Ray Charles Invites You to Listen
Encyclopedia
Ray Charles Invites You to Listen (sometimes referred to as Invites You to Listen or Listen) is a studio album by American recording artist Ray Charles
, released in June 1967. Made up of several standards, the album had Charles experiment with falsetto
. The album received mixed response from music critics, some noting that the style of music was "old fashioned".
, was released, he returned to the recording studio to begin work on Ray Charles Invites You to Listen. The album was produced by Joe Adams.
Charles used falsetto
on the album "for no other reason than self-satisfaction". Ray Charles Invites You to Listen consists mostly of standards. Sid Feller
chose ten songs for the album, and wrote their arrangement
s. A big band
provided instrumentation for two of the songs, while the others were backed with fourteen string instrument
s, eight brass instrument
s, guitar
, bass
and drum
s; Feller conducted
the strings, and Adams engineered
the record. Ray Charles Invites You to Listen contains a cover version
of The Beatles
' "Yesterday
"; Charles purposely recorded the song with a hoarse voice so that the title lyric sounded as "yeshh-terday". Charles also re-recorded Barbra Streisand
's "People" with a trombone
vamp.
" were released as single
s in 1967.
Ray Charles
Ray Charles Robinson , known by his shortened stage name Ray Charles, was an American musician. He was a pioneer in the genre of soul music during the 1950s by fusing rhythm and blues, gospel, and blues styles into his early recordings with Atlantic Records...
, released in June 1967. Made up of several standards, the album had Charles experiment with falsetto
Falsetto
Falsetto is the vocal register occupying the frequency range just above the modal voice register and overlapping with it by approximately one octave. It is produced by the vibration of the ligamentous edges of the vocal folds, in whole or in part...
. The album received mixed response from music critics, some noting that the style of music was "old fashioned".
Background and composition
As Charles' 1967 greatest hits album, A Man and His SoulA Man And His Soul
A Man and His Soul is a 1967 compilation of studio and live performances by Ray Charles. The LP version includes an album size booklet containing biographical information, photos, and details on his recordings.- Track listing :Side 1...
, was released, he returned to the recording studio to begin work on Ray Charles Invites You to Listen. The album was produced by Joe Adams.
Charles used falsetto
Falsetto
Falsetto is the vocal register occupying the frequency range just above the modal voice register and overlapping with it by approximately one octave. It is produced by the vibration of the ligamentous edges of the vocal folds, in whole or in part...
on the album "for no other reason than self-satisfaction". Ray Charles Invites You to Listen consists mostly of standards. Sid Feller
Sid Feller
Sidney "Sid" Feller was an American conductor and arranger, best known for his work with Ray Charles. He worked with Charles on hundreds of songs including Georgia on My Mind and worked as Charles' conductor while on tour...
chose ten songs for the album, and wrote their arrangement
Arrangement
The American Federation of Musicians defines arranging as "the art of preparing and adapting an already written composition for presentation in other than its original form. An arrangement may include reharmonization, paraphrasing, and/or development of a composition, so that it fully represents...
s. A big band
Big band
A big band is a type of musical ensemble associated with jazz and the Swing Era typically consisting of rhythm, brass, and woodwind instruments totaling approximately twelve to twenty-five musicians...
provided instrumentation for two of the songs, while the others were backed with fourteen string instrument
String instrument
A string instrument is a musical instrument that produces sound by means of vibrating strings. In the Hornbostel-Sachs scheme of musical instrument classification, used in organology, they are called chordophones...
s, eight brass instrument
Brass instrument
A brass instrument is a musical instrument whose sound is produced by sympathetic vibration of air in a tubular resonator in sympathy with the vibration of the player's lips...
s, guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, bass
Bass (instrument)
Bass describes musical instruments that produce tones in the low-pitched range. They belong to different families of instruments and can cover a wide range of musical roles...
and drum
Drum
The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments, which is technically classified as the membranophones. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a shell and struck, either directly with the player's hands, or with a...
s; Feller conducted
Conducting
Conducting is the art of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. The primary duties of the conductor are to unify performers, set the tempo, execute clear preparations and beats, and to listen critically and shape the sound of the ensemble...
the strings, and Adams engineered
Audio engineering
An audio engineer, also called audio technician, audio technologist or sound technician, is a specialist in a skilled trade that deals with the use of machinery and equipment for the recording, mixing and reproduction of sounds. The field draws on many artistic and vocational areas, including...
the record. Ray Charles Invites You to Listen contains a cover version
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
of The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
' "Yesterday
Yesterday (song)
"Yesterday" is a song originally recorded by The Beatles for their 1965 album Help!. The song first hit the United Kingdom top 10 three months after the release of Help!. The song remains popular today with more than 1,600 cover versions, one of the most covered songs in the history of recorded...
"; Charles purposely recorded the song with a hoarse voice so that the title lyric sounded as "yeshh-terday". Charles also re-recorded Barbra Streisand
Barbra Streisand
Barbra Joan Streisand is an American singer, actress, film producer and director. She has won two Academy Awards, eight Grammy Awards, four Emmy Awards, a Special Tony Award, an American Film Institute award, a Peabody Award, and is one of the few entertainers who have won an Oscar, Emmy, Grammy,...
's "People" with a trombone
Trombone
The trombone is a musical instrument in the brass family. Like all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player’s vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate...
vamp.
Singles
"Yesterday" and "Here We Go AgainHere We Go Again
-In film and television:* Here We Go Again , a 1970s American sitcom starring Larry Hagman* Here We Go Again , a 1942 film featuring Fibber McGee and Molly, Edgar Bergen and Ginny Simms-Albums:...
" were released as single
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
s in 1967.
Critical reception
Author Mike Evans wrote that Ray Charles Invites You to Listen is "one of the most remarkable recordings of his career". The use of falsetto received a mixed response from critics; it was called "grating and unpleasant" by one, although others praised its femininity.Track listing
- "She's Funny That Way (I Got a Woman Crazy for Me)" – 4:53
- "How Deep Is the Ocean (How High Is the Sky)How Deep Is the Ocean?"How Deep Is the Ocean?" is a popular song written by Irving Berlin in 1932, and can be heard in the background of the 1933 film The Life of Jimmy Dolan...
" – 3:58 - "You Made Me Love You (I Didn't Wanna Do It)You Made Me Love You (I Didn't Want to Do It)"You Made Me Love You " is a popular song.The music was written by James V. Monaco, the lyrics by Joseph McCarthy. The song was published in 1913. It was introduced in the Broadway revue The Honeymoon Express....
" – 3:20 - "YesterdayYesterday (song)"Yesterday" is a song originally recorded by The Beatles for their 1965 album Help!. The song first hit the United Kingdom top 10 three months after the release of Help!. The song remains popular today with more than 1,600 cover versions, one of the most covered songs in the history of recorded...
" – 2:48 - "I'll Be Seeing You" – 5:34
- "Here We Go AgainHere We Go Again (Ray Charles song)"Here We Go Again" is a country music standard written by Don Lanier and Red Steagall that first became notable as a rhythm and blues single by Ray Charles from his 1967 album Ray Charles Invites You to Listen. Its most notable cover version is the rhythm and blues music duet by Charles and Norah...
" – 3:17 - "All for You" – 5:05
- "Love Walked In" – 4:26
- "Gee Baby, Ain't I Good to You" – 2:56
- "People" – 5:09
Charts
| Chart | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Billboard 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
76 |
| US Hot R&B LPs | 9 |
| US Jazz Albums | 11 |