Ray Charles Is In Town - Chronology 1962

First announcement of a Swing Time compilation album, Odeon, in Billboard , May 12.

Probably somehere in France, c. 1962. Photo by Michel Salou.

From Philadelphia Tribune archives, earliest date on backside 21 April, 1962.

With Marty Paich.

Photo by Jim Marhall, New York, 1962. From a caption: "Marshall was invited to spend time with Ray Charles in 1962 at [an ABC-Paramount] recording studio in New York. He ended up hanging out for two hours, snapping casual pictures of Charles recording. But, Marshall jokes, 'He never did like my pictures.'"

From the same shoot??

Mae Mosely-Lyles (a.k.a. Saunders), Ray Charles . Repro from Exposure Magazine, Dec 1989. Situates the photo in Hollywood [prob. at United studio], in 1962. Photo by William Claxton.

From same shoot.

Same photo, prob. colorized, from the same shoot.

Photos by William Claxton. A story often (e.g. see this) told in comments on the last photo is: "During a break in a recording session with Ray Charles in 1962, Claxton led Charles from instrument to instrument so he could feel them, the equivalent for the sightless singer of seeing them for the first time. Charles was thrilled, and Claxton got some great pictures". The part about "seeing them for the first time" seems highly improbable to me.

Photo by Jim Marshall, backstage (?), Long Island (?), 1962 [I'd say this pic was taken in a studio; see photos below,  BS].

At an ABC-Paramount studio. Photo by Jim Marhall, New York, 1962.

Photo by Jim Marshall, often associated with concert in Oakland in 1960, but surely from recording session, probably this same one, in 1962.

Photo by Jim Marshall. Hank Crawford at (same?) recording session.

At a (the same?) recording studio, by Jim Marshall, 1962.

At an ABC cocktail party with Abbey Lincoln.

Backstage at a concert with Jeff Brown, c. 1962.

1962

Cover of 1962 An Evening With Ray Charles souvenir brochure.

Cover of 1962 Recipe For Soul souvenir brochure.

I Can't Stop Loving You peaks at #1 on Pop and #1 on R&B, You Don't Know Me #2 on Pop and #5 on R&B, You Are My Sunshine #7 on Pop and #1 on R&B, Unchain My Heart #9 on Pop and #1 on R&B, Hide Nor Hair #20 on Pop, Your Cheatin' Heart #29 on Pop and #23 on R&B, Born To Lose #41 on Pop, At The Club #44 on Pop and #7 on R&B, Careless Love #60 on Pop, But On The Other Hand Baby #72 on Pop and #10 on R&B, Baby, It's Cold Outside (with Betty Carter) #91 on Pop.

Ray Charles Greatest Hits peaks at #5, Modern Sounds In Country And Western Music peaks at #1, and Modern Sounds In Country And Western Music Volume Two peaks at #2 on Billboard Pop Album Chart.

At an event with KDIA DJ Belva Davis:

January 1962

Release of the single Baby, It's Cold Outside / We'll Be Together Again (with Betty Carter).

1 January 1962

In a programme titled Ray Charles on France 1 (air date). See this.

4 January 1962

Trial for heroin possesion is set to begin in Indianapolis; attorney moves to have the charges dropped; case is bound over till 30 January.

9 January 1962

Judge in Indianapolis dismisses charges.

AP associated this picture with this event, but it was probably taken on an earlier date.

30 January 1962

In Indianapolis all drug charges against Ray are dropped; judge rules that the search of his hotel room violated his constitutional rights.

From Indianapolis Reporter, Feb. 2.

Flies to New York for concert that same night. Photo here.

5 February 1962

Records a.o. Bye, Bye Love at Capitol Studios in New York.

Prob. taken on this date at Capitol Studios..

12 February 1962

Records a.o. the Percy Mayfield song Hide ‘Nor Hair at United Studios in Hollywood.

Photo by William Claxton. One of the stories is that Sinatra attended one of  Ray's sessions at United Studios (on Feb. 12th or 15th) with Marilyn Monroe, but alternative captions to this photos state something like "Ray Charles, Marilyn Monroe, and an unidentified man at a recording session for Frank Sinatra’s Come Swing With Me album, 1961").

15 February 1962

Records a.o. the Don Gibson song I Can’t Stop Loving You at United Studios in Hollywood.

March 1962

Release of the single At the Club / Hide Nor Hair.

Starts Tangerine Label.

From Cashbox, Feb. 27, 1962.

From Billboard, Mar. 17, 1962.

From Billboard, Mar. 17, 1962.

Photo from Philadelphia Tribune, Mar. 3, under the header "Center of attention". The scene is from the cocktail party at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel, celebrating the new contract with ABC. The girls are hostesses.

2 March 1962

Two shows at McAlister Auditorium, Tulane University, New Orleans LA.

3 March 1962

Rhythm Rink, Atlanta GA.

Ad from Atlanta Daily World, Feb. 25.

6 March 1962

Sportpalast, Berlin. Concert was recorded, and released as an album in 1996. See this.

Around 6 March 1962

This article indicates that Ray and his orchestra also performed at the Star Club in Hamburg.

Arrival at Hamburg Airport.

Photos by Siegfried Loch.

Photo by Peter Bruchmann.

9 March 1962

Indianapolis IN.

15 March 1962

Ray refuses to perform at a segregated concert in Augusta.

17 March 1962

Mosque Theatre, Newark NJ, with Betty Carter.

18 March 1962

Buffalo Jazz Festival at Kleinhans Music Hall, Buffalo NY.

22 March 1962

National Guard Armory, Ft. Bragg, Fayetteville (soldier shot dead by rival on dance floor).

30 March 1962

Forum, Wichita KS.

*and possibly a concert at*

Ohio State University.

31 March 1962

Southern Methodist University (Moody) Coliseum, Dallas TX (9,000 in audience).

April 1962

As of late February the album title was still unknown (from Cashbox, Feb. 24, 1962)

Release of the album Modern Sounds In Country And Western Music, and the single I Can't Stop Loving You / Born To Lose.

Full page ad in Billboard and Cashbox, on Apr. 28, 1962.

1 April 1962

Two shows at Music Hall, Municipal Auditorium (= same as Silver Plate Circle Theater?), Kansas City KS. Read this.

From The Kansas City Times, Mar. 24.

6 – 15 April 1962

"Ray Charles Band and Revue " at Apollo Theatre, Harlem. 4 shows daily, 5 on Sunday. With Willie Lewis, Joe Adams (MC), Don & Juan, Horace Silver, Maxine Brown. Schiffman index card: "Same good performer... didn't do too well first show because of sound system".

18 April 1962

Pittsburgh PA.

22 April 1962

Two shows at McCormick Place, Chicago IL.

25 April 1962

Syria Mosque, Pittsburgh PA.

26 April 1962

Private Function, Detroit.

28 April 1962

Meehan Auditorium, Brown University, Providence RI.
Donnelly Memorial Theatre, Boston (3,450 seats, gross of $18,000 for two performances).

29 April 1962

Two shows at Lyric Theatre, Baltimore MD.

May 1962

Backstage at the Masonic Temple in Detroit, meeting  Little Stevie Wonder.

There are stories that Stevie sat in with the band for a few tunes.

Ray does free concert for 2,000 people, who couldn't get a ticket ("these are my fans, and if they're willing to wait in the rain to see me, you can be sure I'm willing to perform for them"; read this) in Copenhagen.

5 May 1962

In a program titled Ray Charles For Ever, on France 1 (air date). See this.

Music Hall, Cleveland OH.

9 May 1962

Onondaga County War Memorial, Syracuse NY.

10 May 1962

Covention Hall, Philadelphia PA. Hank Crawford was bandleader. One of the songs performed was But On The Other Hand.

Cover of The Genius Of Ray Charles souvenir brochure.

Souvenir program with notes about tunes that were performed.

11 May 1962

Academy Of Music, Brooklyn NY (grossed $11,000).

12 May 1962

Bushnell Memorial Hall, Hartford CT (grossed $11,000; "with a feeling of the big band era tempered by the spirit of a revival meeting").

*and*

Concert at Fordham University.

13 May 1962

Carnegie Hall, New York City NY (two shows, grossing 16,000).

17 May 1962
Arrival at Orly Airport, Paris for Eurpean tour (Paris, Lille, Roubaix, Brussels, Liège, Strasbourg, Thionville, Stockholm, Berlin, Genève, Montbéliard, Lyon, Bordeaux, Nice and Cannes).
Photos here and here (with wrong years).

Ray and Johnny Halliday obviously shook hands on two occasions...

17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 23 and 25 May 1962.

Concert series at L'Olympia Theater in Paris. At least four concerts were taped by Europe-1; a concert on the 18th was completely released, another concert on the 20th was partially released (cf. this).

Ticket stub (May 19th), coll. Jacques Merle.

Photo Reporters Associés/Gamma.

Photo by Jean-Pierre Leloir/Gamma.

Clipped from the c. 1964 souvenir brochure "My Early Years 1930 - 1960".

Photo by Mephisto / Rex.

Photo: Tony Frank / Getty.

Pics by unidentified photographer.

Two photos above: possibly shot during these concert series.

Photos by Maurice Zalewski.

David Fathead Newman and Don Wilkerson; photo prob. taken at the Olympia (from Jazz Hot #178).

Concert brochure.

Contact sheet.

With Raita Johnson, at the Alhambra in Bordeaux. Photo by Jacques Merle.

Two press photos (both with Raita Johnson) above both dated May 21.

With Raita Johnson and Henri Goldcran.

Prob. backstage at the Olympia, with Raita Johnson.

Photo by Maurice Zalewski.

Backstage with Eartha Kitt; photo by Eddy Wiggins.

Musicians: Marcus Belgrave, Wallace Davenport, Philip Guilbeau, John Hunt – trumpets; Henderson Chambers, James Lee Harbert, Frederic 'Keg' Johnson, Leon Comegys – trombones; Hank Crawford, Rudy Powell – alto saxophones; David Newman – tenor saxophone, alto saxophone, flute; Don Wilkerson – tenor saxophone; Leroy Cooper – baritone saxophone; Sonny Forriest – guitar; Edgar Willis – bass; Bruno Carr – drums. The Raelettes: Gwen Berry, Margie Hendricks, Pat Lyles, Darlene McRea.



Gets a reception (precise date unknown) at the Club d'Étoile, organized by Vega, the local records distrubutor.

Still from French TV news on 19 May: Johnny Hallyday and Sylvie Vartan after Ray's concert at Olympia.
Below the clip, at YouTube dated - probably erroneously - on May 16, 1963.

Ray receives the key to the City of Paris, some time between 1961 and 1963 (from a c 1964 souvenir brochure).

(c) Rex Features.

At the Olympia dressing room. These 2 photos were shot on or shortly after the 17th - (source says, incorrectly, at La Salle Pleyel). Second picture attributed to Tony Frank.

Leaving the Olympia with Raita Johnson. Photo by Jean-Louis Atlan/Corbis. 

26 - 27... May 1962

Tour in Belgium (Brussels 26, Liège 27, and "after that Antwerp and Ostend") postponed a/o canceled; only concert that I could find in Belgium was on June 3d.

26 May 1962

In stead, on the 26th there seems to have been this "Gala Exceptionnel" at the Casino in Roubaix:

This photo is often seen mirrored. Does it originate from the 1961 Paris Match shoot?

Probably at Chat Qui Pêche in Paris: Memphis Slim, Raita Johnson, Ray Charles and Philippe Adler. Photo by Jean-Pierre Leloir.

Clipped from Het Vrije Volk, June 13.

Sometime in May: at the Chat Qui Pêche in Paris, with Raita Johnson and Memphis Slim. Photo by Jean-Pierre Leloir.

 

Photos wih Raita (a.k.a. Greta) Johnson, as published in the June '62 edition of Ciné Télé-Revue.

27 May 1962

Grammy Award Best Rhythm & Blues Performance for Hit the Road Jack (Ray probably wasn't  present).

29 May 1962

Théâtre Municipal in Thionville (concert broken off because of technical problems).

30 May 1962
 Grand Hall du Wacken, Strassbourg FR.


1 June 1962

Interviewed in Australia (???).

3 June 1962

Concert in Brussels; Billboard reports: "program […] was a failure as a result of a bad sound system in the theater. Ticket prices were much too high". See this.

Video stills from the Brussels news item.

On the same day also a concert at the Deutschland Halle in Munich (?):

5 June 1962
Victoria Hall, Geneva.

10 June 1962

Landed at Arlanda Airport (coming from France), for two gigs at Gröna Lund Amusements Park, Stockholm, Sigtuna. See one more concert photo here.

Bottom 4 photos by Jan Persson.

12 June 1962

Departs from Orly, Paris.

16 June 1962

Sentenced to pay fine in Augusta case (cf. Chronology 1961).

Some time in June 1962

Buys Martin 404 airplane.

5 June 1962

Victoria Hall, Geneva.

10 June 1962

Gröna Lund, Stockholm.

Erik Ekman and Ray Charles. Photo by Bengt Malmqvist.

14 June 1962

Civil suit hearing in Atlanta; sentences to pay $757.16 for not playing a concert in Augusta that was picketed by students on March 15.

18 June 1962

Host to a press party at Pittsburgh's Carlton House.

29 June 1962
Canobie Lake Park, Salem NH.

30 June 1962

Port City Music Hall, Portland ME.

July - August 1962

In between gigs producing for Tangerine (Louis Jordan, Percy Mayfield, Little Jimmie Scott).

Photo: Bettmann/Corbis; pic was filed on July 4. The musicians seen on their back may have been David Newman and (with hat) Leroy Cooper.

Recording at unidentified studio; maybe from same session as photo above.

July 1962

Release of the single You Don't Know Me / Careless Love.

Trade ad (partial); prob. from Cashbox, Jul. 28, 1962.

1 July 1962

Gig at Roseland, Holyoke MA.

Hamilton Park, Waterbury, CT.

Ad in Hartford Courant (coll. Mike Tremaglio).

3 July 1962
Convention Hall, Asbury Park NJ (presented with Golden Records for Modern Sounds and Can't Stop; cf. this).

4 July 1962

War Memorial, Rochester NY.


Recording in New York.

Photo (c) Bettmann/Corbis, dated 4 July.

Cashbox cover of  July 21, 1962.

War Memorial Auditorium, Rochester.

6 to 17 July 1962

Regal Theater, Chicago IL - with Jimmy Smith, The Volumes, Betty Carter and Flip Wilson; $ 62,500 over the weekend, 42,000 fans crowded the 24 shows, around 40,000 fans had to be turned away.

Ad from Chicago Defender, July 7, as collected by Franz Hoffmann, in: Jazz Advertised.

From Cashbox, Jul. 7, 1962.

From Variety, Jul. 18.

14 July 1962

Arena of City (Omaha Civic) Auditorium, Omaha NE.

18 July 1962

Municipal Auditorium, Austin TX.

?19 or 20 July 1962?

Date is probably corrupt; see below, sub 21 August.

Show at Red Rocks outdoor theater in Denver, sponsored by station KIMN, and emceed by DJ Hugh Hocks; more than 10,000 fans sought their money's worth (they paid $2.75 and $ 3.50 per ticket) by staging a rhubarb after Ray cut short on his performance; beer bottles and cans and other missiles within reach were tossed at the empty stage, damaging the piano; on Wednesday 22nd KIMN aired a taped ‘editorial', which blasted Ray Charles, and apologized to the listeners.

22 - 23 July 1962

Integrated show at Memorial Auditorium, Dallas TX.
Silent footage from one of the shows:

27 July 1962

Shrine Auditorium, Los Angeles CA.

28 July 1962

Seattle Center Coliseum (World Fair Arena), Seattle WA.

29 July 1962

Nob Hill Masonic Memorial Temple, San Francisco CA.

Around this time in 1962

Municipal Auditorium, New Orleans.

2 August 1962

Festival de Jazz de La Baule-Escoublac; meets Johnny Hallyday.

5 August 1962

World's Fair Arena, Seattle Center Coliseum, Seattle WA.

7 August 1962
Exhibition Forum, Vancouver CA.
"Straight from the World's Fair to Exhibition Forum", "The World's Greatest Concert (21 Performers)"

8 August 1962

Private function at PNE Exhibition Forum in Vancouver BC. And a public concert in Vancouver; 4,500 attend, the show grosses $11,000.

On or around this day: "Mary Rubin, pianist for Christian Baptist Church, is reunited with her brother Philip Guilbeau, star trumpeter for Ray Charles, after 18 years" in Los Angeles. Photo by Charles Williams.

10 August 1962

Bakersfield CA.

16 August 1962

Saenger Theater, St. Louis MO.

21 August 1962

Red Rocks Amphitheatre, Morrison CO.



Concert ending in riots; see this article.

"Concert-goers began showing up at Red Rocks around noon on August 21, even though the Ray Charles gig wasn't starting until 8 p.m. Absolute dead of summer. [...] As the crowd began to swell in the light of dusk, it became increasingly impatient for the music to start. Kids started climbing on the rocks and up the lighting rigs. When the band appeared, there was no Ray [...], and his orchestra was forced to play extended instrumentals while folks understandably began wondering what the hell was happening. The beer bottles and cans rained down while audience members began chanting in a loud chorus, 'WE WANT RAY!' A couple of musicians became scared and left the stage entirely. Charles, meanwhile, was just arriving at the venue, and, taking note of the crowd's increasing restlessness, said he wanted to cancel the show. The police were ho help; they were staffed with a force of just 25, ten of whom were just there to direct traffic.

Some serious triage was in order. Local radio DJ Pogo Poge (born Morgan Branch White) from KIMN was emceeing the event. He did nothing to help matters, enraging the audience further by chastising them for their bad manners. A Denver Post article at the time described Poge [...] as adopting a "high school principal" attitude toward the crowd. Things were getting serious. More bottles were thrown [...], promoters petitioned Charles to take the stage and Theatres and Arenas director Joe Salankey said that if the band didn't play on, Charles and his band would be responsible for refunding the audience's ticket money. The singer was in a tough spot: a couple of his musicians had been injured in similar crowd-agitating incidents at concerts in Indiana and Illinois. He didn't want to put them in any more danger.

This is when Charles's genius kicked in. He knew the drunks in the crowd would only become increasingly irate, and, seeing as how there was no stipulation in his contract for how long his band had to play, he decided to do a very abbreviated set. That way, he wouldn't have to refund folks' admission. Thirteen songs and less than 45 minutes later, Charles and company were back off the stage. His set was, by all accounts, shoddy and ill-prepared, and after nine hours of waiting and drinking, the crowd was in no mood to play nice anymore. By the time the handful of officers calmed the crowd, no fewer than six fistfights had broken out among kids in the audience, and two full truckloads of garbage had been hurled on stage, including chairs that had been thrown after the band left. Eighteen people were treated for injuries.

A Rocky Mountain News review of the show was not too kind to Ray. 'If Charles is going to offer fans abbreviated concerts," it reads, "he should develop a line of patter that will leave the crowds in a more pleasant frame of mind.'"

 Article in Rocky Mountain News, prob. from August 22nd.

25 August 1962

Sells out the 22,000 seat stadium at the Island Park, Randalls Island NY Music Festival.

27 August 1962

Concert in New York City NY.

29 August 1962

Concert at Mountain park, Holyoke MA ("Newark promoter Teddy Powell and aide Charley Blackwell of Philly in Pittsburgh laying groundwork for the Ray Charles-Gloria Lynne concert at the beautiful Civic Auditorium on Sept. 13."); dates in Boston, Buffalo and Newark ... .

Shaw Artists' promotion ad for Ray Charles' 4th (1963) Europe tour, in Variety.

30 August 1962

Concert in Providence RI.

On Tonight, presented by Hal March. See this.

31 August 1962

New York; rehearsals for Modern Sounds Vol. 2 (also see below, sub 5 September).

Gets gold platter for Modern Sounds during concert at Convention Hall, Asbury Park NJ (but also see below, sub 1 or 2 September).

1 September 1962

Concord (Resort) Hotel, Kiamesha Lake NY.

From The Blacklisted Journalist (Al Aranowitz):

"My most poignant memory of Ray Charles is my glimpse of him as his valet rolled up his sleeve in a rear seat of his band bus, which had just pulled up to the stage door of the Concord Hotel, the most expensive vacation summer paradise in the Catskills' legendary Borscht Belt. Only Ray and his valet were left aboard the bus as I started down the steps to the ground. I waited outside the bus until Ray emerged a short time later. He was happy and smiling as he walked with his entourage along the corridor to his dressing room while running his hand against the wall.

'Man!"he said. 'this sure is a fine looking place!'

New York City's wealthier Jewry was not at all acquainted with Ray's music and Ray's engagement at the Concord at what was possibly that resort Hotel's busiest time of the season - the Labor Day Weekend - was entirely experimental.

If you don't like me at first, just listen a while. I'll find you,' Ray had told me. We'd see.

'Who is this blind schvartze??' wondered the thousand-strong audience, which included many elderly white-haired vacationers.

Unacquainted with Ray's magic, the yentas in the audience started leaving the showroom as soon as Ray began his show. The yentas figured they'd have a better time social climbing and gossiping in the lobby. During Ray's first four numbers, the move to the doors turned into an exodus. It was when Ray started singing You Don't Know Me that the rush for the doors suddenly stopped. Slowly, the outwardly flow turned inwardly. By the time Ray ended his show with his sexy, rhythmic, What'd I Say, the audience was banging on tables, standing on chairs, and joining in the shrieks of Ooooh and Ahhhh. Even the most stubborn of yentas rushed back in from the lobby, They wanted to see what all the excitement was all about."

Ad from NY Times, 21 Aug.

1 or 2 September 1962

Gets gold records for Modern Sounds album and Can't Stop single in New York, from DJs Scott Muni of WABC and George Tucker of WINS (but also see above, sub August 31).

Early recognition for Brother Ray's impact: "[...] Ray Charles has done for country music what President Eisenhower did for golf" (from Cashbox, Nov. 10, 1962).

One year later (Sep. 22, 1963), Cashbox put it even stronger: "Ray Charles was directly responsible [...]".

Concert at Ocean Beach, New London CT.

3 September 1962

Memphis City (North Hall) Auditorium, Memphis TN; 4,500 fans purchase $12,000 of tickets.

Early September 1962

For a desegregated audience at The Pines Drive in Tulsa, but band members don't get served afterwards:

5 September 1962

Recording Modern Sounds Vol. 2., side 1 in New York (arranged and conducted by Gerald Wilson).

That night: a concert at the Ellis Memorial Auditorium, Memphis TN.

6 September 1962

Barton Coliseum, Little Rock AR.

7 September 1962

Recording Modern Sounds Vol. 2, side 2 in Hollywood (arranged and conducted by Marty Paich).

Top photo: with Sid Feller.

Sid Feller and Ray Charles, recording Modern Sounds Vol. 2...

Feller and Charles, possibly at same studio (maybe the rehearsal session of August 31).

Ray Charles with Jack Haloran Singers, recording for Modern Sounds Vol. 2. Photos by Howard Morehead.

That night: a concert at the Municipal Auditorium in New Orleans LA.

8 September 1962

Municipal Auditorium, Shreveport LA.

12 September 1962

Auditorium, Atlantic City - nixed by advisory committee.

Loew's Providence, in or near Newport.

13 September 1962

Civic Arena, Pittsburgh PA; with Gloria Lynne; 8,107 people in audience; gross of $31,000; hundreds of tickets for the concerts were stolen from the Lomakin Music Store a week before.

16 September 1962

Concert at Cross Roads Mall in Roanoke; Ray Charles troupe failed to appear because of bad weather (in 1965 he was ordered to pay $6,300).

20 September 1962

David Newman and Hank Crawford gigging at Jazz Mecca Club in Atlanta ("stopped over in the city followng a nearby engagement at Chattanooga [...]. Hank Crawford [...] took the crowd by surprise as he played piano [...]". The band also included Marcus Belgrave, Sonnie Forriest, James Clay and Edgar Willis.

Ad in Atlanta Daily World, Sep 20, 1962.

22 September 1962

Municipal Auditorium, Norfolk VA.

23 September 1962

The Mosque, Richmond VA.

From Petersburg Progess-Index, 9 Sep.

26 September 1962

Hillside Theatre, Jamaica (Queens, New York City NY; source).

27 September 1962

Municipal Auditorium, Springfield MA.

Ad from Hartford Courant, 23 Sep.

29 September 1962

Cornell University, SDSU Open Air Theater, San Diego CA.

30 September 1962

Penn State Jazz Club, Recreation Building, University Park PA; tickets $1.75; review here.

This concert - as did his appearance in a 1961 concert at Penn State - sparked a controversy in the Penn State collegiate newspaper; this letter to the editor is just one sample (more here):

October 1962

Jazz Magazine, October '62, with article "The Impact of Ray Charles".

Release of album Modern Sounds In Country And Western Music Volume 2.

Newswire photo (with Hank Crawford) and PR article from unidentified newspaper, Nov. 30.

1 October 1962

Ohio State University, Columbus OH.

3 October 1962

Veterans Memorial Auditorium, Columbus OH.

4 October 1962

Music Hall, Cincinnati IN.

*and/or:*

Roberts Municipal Stadium, Evansville IN.

6 October 1962

Civic Center, Charleston WV.

From Charleston Gazette-Mail, 16 Sep.

7 October 1962

Concert at unidentified venue in Charlotte NC.

12 October 1962

Civic Center, Pittsburgh PA.

20 October 1962

At Coliseum, in Charlotte NC

*and*

At University, Miami.

27 October 1962

Miami Beach Auditorium, Miami Beach FL.

30 October 1962

National Stadium, Kingston, with guest singer Dolly Clark and Byron Lee and the Dragonaires; "chaos at stadium", "the majority could not hear anything", the Jamaica Gleaner wrote. See this.

Ad for the concert in Jamaica.

November 1962

Release of the single You Are My Sunshine / Your Cheating Heart.

5 November 1962

Music Hall, Cincinnati OH

8 November 1962

Peabody Auditorium, Daytona Beach FL.

9 November 1962

Two and a half hours Fall Frolics show at the Florida Gymnasium, Gainsville FL ("Jazz was brought to the University of Florida campus by Ray Charles and his band on November 9th, in the Florida Gymnasium before an estimated crowd of 8,400. [...] The first portion of the performance was taken over by Ray Charles sixteen piece band, playing everything from rock and roll to cha cha and from old standards to jazz. The audience listened attentively but suspense built up for the appearance of the big man himself. After intermission, Ray Charles was led on stage by a fellow musician, setting off an electric response. Audience appreciation and respect for his ability were shown by tremendous ovations following such favorites as Georgia, I Can't Stop Loving You, and Hard Hearted Hanna."

From Seminole Yearbook 1962.

12 November 1962

Concert in Greensboro NC.

14 November 1962

Murat Theatre, Indianapolis IN.

15 November 1962

Music Hall, Cincinnati OH.

19 November 1962

Concert Bowl (northrop) Auditorium in Minneapolis MN.

23 November – 2 December or 29 November - 12 December 1962

Latin Casino, Cherry Hill.

From 16 Magazine: "Thrillsville came the way of our editor, Georgia Winters, when she presented Ray Charles with The First Annual GeeGee Award for Outstanding Achievement. After making the presentation, Georgia returned to her seat only to hear the great Ray personally dedicate a number to her from the stage. What was it? Georgia, of course!"

On the night of one of these last gigs at the Latin Casino (according to Variety, on Nov. 29), he gets two awards, presented by Dick Clark (assisted by Chubby Checker) for favorite vocal single (Can't Stop) and favorite vocal album (Modern Sounds) of the year in the Billboard DJ Poll.

29 November 1962

Those who attend the Nov. 29 closed-circuit TV show at Carnegie Hall for the National Cultural Center meet Ray Charles, Sarah Vaughn and Lisa Kirk. See this.

3 December 1962

Recording session for singles in LA ("no strings", "no ballads"; cf. this, but also this).

13 December 1962

Loew's Poll Theater, Bridgeport CT.

14 December 1962

Late night show at the National Guard Armory in Washington, DC (cf. comments).

17 December 1962.

Loyola Field House at Loyola University in New Orleans LA. Governor Jimmie Davis presents Ray with an award.

(You Are My Sunshine was written by Davis in 1947. He was re-elected governor in 1960; when he heard Ray was coming to New Orleans he invited him to Baton Rouge to receive some type of recognition award for reviving the song. A fan remembers: "Ray was then going to make the one hour drive from Baton Rouge to New Orleans for the concert which was scheduled to begin at 8:30 PM. Many announcements were made during the next three hours that Ray was on the way, [but that] he was being slowed down due to fog (although there was no fog in New Orleans) and that we (the audience) just needed to be patient. Anyway, Ray finally got there and the performance started at midnight to a still packed house. Over the next few days there were rumors that Ray [had been] detained in Baton Rouge on drug charges and then released [...]". 

Ticket stub (collection: Tom Sunseri).

22 December 1962

Two shows at Opera House, Seattle WA.

23 December 1962

Coliseum, Spokane WA.

24 December 1962

Civic Auditorium, Portland OR.

26 December 1962

Shrine Auditorium, Los Angeles CA ("[...] the greatest singer since the sewing machine, will again fill the Shrine Auditorium […] when thousands of his musical congregation will thrill to his soul sounds […]"); the S.R.O. crowd of 6,522 pays $26,300 to see him perform. Charles emerged with $15,200, Zeiger paid $2,000 rent and staffed spot himself. The Atlanta Daily Star of January 1st 1963 (!) mentioned this concert as "a coast to coast appearance" - meaning that the show had been staged all over the U.S.

28 December 1962

Civic Auditorium, San Francisco CA; read this.

29 December 1962

Community Theater, Berkeley CA.

From Oakland Tribune, 22 Dec.

31 December 1962
Municipal Auditorium, Long Beach CA.

Ad frrom Long Beach Press-Telegram, 30 Dec.

Ray Charles, backstage with Miss Cupertino and friends. Photos by Marty Rowe (coll. Patrick Batson).

Miss Cupertino 1962 is still around. She remembers that the concert where these photos were made took place in the winter of 1962 / 1963. Probably at the Light Opera House in San Jose, possibly at another venue in the Bay Area.

Who can add a precise date and venue to these pictures?

Despite all details, the story about the signature is..., well, hard to believe. Ray never signed anything.