Ray Charles – Modern Sounds In Country And Western Music

Ray Charles doing country and western? Surely this was the most improbable of album titles or subject matter for a man who was referred to as the ‘High Priest of Soul’. Yes, Ray Charles was doing both kinds of music, but not as we’d ever heard it before. This was an album of country and western standards backed by a full orchestra, choir and brass infused with rhythm and blues. It was a brash move for a man who had built his reputation on R & B and had recently scored hits with tracks like Hit The Road Jack, Unchain My Heart and What I’d Say. To make that move at the height of the civil rights movement in America when black was black and white was white where never the twain shall meet – not even in music, was extraordinarily bold. But Ray never saw any difference, as far as he was concerned country music and the blues were the same thing.

If you’re not familiar with Modern Sounds In Country And Western Music you don’t have to dig very far to discover that it has been given accolades such as “one of the greatest albums of all time”, “the most important record in the history of popular music ” or something similar. But I haven’t chosen this record because it changed our perceptions of what soul, gospel, jazz or rhythm and blues could be – let alone country music. I’ve chosen it because of what it did for me.

You see until my father brought this record home the only black music I’d heard was whatever was being played on commercial Australian radio at that time and let’s face it, that wouldn’t have been much of an education. Dad was a big country and western fan, so it made sense that he’d buy an album like this. The only other record by a black artist I can remember us having at home during this period was the glorious 1963 Jimmy Little song Royal Telephone (but that’s a story for another day).

I Can’t Stop Loving You was the monster hit from the album, it seemed to be everywhere… on our stereo, on the radio, in the car – it was ubiquitous. The song that dad particularly liked was  Hey Good Lookin’ – a Hank Williams number my dad was fond of singing around the house, but man Hank never sounded so hip – this was jazz! For me these songs were my introduction to Ray and eventually a much, much wider world. That of course was the whole point of the exercise, Ray was making music that white people could relate to and in the process built himself a massive mainstream following. They didn’t call him The Genius for nothing.

At some point in my musical journey these songs just became the fabric of my life. Bye Bye Love had already been a huge hit for the Everly Brothers a few years earlier, yet as was the case with all of Ray’s arrangements on this album he made it sound like it was a completely new record – his record. With a sassy brass arrangement and the Raeletts on backing vocals this song just swings – like wow! With Careless Love Ray takes a folk song and gives it a wonderful blues swing while adding new lyrics to the melody. I Can’t Stop Loving You’s saccharin orchestration and Disneyfied choir should have confined it to the dustbins of muzak history, but with Ray at the helm it becomes a soul searching lament for long lost love. It is truly a stunning vocal performance from the master. The standout track for me though is You Don’t Know Me, where the sweet string arrangement and backing vocals only serve to highlight Ray’s aching delivery. His soulful take on this song of unrequited love is so moving that it becomes an impassioned plea of heartfelt longing with a cry in Ray’s voice that is the blues.

If the photo of the album cover in this post looks a little a pristine it’s because I bought my copy of this reissue a few years ago hopeful that my intent was not misguided and that one day soon I would at long last own another turntable. So yeah, I’ve been waiting for some time to be able to play this record.

How does it sound on vinyl? Magnificent, lush, majestic, big, brassy, warm and intimate – Modern Sounds In Country And Western Music at 33 rpm is all that and more.  We had friends around for drinks on the weekend and they kept imploring me to crank up the amp up as they jived to Ray on the lounge room floor. It was delightfully unexpected, but ultimately it’s as good a recommendation as any.