|
}} ''Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music'' is a studio album by American recording artist Ray Charles, released in April 1962 on ABC-Paramount Records. Recording sessions for the album took place in early to mid-February 1962 at Capitol Studios in New York City and at United Recording Studios in Hollywood. Production was handled entirely by Charles and conductor Sid Feller. A departure from Charles's previous work, the album features country, folk, and Western music standards covered and redone by Charles in popular song forms of the time, including rhythm and blues, pop, and jazz. As his fifth LP release for ABC-Paramount, ''Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music'' became a rapid critical and commercial success as it brought Ray Charles further mainstream notice, following his tenure for Atlantic Records. With the help of the album's four charting singles, Charles earned recognition in the pop market, as well as airplay on both R&B and country radio stations. ''Modern Sounds'' and its lead single, "I Can't Stop Loving You", were both certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America in 1962, as each record had shipped 500,000 copies in the United States. Regarded by many critics as Charles's best studio album, ''Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music'' has been considered by several music writers to be a landmark album in American music. The album's integration of soul and country music bent racial barriers in popular music, amid the height of the African-American civil rights struggle. In the process of recording the album, Charles became one of the first African-American musicians to exercise complete artistic control over his own recording career. The album has been called one of the greatest albums of all time by publications such as ''Rolling Stone'' and ''Time''. ==Background== After his Atlantic Records contract ended, Ray Charles signed with ABC-Paramount Records in November 1959, obtaining a much more generous contract than other artists had at the time.〔(breath of life » RAY CHARLES / “I Can’t Stop Loving You” ). Kalamu. Retrieved on 2008-08-13.〕 Following his commercial and pop crossover breakthrough with the hit single "What'd I Say" earlier that year, ABC offered Charles a $ 50,000 annual advance, higher royalties than previously offered and eventual ownership of his masters—a very valuable and lucrative deal at the time.〔(RS Biography - Ray Charles 1930-2004 ). Rolling Stone. Retrieved on 2008-08-14.〕 Composed by Charles himself, the single furthered Charles's mainstream appeal, while becoming a Top 10 pop hit and selling a million copies in the United States, despite the ban placed on the record by some radio stations, in response to the song's sexually-suggestive lyrics.〔(Ray Charles, Bluesy Essence of Soul ). The New York Times Company. Retrieved on 2008-12-12.〕 However, by the time of the release of the instrumental jazz LP ''Genius + Soul = Jazz'' (1960) for ABC's subsidiary label Impulse!, Charles had virtually given up on writing original material and had begun to follow his eclectic impulses as an interpreter.〔 Charles' first hit single for ABC-Paramount was "Georgia on My Mind". Originally written by Stuart Gorrell and Hoagy Carmichael, Charles' version was produced by Sid Feller and released in 1960, earning Charles national acclaim and a Grammy Award.〔〔(The RS 500 Greatest Songs of All Time: 44) Georgia on My Mind ). Rolling Stone. Retrieved on 2008-08-14.〕 The song was Charles's first collaboration with Feller, who also arranged and conducted the recording. Charles earned another Grammy for the follow-up "Hit the Road Jack", written by R&B singer Percy Mayfield.〔(Hit The Road Jack by Ray Charles Songfacts ). Songfacts. Retrieved on 2008-08-14.〕 By late 1961, Charles had expanded his small road ensemble to a full-scale big band, partly as a response to increasing royalties and touring fees, becoming one of the few black artists to crossover into mainstream pop with such a level of creative control.〔〔Cooper (1998), pp. 20–22.〕 This success, however, came to a momentary halt in November 1961, as a police search of Charles's hotel room in Indianapolis, Indiana, during a concert tour led to the discovery of heroin in his medicine cabinet. The case was eventually dropped, as the search had been undertaken without a proper warrant, and Charles soon returned his focus on music and recording.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|