Ray Charles Live In Maribor (1996)

In July 1996 the Ray Charles band played at the Lent Festival in Maribor, Slovenia. Barbara Morrison opened the show with the Orchestra.
The concert (without Morrison's part) was recorded for SLO1, the first net of Radiotelevizija Slovenija (presented by Eva Stavbar, directed by Petar Radović). I've seen a reasonably good video copy with the following selection:

1. Intro RC
2. Busted
3. Georgia On My Mind
4. Oh, What A Beautiful Morning
5. Just For A Thrill
6. Angelina
7. Blues For Big Scotia
8. A Song For You
9. Intro Raelettes (by RC)
10. Knock On Wood
11. I Can't Stop Loving You
12. What'd I Say (with intro: I'm Gonna Keep Singin')
13. Outro

Personnel:
Musicians: Ted Murdock, Chuck Parrish, John Bailey, Kenny Scharf - trumpets; Steve Sigmund, Mike Guerrier, Sarah Morrow, Jason Jackson - trombones; Steve Elliott, Al Jackson (bandleader), Al Waters, Rudy Johnson, and Jim Farnsworth - saxophones; Kenny Carr - guitar; Curtis Ohlson - bass; Ernest Vantrease - Hammond organ; Peter Turre - drums. The Raelettes: Estella Yarbrough, Karen Evans, Cathy Mackey, Katrina Harper-Cooke (?), Tonette McKinney.

A Second Version Of Santa Claus Is Comin' To Town (1994)

Santa Claus Is Comin' To Town was part of Ray Charles' The Spirit Of Christmas album, recorded in the Fall of 1984, and officially released in early 1986.

Today, hearing this - radically different - version came as a big surprise:


This rendition was produced for the movie Miracle On 34th Street (1994). Ray almost always produced commercials and his contributions to movie sound tracks at his own RPM studios in Los Angeles. In this case, however, Jeremy Lubbock and Elliot Lurie were credited as producers, so the recording may have happened elsewhere.
The soundtrack of the film was released on CD by Fox Records (on 15 November 1994; 7822-11022-2).

This is the original album version:


For other Genius Christmas records and shows read this earlier post.

Ray Charles & His Orchestra Live In Zurich (1961)

"Begleitzettel"
(recto) of the tapes.

The Ray Charles Big Band's First Concert In Europe (1961) was recorded by Radio Basel (now part of Radio SRF 2 Kultur). My inquiries at their archives have resulted in the discovery of a set of 2 edited tapes with parts of this  "Jazzkonzert" by the "Ray Charles Big Band" at the "Kongresshaus Zürich" on "Mittwoch [Wednesday] 18. Oktober 1961" at 8.30 p.m. The tapes entail 22 tracks with 18* of the tunes that were performed that day:

1. Happy Faces / Sonny Stitt (Ray Charles Orchestra) - solo DN - ts (3'00")
2. Along Came Betty / Benny Golson (Ray Charles Orchestra) - solo MB - tp (3'19")
3. My Baby (I Love Her, Yes I Do) / Ray Charles (with The Raelettes) - ft. MH (4'26")
4. Sticks And Stones / Titus Turner (with The Raelettes) (3'33")
5. Georgia On My Mind / Hoagy Carmichael, Stuart Gorrell - solo DN - fl (6'20")
6. Blue Stone / Hank Crawford (Ray Charles Orchestra) - solos HC - as; PG - tp; DW - ts; RC? - as (7'06")
7. Margie / Benny Davis, Con Conrad, J. Russell Robinson (2'51")
8. Hit The Road Jack / Percy Mayfield (with The Raelettes) (2'32")
9. Birth Of A Band / Quincy Jones (Ray Charles Orchestra) - solos DN, DW - ts (chase); BC - d (3'54")
10. I Remember Clifford / Benny Golson (Ray Charles Orchestra) - solo JH - fh (5'26")
11. Come Rain Or Come Shine / Johnny Mercer, Harold Arlen - solo DW - ts (7'06")
12. Ghana / Ernie Wilkins (Ray Charles Orchestra) - solos DN - fl; LC - bs; SF - g (4'15")
13. I Believe To My Soul / Ray Charles (with The Raelettes) (4'04")
14. I've Got News For You / Roy Alfred (4'30")
15. Misty / Erroll Garner (Ray Charles Orchestra) - solo HC - as (7'54")
16. My Bonnie / Standard; arr. Ray Charles (with The Raelettes) - solo DN - ts (3'45")
17. I Wonder / Cecil Gant, Raymond Leveen (with The Raelettes) (3'44")
18. Ray Minor Ray / Benny Golson (Ray Charles Orchestra) - solos DW, DN - ts; EW - b (4'02")

Status
The archived tapes probably do not represent the order of the original setlist. The band-only instrumentals (#01, 02, 06, 09, 12, 15, 18) were almost always played before the intermission. At the end of #6 (Blue Stone), though, you can clearly hear Ray Charles say "All right!", which makes it probable that for this song The Genius played one or more of the solo parts on alto (just as he did in 1962, in Paris).

After #8 one can hear Ray call for "I Got News", and after #11 for "Hallelujah I Love Her So". From a contemporary review in Le Matin - Tribune de Lausanne, and from handwritten notes in the souvenir brochure of Hans Philippi, one could conclude that Alexander's Ragtime Band, Let The Good Times Roll, Moanin', and What'd I Say (and possibly Whisper Not) were also on the Zürich setlist...

The quality of the (mono) recording is excellent (though, a bit unfortunately, the 'audience noise' was suppressed almost completely).
Assuming that Radio Basel at the time has broadcast the tunes in the order of the tapes, it's impossible to conceive what kind of storyline the program maker was following.

Personnel 

Musicians: Ray Charles - piano, vocals; Marcus Belgrave, Wallace Davenport, Phil Guilbeau, John Hunt (flugelhorn) - trumpets; Henderson Chambers, Leon Comegys, James Lee Harbert, Keg Johnson - trombones; Hank Crawford (alto saxophone, band leader), Rudy Powell - alto saxophone; David Newman - tenor saxophone, flute; Don Wilkerson - tenor saxophone; Leroy Cooper - baritone saxophone; Bruno Carr - drums; Sonny Forriest - guitar; Edgar Willis - bass. Announcer: prob. Hank Crawford. The Raelettes:  Priscilla “Pat” Moseley Lyles, Margie Hendricks, Gwen Berry, Darlene McCrea - vocals.

Historical importance
This, so far, is the first-ever recording of the Ray Charles big band. The troupe appeared in its second known line-up, but sounded very well rehearsed (Ray's old small big band still formed the nucleus of the group)**. The ensemble play was very tight. Since Ray Charles only played piano, not Hammond, at this gig, the sound of the band as a whole is radically different from the concerts that were staged 2 days later, in Paris.
Misty (#15) is the only known live recording of this song by the Ray Charles Orchestra. Crawford's original studio version is known from his 1961 album More Soul (Atlantic SD 1356; the tune was also released as a single on Atlantic 45-5013), but this wonderful rendition is even more soulful. The tune's occurrence on the setlist is unexpected (it was e.g. never mentioned in any contemporary souvenir brochure's repertoire list).***
The extended outro of #4 (Sticks And Stones) sounds a lot like some early live versions of I've Got A Woman. As to be expected, #11 (Come Rain Or Come Shine) got yet another bone chilling rendition with Don Wilkerson on tenor. #10 and #14 are very early live recordings of I Remember Clifford, with an excellent solo on flugelhorn by John Hunt, and I've Got News For You.

Unfortunately My Bonnie was omitted from the 2016 CD release:

Special thanks
To Mario Schneeberger, who put me on the right trail, and to Peter Bürli, Redaktionsleiter Jazz at SRF 2 Kultur, who kindly allowed me to listen to the Radio Basel tapings.

* Announcements to some of the tunes were edited on 4 separate, numbered tracks (left out from the list above). The two tapes (with resp. #10-18 on tape "1" and #01 - 09 on tape "2A"), are archived by SFR under ID number BS_MG_FLU_6554_K01. ** Actually, with the exception of the July concerts in Antibes, Ray played that year with an "augmented" orchestra [i.e. big band] from April to December. *** Brother Ray recorded Misty much later, playing piano, with Steve Turre (album: In The Spur Of The Moment (Telarc B00004TUOZ, 1999). 

Ray Charles In A Rhythm Group With Preston Epps And Jackie Wilson (1959/60)

Ray Charles playing his Wurlitzer, with (f.l.t.r.) DJ and promoter Art Laboe, bongo player Preston Epps, and singer Jackie Wilson, shaking samba balls - probably posing for a promotional photo for "the season's most cosmopoliton event" at the Hollywood Palladium on July 23d, 1959.

Ray Charles Live At The Deep Hollow Ranch (1996)

T-shirt (detail; coll. P. Turre).

From Jet magazine, Sep. 1996.

On 19 August 1996 the Ray Charles band played at the Deep Hollow Ranch in Montauk for Paul Simon's 7th annual Back to the Ranch benefit. (Their performance was followed by James Brown's).

You can listen to a low quality audience taped recording of the RC concert here (downloads: WMA, MP3).

1. BBC (Ray Charles Orchestra)
2. Unidentified instrumental (Ray Charles Orchestra)
3. Goodness Gracious (Ray Charles Orchestra)
4. Intro RC
5. Riding Thumb
6. Busted
7. Georgia On My Mind
8. Oh, What A Beautiful Morning
9. How Long Has This Been Going On
10. Teardrops From My Eyes
11. Say No More
12. Stranger In My Own Home Town
13. Don't Set Me Free
14. I Can't Stop Loving You
15. What`d I Say
16. Outro

Ray Charles 6 Times Live At Tramps, NYC (1995)

Ray Charles at Tramps. David Hoffman in the background. Photo by Rahav Segev.

In 1995, from September 7 to 9, Ray Charles and his band were booked for Tramps' 20th Anniversary Celebration in New York. I posted before about one - bootlegged - concert in these series (identical to show #5, below). But recently Wolfgang's (Concert) Vault decided to make no less than six of the Tramps shows available for their subscribers.* This may seem a bit too abundant, but the good news is that the sound quality of these recordings is much better than the bootleg's.

1. 7 September 1995, early show 

1. Introduction show + Just Friends (Ray Charles Orchestra)
2. Introduction show
3. Introduction Ray Charles + Riding Thumb
4. Busted
5. Georgia On My Mind
6. Oh, What A Beautiful Morning
7. How Long Has This Been Going On
8. Teardrops From My Eyes
9. If I Could
10. Blues For Big Scotia
11. Intro Raelettes (by RC)
12. You Better Watch Them Dogs
13. I Can't Stop Loving You
14. What'd I Say
15. Outro

2. 7 September 1995, late show

1. Intro show + Fire Up (Ray Charles Orchestra)
2. Intro Ray Charles
3. Intro RC (cont'd) + Then We'll Be Home (Sadies Tune)
4. Georgia On My Mind
5. Some Enchanted Evening [Part 1]
6. Some Enchanted Evening [Part 2]
7. Just For A Thrill
8. You Made Me Love You (I Didn't Want To Do It)
9. A Song For You
10. Stranger In My Own Home Town
11. Intro Raelettes (by RC)
12. Knock On Wood
13. I Can't Stop Loving You
14. I Believe To My Soul
15. What'd I Say
16. Outro

3. 8 September 1995, early show 

1. Intro show + Viewpoint (Ray Charles Orchestra)
2. Intro Ray Charles
3. Marie
4. Margie
5. Georgia On My Mind
6. Oh, What A Beautiful Morning
7. Yours
8. Teardrops From My Eyes
9. A Song For You
10. Stranger In My Own Home Town
11. Intro Raelettes (by RC)
12. Chain Of Fools
13. I Can't Stop Loving You
14. I Believe To My Soul
15. What'd I Say
16. Outro (Part 1)
17. Outro (Part 2)

4. 8 September 1995, late show

1. Intro show + BBC (Ray Charles Orchestra)
2. Announcer begging audience to be more quiet
3. The Bright Lights And You Girl
4. Busted
5. Georgia On My Mind
6. Mississippi Mud
7. Come Rain Or Come Shine
8. You Made Me Love You (I Didn't Want To Do It)
9. A Song For You
10. Blues For Big Scotia
11. Intro Raelettes (by RC) + I Want Your Love
12. I Can't Stop Loving You
13. What'd I Say
14. Outro

5. 9 September 1995, early show 

1. Intro show + High On The Hogg (The Ray Charles Orchestra)
2. Intro Ray Charles
3. Let The Good Times Roll
4. Margie
5. Georgia On My Mind
6. Mississippi Mud
7. Come Rain Or Come Shine
8. Teardrops From My Eyes
9. If I Could
10. Blues For Big Scotia
11. Intro Raelettes
12. You Better Watch Them Dogs
13. I Can't Stop Loving You
14. Smack Dab In The Middle
15. I Believe To My Soul
16. What'd I Say + Outro

6. 9 September 1995, late show

1. Intro Ray Charles
2. Riding Thumb
3. Busted
4. Georgia On My Mind
5. Oh, What A Beautiful Morning
6. Just For A Thrill
7. The Good Life
8. A Song For You
9. Stranger In My Own Home Town
10. Intro Raelettes (by RC)
11. Guess Who I Saw Today
12. Hit The Road Jack
13. I Can't Stop Loving You
14. What'd I Say
15. Outro (Part 1)
16. Outro (Part 2)
17. Outro (Part 3)

It's remarkable how the tapings each evoked a slightly different club atmosphere - some with great audience interaction, some with the - wining and dining - audience annoyingly murmuring through the more tranquil parts of the songs. The setlists were without any real surprises.
High On The Hogg (track #1 of concert #5) is also known from a.o. a live recording during the 1975 Madrid concert. The Bob Florence composition Just Friends (track #1, concert 1) was also recorded in Montreux in 1997; Fire Up (track #1, concert 2) was also taped at the Lewiston ArtPark concert in 1990; Florence's BBC (track #1, concert 4) was also recorded at the 1997 Philadelphia concert. Viewpoint (track #1, concert 3) is a unique recording; it was composed and arranged by Steve Turre.
I Believe To My Soul each time got the funny, but unfortunately all too short, Muddy Waters/Hoochie Coochie intro (also known from the 1995 concert in Marciac).

* Special thanks to J.P. Verger, Joël Dufour and Steve Sigmund.

An Incomplete Audio Of Ray Charles' 2nd A Fool For You Ballet-Concert Series (1989)

May 12, 1989
Wolfgang's Concert Vault can't be praised enough for sharing their huge catalog of American live music with their internet audience. Their only flaw is that they often don't know exactly what they're publishing.

A recent file of a Ray Charles performance at the "ST Theatre" in New York, taped on 12 May 1989, offers 16 out of 18 untitled tracks. Without any explanation, two of the files (#03 and 04) have been omitted by Wolfgang. One tune (track #13/14) has been split in two (understandably, after an applause break). And 4 of the tracks (#01, 06, 15, 17) are  mere announcements and/or applause tapings.
What's left, however, is a high quality audio of one of the Fool For You-ballet performances with the New York City Ballet at the State Theatre of the Lincoln Center. The tracks are:

1. [Track 01] Intro RC (by announcer) + applause
2. [Track 02] Georgia On My Mind
3. [Track 03, missing from Concert Vault] Ain't That Love
4. [Track 04, missing from Concert Vault] Don't You Know
5. [Track 05] It Should've Been Me
6. [Track 06] Intro Raelettes (by RC)
7. [Track 07] Hit The Road Jack
8. [Track 08] Rockhouse
9. [Track 09] Mess Around
10. [Track 10] A Fool For You
11. [Track 11] I've Got A Woman
12. [Track 12] Drown In My Own Tears
13. [Track 13] What'd I Say [version 1]
14. [Track 14] What'd I Say [version 2]
15. [Track 15] Applause
16. [Track 16] Ol' Man River
17. [Track 17] Applause
18. [Track 18] America The Beautiful [+ closing announcement]

This 9 p.m. show on May 12th was also taped for TV by PBS, and broadcast on May 14, 1989. A complete video of this performance has survived also, but with a lesser sound quality.
Charles was in top condition, performing all tunes with gusto, as if they were still all part of his daily repertoire.

Choreographer Peter Martins and
Ray Charles rehearsing (from Esquire, May '88).

Ray played this partiture of songs (most in reconstructed arrangements that came as close as possible to the original recordings of the 1950's and 1960's) for the first time in 1988, involving the core of his best known small band line-up. In '89 he again brought his old brass players Guilbeau, Crawford, Newman and Cooper, but this time Marcus Belgrave (trumpet) was replaced by Jimmy Owens (an old friend of Crawford), and he also brought the contemporary Ray Charles Orchestra's rhythm section, with Jeff Ballard on drums, Kenny Carr on guitar and Darren Solomon on bass. Understandably, given the ballet's choreography, the band only got little room to fool around. David Newman got a few 'expected' pre-arranged solo parts, and Leroy Cooper solo'ed on Mess Around. The Raelettes in 1989 were Anita Brooks, Trudy Cohran, Kathryn Collier, Angie Workman and Estella Yarbrough. The New York City Ballet Orchestra (including a great little choir that excelled on Ol' Man River) was conducted by Robert Irving.

May 11, 1989
The groupe's performance on 11 May 1989 was also made public by Wolfgang's Vault. The sound quality is less, but bearable, and it has the merit of representing the complete partiture.

1. Georgia On My Mind (partial)
2. Ain't That Love
3. Don't You Know
4. It Should've Been Me
5. Hit The Road Jack
6. Rockhouse
7. Mess Around
8. A Fool For You
9. I Got A Woman
10. Drown In My Own Tears
11. What'd I Say
12. Ol' Man River
13. America The Beautiful

May 14 or 15, 1988
Finally, Wolfgang also published a (first known complete) taping of one of the 1988 performances. They say it was recorded on March 13, but that year the series were staged on May 14 and 15 as the closing part of the American Music Festival, also at the Lincoln's New York State Theater. Unfortunately, the recording sounds like an amateur board mix.

1. Georgia On My Mind 
2. Ain't That Love
3. Don't You Know
4. It Should've Been Me
5. Hit The Road Jack
6. Rockhouse
7. Mess Around
8. A Fool For You
9. I Got A Woman
10. Drown In My Own Tears
11. What'd I Say
12. Ol' Man River
13. America The Beautiful

*Special thanks to Joël Dufour and André Monnot for helping me correct an earlier, hasty and sloppy, version of this post.

Ray Charles In PSA For Glaucoma Research (1998)

In 1998 Ray Charles recorded this 30-second public service announcement for the GRF, promoting glaucoma awareness:

Ray Charles Live At The Wolf Trap (1997)

On June 21, 1997 Ray Charles gave a concert at the Wolf Trap in Vienna (VA). An audience-taped recording, with a very reasonable quality has survived.

1. Woody 'n' Bu (The Ray Charles Orchestra); solos KS - tp, RJ - ts, EV - p 
2. Unidentified instrumental* (The Ray Charles Orchestra); solos AW - ts, TM - tp
3. Easy Living (The Ray Charles Orchestra); solos DH - fh, KS - tp, JF - bs
4. Intro RC
5. Then We'll Be Home (Sadies Tune)
6. Busted
7. Georgia On My Mind
8. Mississippi Mud
9. Still Crazy After All These Years
10. Hallelujah I Love Her So
11. Say No More
12. Blues For Big Scotia
13. A Song For You
14. Intro Raelettes (by RC)
15. Alexander's Ragtime Band
16. Guess Who I Saw Today (The Raelettes)
17. Hit The Road Jack
18. I Can't Stop Loving You
19. What'd I Say
20. Outro

Personnel:
The line-up was highly similar or identical to the personnel listing during the Europe tour in July 1997.
Musicians: Ted Murdock, Roger Ingram, David Hoffman (fh), Ken Scharf - trumpets; Mike Guerrier, Steve Sigmund, Clay Lawry, Wayne Coniglio - trombones; Al Waters, Al Jackson, Steve Elliott, Rudy Johnson, James Farnsworth - saxophones; Peter Turre - drums; Kenny Carr - guitar; Tom Fowler - bass; Ernest Vantrease - keyboards. The Raelettes: Estella Yarbrough, Katrina Harper Cooke, Kathy Mackey, Karen Evans, Tonette McKinney.

Many thanks to David Hoffman. * Help in naming this tune appreciated!

Ray Charles Live At The ArtPark (1990)

On 20 June 1990 Ray Charles played at the ArtPark in Lewiston. An audience-taped recording can be found here.

1. Sister Sadie - partial (The Ray Charles Orchestra); solo Scott Frillman - bs
2. Fire Up (The Ray Charles Orchestra)
3. The Shadow Of Your Smile (The Ray Charles Orchestra)
4. Unidentified instrumental (The Ray Charles Orchestra)
5. Metamorphosis (The Ray Charles Orchestra)
6. Orchestra outro Jam
7. Intro RC
8. Riding Thumb
9. Busted
10. Georgia On My Mind
11. Mississippi Mud
12. The Brightest Smile In Town
13. Feel So Bad
14. She Knows (Tape Flip Edit At 50:14)
15. Intro Raelettes (by RC)
16. Don't Set Me Free (ft Estella Yarbrough)
17. Guess Who I Saw Today (with The Raelettes)
18. Hit The Road Jack
19. I Can't Stop Loving You
20. Smack Dab In The Middle
21. Lay Around And Love On You (All I Wanna Do Is --)
22. What'd I Say
23. Outro

Who can help (definitively) identify the title of #4?

Personnel:
The line-up was probably (almost?) identical to the one during the European tour in July '90.
Musicians: Chuck Parrish, Jeff Kaye, Jeff Helgesen, Kenny Rampton - trumpets; Steve Sigmund, Mike Guerrier, Marc Fields, Wayne Coniglio - trombones; Al Waters, Rudy Johnson, Al Jackson, Craig Bailey, Scott Frillman; David Rokeach - drums; Kenny Carr - guitar; Benoît Grey - bass; Ernest Vantrease - piano, organ. Raelettes: Trudy Cohran, Kay Nickerson, ?Lalomie Washburn?, Angie Workman, Estella Yarbrough.