Ray Charles

Alex Fowles 9J

Background info•Born September 23rd 1930•Birth name Ray Charles Robinson•Died June 17th 2004 (aged 73)•American musician•Started to lose his eye sight at age of 5•Completely blind at the age of 7•Many think that his loss of sight was caused from an infection caused by soapy water to his eyes which was left untreated•Charles’s mother died when he was 15 and his father died when Charles was 18•Inducted to the hall of fame in 1986

Genres he played

• R&B• Soul• Rock and roll • Blues • Jazz• Country • Pop • Gospel

He fused country, jazz, soul, r&b and gospel music together in his songs

Genres he played

Ray Charles Greatest Hits AlbumSide A:• "Them That Got" (Charles) – 2:47• "Georgia On My Mind" (Carmichael, Gorrell) – 3:37• "Unchain My Heart" (Sharp) – 2:52• "I'm Gonna Move To The Outskirts Of Town" (Weldon) – 3:38• "The Danger Zone" (Mayfield) – 2:22• "I've Got News For You" (Alfred) – 4:28Side B:• "Hit The Road Jack" (Mayfield) – 2:00• "Ruby" (Roemheld, Parish) – 3:51• "I Wonder" (Gant, Leveen) – 2:30• "Sticks And Stones" (Turner) – 2:14• "But On The Other Hand Baby" (Mayfield, Charles) – 3:11• "One Mint Julep" (Toombs) – 3:02

Influence on the music world

• He was one of the greatest blind musicians• He was an excellent piano player• He was one of the first musicians to fuse country, jazz, soul,

R&B and gospel in many of his songs