The Genius Hits the Road
A concept album of songs about places in the United States, with Georgia on My Mind.
Ray Charles, 1960
- Released
- September 1960
- Recorded
- 25 and 29 March 1960
- Studio
- New York City
- Label
- ABC-Paramount
- Producer
- Sid Feller
- Length
- 33:37
His debut for ABC-Paramount is a concept album of songs about parts of the United States, from Alabamy Bound and Moonlight in Vermont to Deep in the Heart of Texas and Chattanooga Choo Choo. Sid Feller produced and Ralph Burns arranged and conducted, with Edgar Willis on bass, Milt Turner on drums and David Newman, Hank Crawford and Leroy Cooper on saxophones. It peaked at number nine on the pop album chart and produced a number one single in Georgia on My Mind. It expanded his thematic approach to albums, which inspired his original plans for Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music as a concept album without singles.
Track listing
- Alabamy Bound1:55
- Georgia on My Mind3:35
- Basin Street Blues2:46
- Mississippi Mud3:24
- Moonlight In Vermont3:02
- New York's My Home3:05
- California, Here I Come2:10
- Moon Over Miami3:20
- Deep in the Heart of Texas2:28
- Carry Me Back to Old Virginny2:02
- Blue Hawaii2:58
- Chattanooga Choo Choo3:05
Personnel
- Ray Charles vocals, piano
- Ralph Burns arranger, conductor
- Sid Feller producer
- Edgar Willis bass
- Milt Turner drums
- David "Fathead" Newman tenor saxophone
- Hank Crawford alto saxophone
- Leroy Cooper baritone saxophone
- John Hunt trumpet
- Marcus Belgrave trumpet
More from Ray Charles
Ray Charles (1957), The Genius of Ray Charles (1959), What'd I Say (1959), Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music (1962)
Sources
- The Genius Hits the Road, Wikipedia
- Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music, Wikipedia