Charles Aznavor

Charles Aznavour Il était le dernier des Mohicans, l'ultime géant ayant écrit l’histoire de la chanson française du XXe siècle. Avec Charles Trenet et Gilbert Bécaud, il fait partie de ce trio gagnant qui s’est imposé au plus haut niveau mondial, auteurs de « standards » repris par tous, Frank Sinatra les a chanté tous les trois.

Charles Aznavour Il était le dernier des Mohicans, l'ultime géant ayant écrit l’histoire de la chanson française du XXe siècle. Avec Charles Trenet et Gilbert Bécaud, il fait partie de ce trio gagnant qui s’est imposé au plus haut niveau mondial, auteurs de « standards » repris par tous, Frank Sinatra les a chanté tous les trois.

Charles Aznavour Il était le dernier des Mohicans, l'ultime géant ayant écrit l’histoire de la chanson française du XXe siècle. Avec Charles Trenet et Gilbert Bécaud, il fait partie de ce trio gagnant qui s’est imposé au plus haut niveau mondial, auteurs de « standards » repris par tous, Frank Sinatra les a chanté tous les trois.

Though this is not the most recent Ray Charles box set collection, it may be the best. That's because it focuses on Ray's great growth in the 1950s, particularly his days with Atlantic Records. The set opens with Ray still in a Charles Brown, smooth-voice, mellow-piano mode, but in short order, he discovers his own identity. From the good time of "It Should Have Been Me" on disc one, though the orgiastic "What'd I Say, Parts 1 & 2" on disc three, the man they call "The Genius" rocks, rolls, raises the rafters, and sinks way down low with the blues. This box also features an excellent essay by the late music historian, Robert Palmer. –Robert Gordon

Released in celebration of what would have been Ray Charles' 90th birthday, True Genius is a deluxe 6CD box set, released with the participation and support of the Ray Charles Foundation, containing 90 of Ray Charles' biggest hits, containing music from every album he released from 1960 on, and a previously unreleased concert from 1972. The 44 page book which accompanies the music has liner notes written by Quincy Jones, Valerine Ervin (President of the Ray Charles Foundation) and A. Scott Galloway.

Ray Charles was one of the most iconic and influential artists in the annals of pop as a singer, songwriter and pianist, and while he is considered one of the godfathers and great innovators of soul music, his work transcended the worlds of jazz, blues, gospel, R&B, rock ‘n’ roll and country and western as well. Afflicted by blindness, he turned to music in his early life, and began recording for the Swing Time label in 1949 as a member of The Maxim Trio. In a career spanning half a century, he racked up over 100 chart entries, with well over 40 coming in this seminal first quarter-century or so of his career. This excellent-value 125-track 5-CD collection comprises just about all his A & B sides released on the Swing Time, Atlantic, ABC-Paramount and Impulse labels during these years. It features all his 46 Pop, R&B and UK chart entries from this era, including the pop No. 1s “Georgia On My Mind”, “Hit The Road Jack” & “I Can’t Stop Loving You” and the R&B No. 1s “I’ve Got A Woman”, “A Fool For You”, “What’d I Say”, “Unchain My Heart”, “One Mint Julep” & “You Are My Sunshine”, encompassing his time as the pillar of the Atlantic roster and the hits from his landmark albums for ABC-Paramount “Modern Sounds In Country & Western Music”. It’s a substantial and comprehensive overview of his chart-focused output during these years as part of a dynamic and exciting pop and R&B landscape, and a thoroughly entertaining showcase for his unique talents as singer, composer, pianist and arranger.

Released in celebration of what would have been Ray Charles' 90th birthday, True Genius is a deluxe 6CD box set, released with the participation and support of the Ray Charles Foundation, containing 90 of Ray Charles' biggest hits, containing music from every album he released from 1960 on, and a previously unreleased concert from 1972. The 44 page book which accompanies the music has liner notes written by Quincy Jones, Valerine Ervin (President of the Ray Charles Foundation) and A. Scott Galloway.

Though this is not the most recent Ray Charles box set collection, it may be the best. That's because it focuses on Ray's great growth in the 1950s, particularly his days with Atlantic Records. The set opens with Ray still in a Charles Brown, smooth-voice, mellow-piano mode, but in short order, he discovers his own identity. From the good time of "It Should Have Been Me" on disc one, though the orgiastic "What'd I Say, Parts 1 & 2" on disc three, the man they call "The Genius" rocks, rolls, raises the rafters, and sinks way down low with the blues. This box also features an excellent essay by the late music historian, Robert Palmer. –Robert Gordon

On the 150th anniversary of the birth of Charles Ives - acclaimed by his champion Leonard Bernstein as the 'first great American composer', who, 'all alone in his Connecticut barn, created his own private musical revolution' - Sony Classical presents the most authoritative recording collection ever released of works by this eccentric, prophetic genius. The 5-CD box set 117 tracks 'Charles Ives - The Anniversary Edition' is a unique and provocative introduction.