PRE-ORDER: This item will be shipped with the aim to deliver on release day.
Format Details:
Release Date: 06 March 2026
Label: 20th Century Masterworks
Packaging Type: Slip Sleeve (CD or Vinyl)
No of Units: 1
Barcode: 8436563186813
Description
The complete album + 2 bonus tracks - pressed on 180g red vinyl, contains new specially prepared liner notes by Penguin Guide to Jazz's writer Brian Morton.
The Genius of Ray Charles is an iconic album released by Atlantic Records in 1959. The album consists of two parts, the first featuring standards with big band arrangements by Quincy Jones, and the second part featuring ballads with string arrangements by Ralph Burns. Highlights include "Let the Good Times Roll" and "Don't Let the Sun Catch You Cryin'", both of which were released as singles.
The big band sides feature musicians from Ray Charles' own band augmented with musicians from the Count Basie and Duke Ellington orchestras. The string sides are built around a quartet with trombonist Bob Brookmeyer, guitarist Allen Hanlon, bassist Wendell Marshall, and drummer Ted Sommer. Charles is heard throughout on piano and vocals.
The album sold over 500,000 copies and charted at number 17 on Billboard.
The bonus tracks are "Georgia On My Mind" and "Hit The Road Jack".
Tracklisting
Nina Simone
Ella Fitzgerald
Elvis Presley
Sonny Rollins
Oscar Peterson
Quincy Jones
Michel Legrand & Miles Davis
Johnny Hodges & Ben Webster
Ray Charles
Ray Charles
Ray Charles
Ray Charles
Ray Charles
Ray Charles
Ray Charles
