr. Creole
12. Mother 

On this album Ray used a variety of synthesizers for backing strings, horns and percussion. For the occasion he relaunched his Crossover label. Staff songwriter Billy Osborne penned most of the tunes and prepared the basic rhythm and synth tracks. This was the last album that Ray produced - he picked the tunes and oversaw the arrangements. He had been recording, mixing and remixing the tracks on this album (also filling in his own backing vocals on a number of tracks) since 1997.
Ensemble was a studio version of a song he originally performed live with Ginie Line on the French Star Academy show, in 2002*. The new arrangement of What'd I Say was originally produced for a Japanese commercial. Mr. Creole was written by Renald Richard, the trumpet player who led Ray's first band in 1954. Mother was a moving final tribute to his own mother; he performed it as a personal statement: "I surely still do miss my Mama, doesn't matter how old I grow... no one can take my Mother's love from me." By the end a chorus of Rays sings a mournful a cappella.

* For an odd 2010 version of this duet with Lara Fabian, read this post.

In this minidoc Billy Osbornelooked back on his collaboration with Ray:


Personnel:
Brenda Lee Egar (vocals); Phillipe Falcao (acoustic & electric guitars); Paul Jackson Jr, Marlo Henderson (guitar); Larry Williams (saxophone); Gary Grant, Jerry Hey (trumpet); Randy Kerber (keyboards); Oliver Monteils (drums); Mike Fisher (percussion); The Waters, Katrina Harper Cooke (background vocals).
Recorded at Ouistiti Studios and Plus XXX Studios, Paris, France; RPM International, Los Angeles, California; Lighthouse Recording Studio, Studio City, California.

Crossover 4000, 2002-05.