Ray Charles Live At The Rheingau Musik Festival (1999)

On 3 July 1999 Ray Charles gave a double concert at Schloss Johannisberg during the yearly Rheingau Musik Festival, with the HR Big Band, conducted by drummer Peter Turre. Brad Rabuchin subbed on bass*. The Raelettes contributed in an "all 5" line-up.

The old man's voice was frail and squeeky, but had warmed up enough for yet another moving rendition of A Song For You, and a brief but great version of I Believe To My Soul.

I've seen a full (58-minute) copy of the original broadcast by the H[essischer] R[undfunk], directed by Karin Kittel.** 3Sat aired a 45-minute version of the concert on 7 January 2007.

1. Intro
2. Then We'll Be Home (Sadies Tune)
3. Busted
4. Georgia On My Mind
5. Mississippi Mud
6. Just For A Thrill
7. Teardrops From My Eyes
8. Say No More
9. Blues For Big Scotia
10. A Song For You
11. Chain Of Fools (with The Raelettes)
12. I Can't Stop Loving You
13. I Believe To My Soul
14. What'd I Say
15. Outro

*   Special thanks to Hector Tarin Nieto.

** Brad Rabuchin wrote, "One of my more crazy and scary experiences: I was on tour with Ray Charles in Europe the summer of 1999. From Ray's regular band we had brought only guitar, drums, bass and the [Raelettes] on the tour and [we] were picking up local big bands in each city. We would quickly rehearse them and then do the gig that same night. 

The bass player [Curt Ohlson] got seriously ill at our rehearsal in Vienna and had to be rushed to the hospital. Now, stuck with no bass player and with charts that did not contain many of the bass nuances and quarks that Ray expected, Peter Turre (the drummer) and I decided that I would switch to bass and [that] we would go without guitar on the Vienna gig. Up to this point I had never played bass with Ray or even considered it, so I survived rather unscathed but was pretty nervous throughout much of it. Now the plan became [to] fly another bass player out from the US that has played with him previously and I would hold the fort down on bass in the mean time. Then we head to the next gig in the following night in Germany outside of Frankfurt. Oh, and by the way, it's gonna be TELEVISED throughout Germany!"