Ray Charles Lives On
Posted: September 1, 2004 5:53 pm
I'm only posting the article because it's a part of billboard.com you have to be a subscriber to view. Otherwise I would just provide a link. Just one guy's opinion, but the new album is stellar. I've read some pretty bad reviews and think some critics are really missing the boat. Hands down my favorite album of 2004.
September 04, 2004
Ray Charles Lives On
New 'Genius' Album Continues Icon's Legacy
BY CHRIS MORRIS
LOS ANGELES - It's one of those situations no label would wish for.
Concord Records is about to release a star-studded duets album by Ray Charles. While the project was highly anticipated in its own right, the legendary performer's June 10 death is expected to propel the title to even greater heights.
In fact, Concord GM Gene Rumsey believes that Charles' final album, "Genius Loves Company," could become the label's all-time best-seller.
Still, Concord resistedsuggestions that it move up the release date to take advantage of the artist's passing.
"We wanted to treat this with the utmost respect," Rumsey says. "While we wanted it to be commercially successful, we agreed unanimously that we were not going to exploit anything that happened along the way."
So Concord stuck to its original Aug. 31 release date. The label is shipping 1 million units—700,000 domestically, with the rest going to international territories.
"We're spending millions of dollars in marketing and advertising," Rumsey says. "The $300,000 we're doing for television [advertising] initially is a drop in the bucket compared to what we're going to be doing through the holidays."
The project, distributed under Concord's new deal with Universal Music & Video Distribution, comprises duets by Charles and a host of luminaries from a cross-section of musical genres.
Concord executive VP/senior VP of A&R John Burk co-produced the album with Phil Ramone. Burk says the idea of cutting a duet set arose after Charles signed up for a Concord album last year.
"Here's a guy who had an amazingly far-reaching influence and impact on American popular music," Burk says. "He's influenced so many vocalists in so many different genres . . . That segued into, 'Wow, he's a natural for a duets project.' "
He adds, "Some of [the duet partners] were really important to Ray, because they were some of the best friends that he had in life—B.B. King and Willie Nelson and Gladys Knight fall into that category. Then there are artists on the other end of the spectrum, like Norah Jones. That came about because I was reading one of her articles early on in her career, and she cited Ray as a major influence."
Other singers appearing on the set include James Taylor, Diana Krall, Elton John, Natalie Cole, Bonnie Raitt, Michael McDonald, Johnny Mathis and Van Morrison.
Keyboardist Billy Preston, who first performed with Charles as a teenager, plays on three of the duets. He says that though the singer/pianist was in failing health during some of the sessions, he stayed on top of the music.
"Ray was very weak at the time," Preston recalls, "but he would come back and listen to the track and see if he liked it or not. We would make adjustments to the track as he wished. He was very much actively involved."
King, one of Charles' closest friends, says the musician remained as exacting and good-humored in the studio as he was when the two cut their first session together in 1988.
King says, "The first time I recorded with him, he wanted me to do 'Save the Bones for Henry Jones.' Ray wanted to change it; he didn't want to do it the way it was written . . . I couldn't ever get it right. And he said to me, 'God damn, Brother B, I thought you was a musician!' "
Sessions for "Genius Loves Company" took place at Charles' Los Angeles studio and at the Eastwood Scoring Stage on the Warner Bros. lot in Burbank, Calif. They lasted from July 2003 through this spring. The first track cut was "Sinner's Prayer," featuring King and Preston.
Burk laughs and says, "I walked in and I looked around and I went, 'OK, King of the Blues, Genius of Soul, Fifth Beatle—not the least bit intimidating. OK, roll tape.' "
TEARS FROM ELTON
The last session, for the John duet "Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word," came in March, as Charles' health was declining.
"It was pretty awesome, and we were all deeply moved," Burk says. "People were actually crying in the control room . . . Elton came back in to listen, and he started crying."
The marketplace is awaiting the release with similar emotions.
The album will get a special lift through a strategic partnership between Concord and coffee-shop chain Starbucks, which will carry "Genius Loves Company" in its 8,000 locations worldwide.
Starbucks Entertainment president Ken Lombard says, "We're going to have pretty prominent in-store placement. There will be some marketing promotions that we're working on. There will be content promotions on the Starbucks Web site. Starbucks has the largest wireless platform in the world in conjunction with T-Mobile, so customers can come into Starbucks with their laptops and essentially log on, and they'll see a lot of information about the Ray Charles CD."
Starbucks' XM satellite radio channel will feature the album, and half a dozen urban Starbucks outlets across the country will hold listening parties. The chain will also buy advertising in The New York Times.
Concord has serviced "Genius Loves Company" to all radio formats except top 40.
Other marketing elements include an electronic press kit, a 20-minute program on United Airlines' in-flight audio service and a press push by Los Angeles PR firm Solters & Digney.
There are no direct tie-ins with Taylor Hackford's forthcoming Universal biographical film "Ray," which stars Jamie Foxx as Charles. But Concord can expect a sales bump when the feature opens nationwide Oct. 29.
Charles' death has made his Rhino catalog releases a fixture on the Billboard Top Pop Catalog chart. This issue, "The Very Best of Ray Charles" stands at No. 17 on the list with 6,000 units sold for the week, according to Nielsen SoundScan. Charles' "Anthology" is at No. 34 with 5,000 units sold.
Jerry Kamiler, divisional merchandising manager of music for 850-store Trans World Entertainment in Albany, N.Y., sees bright possibilities for "Genius Loves Company."
"I think this is a piece of music that will be played for many years," he says. "I'll do as much as possible to put it into as many people's homes as possible."
September 04, 2004
Ray Charles Lives On
New 'Genius' Album Continues Icon's Legacy
BY CHRIS MORRIS
LOS ANGELES - It's one of those situations no label would wish for.
Concord Records is about to release a star-studded duets album by Ray Charles. While the project was highly anticipated in its own right, the legendary performer's June 10 death is expected to propel the title to even greater heights.
In fact, Concord GM Gene Rumsey believes that Charles' final album, "Genius Loves Company," could become the label's all-time best-seller.
Still, Concord resistedsuggestions that it move up the release date to take advantage of the artist's passing.
"We wanted to treat this with the utmost respect," Rumsey says. "While we wanted it to be commercially successful, we agreed unanimously that we were not going to exploit anything that happened along the way."
So Concord stuck to its original Aug. 31 release date. The label is shipping 1 million units—700,000 domestically, with the rest going to international territories.
"We're spending millions of dollars in marketing and advertising," Rumsey says. "The $300,000 we're doing for television [advertising] initially is a drop in the bucket compared to what we're going to be doing through the holidays."
The project, distributed under Concord's new deal with Universal Music & Video Distribution, comprises duets by Charles and a host of luminaries from a cross-section of musical genres.
Concord executive VP/senior VP of A&R John Burk co-produced the album with Phil Ramone. Burk says the idea of cutting a duet set arose after Charles signed up for a Concord album last year.
"Here's a guy who had an amazingly far-reaching influence and impact on American popular music," Burk says. "He's influenced so many vocalists in so many different genres . . . That segued into, 'Wow, he's a natural for a duets project.' "
He adds, "Some of [the duet partners] were really important to Ray, because they were some of the best friends that he had in life—B.B. King and Willie Nelson and Gladys Knight fall into that category. Then there are artists on the other end of the spectrum, like Norah Jones. That came about because I was reading one of her articles early on in her career, and she cited Ray as a major influence."
Other singers appearing on the set include James Taylor, Diana Krall, Elton John, Natalie Cole, Bonnie Raitt, Michael McDonald, Johnny Mathis and Van Morrison.
Keyboardist Billy Preston, who first performed with Charles as a teenager, plays on three of the duets. He says that though the singer/pianist was in failing health during some of the sessions, he stayed on top of the music.
"Ray was very weak at the time," Preston recalls, "but he would come back and listen to the track and see if he liked it or not. We would make adjustments to the track as he wished. He was very much actively involved."
King, one of Charles' closest friends, says the musician remained as exacting and good-humored in the studio as he was when the two cut their first session together in 1988.
King says, "The first time I recorded with him, he wanted me to do 'Save the Bones for Henry Jones.' Ray wanted to change it; he didn't want to do it the way it was written . . . I couldn't ever get it right. And he said to me, 'God damn, Brother B, I thought you was a musician!' "
Sessions for "Genius Loves Company" took place at Charles' Los Angeles studio and at the Eastwood Scoring Stage on the Warner Bros. lot in Burbank, Calif. They lasted from July 2003 through this spring. The first track cut was "Sinner's Prayer," featuring King and Preston.
Burk laughs and says, "I walked in and I looked around and I went, 'OK, King of the Blues, Genius of Soul, Fifth Beatle—not the least bit intimidating. OK, roll tape.' "
TEARS FROM ELTON
The last session, for the John duet "Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word," came in March, as Charles' health was declining.
"It was pretty awesome, and we were all deeply moved," Burk says. "People were actually crying in the control room . . . Elton came back in to listen, and he started crying."
The marketplace is awaiting the release with similar emotions.
The album will get a special lift through a strategic partnership between Concord and coffee-shop chain Starbucks, which will carry "Genius Loves Company" in its 8,000 locations worldwide.
Starbucks Entertainment president Ken Lombard says, "We're going to have pretty prominent in-store placement. There will be some marketing promotions that we're working on. There will be content promotions on the Starbucks Web site. Starbucks has the largest wireless platform in the world in conjunction with T-Mobile, so customers can come into Starbucks with their laptops and essentially log on, and they'll see a lot of information about the Ray Charles CD."
Starbucks' XM satellite radio channel will feature the album, and half a dozen urban Starbucks outlets across the country will hold listening parties. The chain will also buy advertising in The New York Times.
Concord has serviced "Genius Loves Company" to all radio formats except top 40.
Other marketing elements include an electronic press kit, a 20-minute program on United Airlines' in-flight audio service and a press push by Los Angeles PR firm Solters & Digney.
There are no direct tie-ins with Taylor Hackford's forthcoming Universal biographical film "Ray," which stars Jamie Foxx as Charles. But Concord can expect a sales bump when the feature opens nationwide Oct. 29.
Charles' death has made his Rhino catalog releases a fixture on the Billboard Top Pop Catalog chart. This issue, "The Very Best of Ray Charles" stands at No. 17 on the list with 6,000 units sold for the week, according to Nielsen SoundScan. Charles' "Anthology" is at No. 34 with 5,000 units sold.
Jerry Kamiler, divisional merchandising manager of music for 850-store Trans World Entertainment in Albany, N.Y., sees bright possibilities for "Genius Loves Company."
"I think this is a piece of music that will be played for many years," he says. "I'll do as much as possible to put it into as many people's homes as possible."
