Remembering Ray Charles

Yesterday marked the fourth anniversary of the death of the great Ray Charles, on June 10th, 2004. Charles died of liver disease in his Beverly Hills home at the age of 73. His health had been in decline since the previous summer.



Charles, whose real name was Ray Charles Robinson, was born in Albany, Georgia, on September 23rd, 1930, and lost his sight to glaucoma at age seven. He is best remembered for bridging the gap between R&B and gospel, with jazz, country and pop. Some of Charles'biggest hits included "Hit The Road, Jack," "Here We Go Again," "I Can't Stop Loving You," "What I'd Say," "I Got A Woman," "America The Beautiful," and "Georgia On My Mind." Among his many other honors, Charles was one the first artists inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986.

Just prior his death, Ray Charles said that he planned on making music until he died: "I'm a Duke Ellington, man. I'm a Count Basie. You see because when music is your breathing or in your bloodstream, you don't retire from it. You go to your grave with it. I mean, that's just the way it is."

Shortly after his death, the posthumous album Genius Loves Company, featuring duets with Elton John, Michael McDonald and Willie Nelson, among others, went on to win eight Grammy Awards, including Best Album, and Best Record for his duet on that album's "Here We Go Again" with Norah Jones. In 2004 a film version of Charles'life story, titled Ray, became a box office success, earning actor Jamie Foxx a Best Actor Academy Award for his portrayal of Charles.

Plans are currently underway to turn Charles'longtime Los Angeles recording studio into a state-of-the-art interactive museum. The three-story, 18,000-square-foot museum will feature rotating exhibits; never-before-seen artifacts from Charles' career, including his personal instruments and stage wardrobe; classrooms; a cafe; a rooftop garden; and a retail shop.

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