a Kind of Loving 1962

Ray Charles was a legendary musician who pioneered the genre of soul music during the 1950s. Often called the "Father of Soul," Charles combined blues, gospel and jazz to create groundbreaking hits such as "Unchain My Heart," "Hit the Road Jack" and "Georgia on My Mind." He died in 2004, leaving a lasting impression on contemporary music.

Recorded between 1962 & 1981. The 1995 version of Anthology was remastered and slightly retooled from the 1986 reissue, which was in turn updated from the original triple-LP set Motown released in 1974. That first Anthology [1974] featured nothing from Let's Get It On or afterward; the newest Anthology adds even more from that era while subtracting a bit from Gaye's earlier years, including a few of his numerous duets. Even so, it still stands as a near-definitive document.

"Elvis: The Complete 1954-62 U.S.A. Singles" is a curious release, from an independent British label, issued in 2015. It's like a mini-boxed set, comprising 4 CDs. The 100 tracks - 25 on each disc - are, according to the sleeve notes, Elvis's "complete 1954-62 American singles, presented here in the order in which they were issued, as well as all of his American EPs from the same period".

Ray Charles was the musician most responsible for developing soul music. Singers like Sam Cooke and Jackie Wilson also did a great deal to pioneer the form, but Charles did even more to devise a new form of black pop by merging '50s R&B with gospel-powered vocals, adding plenty of flavor from contemporary jazz, blues, and (in the '60s) country. Then there was his singing; his style was among the most emotional and easily identifiable of any 20th century performer, up there with the likes of Elvis and Billie Holiday.

Limited-edition 4CD set comprising the complete Presley singles and EPs released in the USA up to 1962 presented in the order in which they were issued. This edition comes with a comprehensive booklet full of discographical information, rare photos and memorabilia. Eight tracks have been added as a bonus making 100 songs recorded by Elvis in his prime.

For British girl-pop, 1960s Decca is a goldmine. The label had its A&R hounds sniffing into every nook and cranny of the British Isles, signing up Midlands schoolgirls (the Orchids), London folk club denizens (Dana Gillespie, Beverley), former child actresses (Adrienne Poster, Sandra Barry), Liverpudlian girl groups (the Vernons Girls, the Satin Bells), soulful northerners (Elkie Brooks, Truly Smith) and Scots (Lulu, Barry St John), well-connected Chelsea girls (Louise Cordet, Twinkle, Marianne Faithfull), Merseybeat wannabes (Beryl Marsden), talent show winners (Billie Davis, Babbity Blue, Jean Martin) and even transient Americans (Goldie & the Gingerbreads) – all featured in this gorgeously packaged collection.

After a rockabilly outset where his melodies and lyrics already showed ambition, Roy Orbison invented a new, sophisticated form of rock which had refined, elegant arrangements. A friend and inspirer of The Beatles as well as Elvis Presley, he was one of the great precursors of the 1960s’ creative explosion, one of the first to give rock a lavish orchestral colour. An extraordinary singer, his romantic, deeply original work still symbolizes the opulent and progressive America of the Kennedy era.

Crooner star of the 60s and 70s, the singer with a suave voice was notably the performer of the tube Moon River, the presenter of his own TV show that blew up the audience between 1962 and 1971 and the owner of 18 gold and three platinum records ! He will remain as one of the major voices of the easy listening of this period, expert in deliciously kitschy cooing. Without Andy Williams. Born on December 3, 1927 in Wall Lake, Iowa, the son of a railroad worker was a regular host of Grammy Awards and other Golden Globes.

"The King of Soul" coincides with the 50th anniversary of Redding's debut album, "Pain In My Heart", which helped define the sound of Stax Records in Memphis, Tennessee. This set features 92 songs and retraces the singer's career from his meteoric rise to his untimely death in a 1967 plane crash.

Although his recording career only lasted five years, from 1962 through 1967 (seven studio albums in all), with his biggest hits coming in the last two years of that time, and his only number one, "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay," after his death, Otis Redding is still widely considered the greatest performer of the classic soul era, a designation he undoubtedly deserves. A dynamic performer and a more than competent songwriter ( "Dock of the Bay," for instance, is a Redding original), he brought the energy and directness of gospel into the secular world with a fervor and passion that made his songs, and particularly his live versions of them, into gritty sermons on the joy, loss, pain, and yearning that attends being in love.