Ray Charles, sitting in the dark.

[Steve Hoffman]

I was asked this in an e-mail from the Phonogram LP list and I thought I would share with you:

I originally stated in an earlier thread:

> Ray Charles used to make me sit in the dark in the studio and try and
engineer just
> by feel. He said that it was what HE had to do, so I better get used to it
> if I was going to work with him.

Bill Spohn then asked:

Uh, Steve...couldn't you have just TOLD him that the lights were out, and
that you were working (with truly amazing dexterity) entirely by feel??

I answered:

Bill, this guy could feel the heat of the lights and know they were on.
Amazing guy!
He couldn't be fooled by anything like that. After all, he has been working
in that same studio since 1964! He probably knows if someone is talking a
bathroom break in the offices upstairs just by the change in the sound of
the water pressure in the pipes.

Funny story while I feel like typing:

Ray one day wanted a little walkman (having broke his old one), so we piled
in a limo and took him to some big chain stereo store (Circuit City, I
think). We walked in the store, Engineer Terry Howard and I with Ray, his
manager Joe Adams and a few butt lickers that Ray had as "helpers". It must
have been quite a scene in there when we walked in, but by that time I was
so used to hanging out with Ray and his crowd I didn't realize it. Ray
wanted to "feel" the quality of each of the machines before he put the
headphones on, so he had to be there in person. (He loves gadgets).

Well, they were so freaked out in Circuit City that Ray Charles just walked
in the store like any normal slob would do that NO ONE would come over to
help him. I mean, there is Ray standing pretty much in the middle of the
store, and the sales people were shaking in their boots and whispering to
each other. Terry and I tried in vain to get anyone to come over. Weird,
huh? Ray could hear and sense this queer "change in the atmosphere" and
finally after about 10 minutes, just YELLED out: "Is SOMEONE GONNA HELP ME
OR NOT?"

STILL, no one came over. So his man and I led him over to the gadgets and I
acted like sales guy while Ray tried everything. When he made his choice, I
bought it for him while he walked out of the store shaking his head.

Ah well; he CAN be very intimidating.

Have a good day everyone!

[Sckott]

The blind can be *extremely* sensitive, it's VERY true. One of my ol' best friends had a blind dad, and he could tell exactly where you were in the room no matter HOW quiet you were, sense of smell is also quite baffeling. He could tell you had corn flakes for breakfast, even though it's past 3 in the afternoon, and you've long left the house!

Personally, if I'd known that he was looking for help, I'd be more than happy to "volunteer". Heavens knows he woulnd't be looking for keyboards in there, so whatever he would buy would make it all the more interesting, even though I don't work there.

Steve, what did he end up buying, do you remember? Just a Cass/FM deal, or did he buy something quite extravagant?

My only story I have about Ray is quite boring, but when I was 20, my girlfriend at the time was working at a deli while she was going to school. She told me that someone called in for fried chicken, said that Ray Charles and his "helpers" would be in to pick it all up. She said it sounded quite sincere. Said "Ray loves a certain fried chicken", or something to that effect, as I remember.

Alas, no Ray. Actually, if I met the gentleman, I would have just said "Thank you Ray. Thank you very much."

[Steve Hoffman]

Hi Sckott! Glad you're here.

I remember that Ray ended up with a Sony thing. I can't for the life of me remember if it was a CD Walkman, or just a cassette/FM stereo Walkman. This would have been in the early 1990's. Did they have CD Walkmans then?

If so, that's what his was. The latest and greatest SOUND WISE, NOT EXPENSE WISE! He didn't care if it only cost three dollars or 500 dollars. He just wanted what sounded good to him! He thought that the Sony stuff sounded the best....

[Angel]

Great story about Ray buying a Walkman, Steve!

I can just picture Ray Charles in Circuit City. Really must have thrown those guys for spin.

You should write a book about this stuff.

[Larry]

Steve,

I just picked up The World of Ray Charles. I am sure glad you sat in the dark or whatever it took to remaster these disks. I am sure I speak for many when I say thanks a million for taking the time to make these and so many others sound "right".

[Steve Hoffman]

Thanks, Larry! Glad you like it.

It was really fun working on those songs. A once in a lifetime adventure, sitting in the dark for the cause!

[Sckott]

Mine is the double "Uh, Huh!" set soon after he did ads for Pepsi.

The tube playback is where it makes an ALARMING difference. Almost like a decoder! The discs sound great.

I had them on one of my Dynacos a while back and now with a dedicated set downstairs on a Bottlehead "Foreplay", I mean, this is one of the best examples of how the sound just throws you for a loop!

[Steve Hoffman]

Funny. I'm listening to my copy of "Uh Huh" right now.

Love those songs! His ABC-Paramount material is way under rated in my book.

Every song on there, no, EVERY song Ray ever recorded from 1949 to 1972 (except one Atlantic track) was done live to tape, with orchestra, chorus and Ray. No overdubs. Truly neat!

[Sckott]

Steve, is there any history to the different version of "What I'd Say" where the middle "encore" sounds different to the one that's on the Atlantic compilations and your 2CD?

I have it on the Atlantic R&B box. You can hear more guys than gals tell Ray to keep going. Ray seems to sound suprised.. etc. Know which one? Might be the Mono version.... Was one the single, or LP version, whole remake, etc....

[Steve Hoffman]

Oh yeah, and it gets confusing.

The song was recorded on 8-track first, early in 1959 by Tom Dowd, at the new Atlantic Studio.

The MONO 2 PART 45 RPM VERSION, mixed by Tom Dowd, was released first. This used an edited down, shorter, mix of the 8-track tape, with NEW inserts to "bump the excitement up" as Ray said.

When the single became a hit, an ALBUM version, still mono was created using the bumped up version that did not fade out, still the short version.

Then, there was a special 45 RPM mono DJ version that used completely different edit parts, released to radio only in 1959. Why, I don't know. It stinks.

Ray left the label in 1959. In 1961 ANOTHER mix of the song, still mono, was made from the 8-track by Tom Dowd. It was released on an obscure LP called "Twist With Ray Charles" or something like that. Although it was mono only, it was the LONG version, in other words, exactly what was on the 8-track master.

In 1964, with Ray having so much luck at ABC-Paramount, Atlantic released a new STEREO ONLY LP called "The Great Hits Of Ray Charles In 8-Track Stereo", with 13 songs on it. The entire Ray Charles Atlantic Stereo output. Mixed in 1964 by Tom Dowd. THIS is the only stereo mix of the song, full-length. or otherwise. This is the tape I used for my DCC Ray Charles CD set.

Five different versions, four mono, one stereo. Phew. :eek:

[lukpac]

Originally posted by Steve Hoffman
The song was recorded on 8-track first, early in 1959 by Tom Dowd, at the new Atlantic Studio.
Actually, if memory serves, that studio didn't open till 1963 or something. Maybe 1961.

They got the 8-track in early 1958, of course, though.

[indy mike]

Steve, I still have those Brother Ray discs you kindly sent my way when I could barely afford the postage to send you a letter asking about how they sounded - still great sounding after all this time!

[Steve Hoffman]

I was glad to help you out, Mike.

Luke posted:


quote:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Originally posted by Steve Hoffman
The song was recorded on 8-track first, early in 1959 by Tom Dowd, at the new Atlantic Studio.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Luke states:
Actually, if memory serves, that studio didn't open till 1963 or something. Maybe 1961.

They got the 8-track in early 1958, of course, though.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

I just meant that the studio was new in the sense that in 1958 Tom Dowd installed an 8-track Ampex tape recorder, mixing console, patch bay, outboard stereo Fairchild Limiters Pultec EQ units, new wall baffles, cables, microphones and other "new" stuff.

[indy mike]

Tom Dowd always makes me scratch my head cause I'm never quite sure I follow why a lot of folks swear his work is all great; lots of tracks seem to be one of the downward turning points in sonic treats - more tracks leads to more monkey business, more sources of noise like crackly pots (Good Lovin' anybody)??? 3 or 4 tracks seems kinda ideal from the sonic standpoint (although 1 track with somebody like Uncle Sam Phillips or Norman Petty at the wheel thrills me plenty). What's this Uh-Huh comp that's been mentioned above - I musta been snoozing when that was put out...

[Sckott]

Actually, my thought al this time was, the Uh Huh set (2CD) was the only release of these recordings BY Dcc. It wasn't. They actually released single disc compilations before that time.

There's some black - covered single disc'ers that cover the same material. DCC made it easier to get it all in 2Cds, basically. I'm not even sure if there's anything missing if you compared the 2 single Cds to the 2CD set. The single discs are older from what I see...

I've seen both CD1 and CD2 of the single sets out where I live. the track listing, as I remember, was different, Steve knows about this more than I.

But the 2CD set is what I have, with Ray in Tux as the Pepsi commericial wanted to have him. For all I know, he drank orange drink (like Steve mentioned) and creame soda. BUT the complilation is incredible, and MUST be experienced on tubes.

My 2CD set possibly mirrors what you have, but....which disc do you have?

[indy mike]

Hi Sckott - I have the DCC discs that only have the ABC/Paramount/Tangerine label stuff. I like the Atlantic stuff when Ray was still toying with all kindsa ways to sing and play, so I guess I'll keep my eyes peeled...

[luke j. chung]

Hey, Steve! Missed ya over at the Alexis Park Hotel last Wednesday, you and your S & P cohorts must've been prowling the main convention hall at the time.:confused: Anyway, I want to thank you for all the fine work you did back in the '80s & early '90s on the Ray Charles catalog. It's one of the most treasured parts of my music library. I played your remastering of "America The Beautiful" from the 2-disc comp a week after the al Kaeda East Coast tragedy and started bawling like a baby! It was quite a catharsis and a morale booster after the worst week in modern American times. It's amazing what a great piece of inspiration music can be!

[Steve Hoffman]

Sorry I missed you at the Alexis Park, Luke. It was really chaos there for Sam and I. We accomplished at lot, but these all day, all night conventions poop me out more than they used to.

I remember in College, I could go to classes during the day, study into the early night for a final the next day, dash over to the KPFK radio station and do an all-night show, grab a breakfast bite at Cindy's Coffee Shop across the street, dash back over to school and take my final that morning, getting an A+ in the process.

Them days is over! :eek:

[AudioGirl]

Love all these Ray stories... Steve, you are a great story teller. You really should write a book.

Uh Huh is a standard in my house.

We play that one quite a lot... among others of course.

Thanks for the inside stories.

Fun stuff!

[J Epstein]

Steve, I pulled out my copy of "Twist with Ray Charles" after we had this discussion on the old board one time a few months ago, and I was left with the impression that that version was extended by adding duplicate (dubbed from the master take) sections. In other words, it's longer, but has no new musical material as compared to the familiar take.

I have the Stereo, Twist, and What'd I Say LPs, I can try again and see what the differences are.

The ***** rocks, though, that much is for sure.

-j

[Steve Hoffman]

As far as I know, the "Twist" mono version is the exact version that was laid down at the session. Nothing was redubbed or added to make it longer. Compare it with the DCC or Rhino stereo version and you will see that they match content exactly. Different mix on "twist" of course.

If they don't match, let me know and I will dig out my copy of "Twist". It's been a while, but I think the stereo and the "Twist" mono version should match. Remember, the "Twist" mono mix sounds kinda different from the stereo mix that was done three years later!

[RDK]

I had the great fortune to see Ray Charles perform from backstage at the 1986 Monterey Jazz Festival. I was working for a PBS camera crew at the time, doing a video piece on the festival, and while we weren't taping Ray I was able to use my press creds to get just about anywhere. What a great experience to see him perform from ten feet away! Somewhere I have some photos i took of him on stage; i'll have to dig those out.

I'm familiar with the two DCC Ray Charles comps -- i had them before they were stolen with a batch of cds one day -- but what's this "Uh Huh" comp that's been mentioned here? I'm unfamiliar with it and can't find it listed on AMG.

Ray

[Sckott]

I've uploaded a jpg of the back-tray art so you can check out the track listings.

It's right here (http://people.ne.mediaone.net/seekr/ray.jpg) . Enjoy!

[RDK]

Thanks, Sckott, I'll have to look out for that one. Looks like it was available through Columbia House.
Ray

[Sckott]

It was, but it was available in stores. Columbia Marketing (CRC) had it for the right price. Almost free, if I remember!