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But just as amazing as the sound was the man from whom it emerged. The late musical legend Ray Charles has been dubbed "The Genius of Soul"-but what about the soul of the genius? While almost everyone knows and loves Ray Charles' music-which would grow to encompass and re-create nearly every uniquely American style from Jazz to Country-few know the real story behind his hard-fought journey to artistic triumph. Ray Charles was not only a brilliant performer at his trademark piano, a savvy businessman who took unprecedented control of his career and a musical pioneer who forged a path for others to follow...but he was also a man in search of his own redemption. The same childhood tragedy that inspired Ray Charles to create so feverishly also haunted his every move until he was able to finally face his past.Ray Charles was a man of uniquely American contradictions, a dichotomous blend of big-city savvy and back-country simplicity, of sincerity and guile, of shouts and whispers. He never liked labels or barriers of any kind, so Ray Charles songs transcended genres, tapping into the whole wide range of American roots music and blurring the separations between Jazz, R&B, Country and Gospel to create something original, exuberant and moving. It was said that Ray Charles could just as easily make you dance as break your heart, could evoke joy as deeply as desolation, and sometimes he did both in the same song. For Ray Charles, life itself was like that...full of pain, trouble and sorrows as well as exaltation, beauty and salvation.
Learn more about the cast the makes up Ray Charles' movie |
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