Customer Reviews: Read 12 more reviews...
 Atlantic Years- twenty fine cuts! August 24, 2008
A prize in my collection, I will probably wear it out! Awesome from start to finish.
 Track 19 Is Bad July 8, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
It's a great album, but be warned that track 19 is bad (on the MP3 download version of the album). It goes silent at around 55 seconds and stays silent for the rest of the song.
I opened a ticket and they authorized my account to download it again, but it was the same. I then spoke to someone on the phone, who said they would refund my credit card (for the full album!) and let the MP3 team know that the track is bad, but that it would take some time to get a new version of the track. So I got (most of) the album for free, but that's not what I really wanted. Five bucks is a great price for the album -- I just want track 19 to play!
Best Single CD Option To The Box Set August 19, 2007
If you don't wish to spring for the more expensive 3-CD box set The Birth Of Soul: The Complete Atlantic Rhythm & Blues Recordings 1952-1959 [but you should, believe me, if you are a serious Ray Charles fans], this Rhino product is your next best option.
It contains all but five of the hits he had for Atlantic Records from 1952 to 1960, the missing ones being: Blackjack - the B-side to Greenbacks and a # 8 R&B on its own in 1955; Mary Ann - the flip of Drown In My Own Tears and a # 1 "follow-along" hit in 1956; Rockhouse Part 2 (# 14 R&B/# 79 Billboard Pop Hot 100 in early 1959); I'm Movin' On (# 11 R&B/# 40 Hot 100 in late 1959); and Don't Let The Sun Catch You Cryin' (# 17 R&B/# 95 Hot 100 in early 1960].
In the insert are seven pages of fascinating background notes written by Billy Vera and a complete discography of the contents which also shows the musicians on each track. There are also several nice photos of Ray, including one of him playing the sax [this genius could - and did - play numerous instruments] with equal proficiency to that displayed at the keyboard].
 No Way June 25, 2007
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
Poorly produced. The sound is muffled and sometimes inaudible. Ray Charles sounds like he is stoned out of his gourd. Really sloppy work and the only part of it that I enjoyed was listening to Margie Hendrix of the Raelettes (then called the Cookies) belt it out. They even took away her credit..never even naming her or the other ladies on the CD insert.
Minus 1 star for cutting What'd I Say in half February 1, 2007
This is great stuff, from the novelty hits "Greenbacks" and "It Should've Been Me" to the spirituals-in-soul-clothing "This Little Girl of Mine" and "Hallelujah, I Love Her So." There's so much good stuff here, it could easily make two great CD's.
However, there is one serious problem that keeps this CD from being perfect...and that's when What'd I Say stops right in the middle, with the backup singers still begging Ray for more. Instead of the incredible call-and-response climax of Part II, what more than one critic has called five minutes of pure sexual release, the song just stops. And that's just wrong, sort of like...well, a novel without the last chapter, The Messiah without the Hallelujah Chorus, the Shawshank Redemption without a prison break, or...well, you know.
So buyer beware. You won't be disappointed by what you hear, but you may be left feeling a little unfulfilled.
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