Added: 5 years ago
From: smokinlouis
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  • Ray Charlie Parker???? Good stuff!

  • He was the best musician ever. Everything he did (musically) was wonderful.

  • WOW never seen ray play sax live. I know in his newport live album, he's holding a sax. Bet this is why van morrison picked it up haha

  • 11 people say justin bieber

  • Wow I feel sorry for those 11 deaf people.

  • Sure, Ray. Rip a little Bird on your alto- after all, it isn't though you aren't already GENIUS enough at all else you ever tried your hand at. Throw a little talent my way, will 'ya? Daymnnnnnnnnn.

  • Thanks a lot for your fine memory, Mr Smokinlouis

  • he is the man!

  • Mr. Charles on the axe, he surely was an amazing cat!

  • Some1 told me tht he is blind, correct????

  • @donato0389 yes he suffered glaucoma at age seven

  • @musicofmygeneration Yea, some1 also told me tht there is movie about him, i´ll look for it!!!! thnx, i appreciate tht!!!! grettings from Costa Rica!!!

  • @donato0389  no problemo.

  • @donato0389 went to a school for blind and deaf at age 7.  watch the movie. it shows how ray is 15-50 years old in the film.

  • Best guy in last 50 years!

  • Goodstuff. Did you hear the "Pop Eye The Sailor Man" rift right at the start of his solo?

  • in my country

  • I am a saxophonist.... this is one one my most fav songs...most people did not know Ray charles could play sax... He is just awesome

  • @RaySkeetTV i had found out in the 1960s and good to hear you play saxophone I've played since i was 5 along with piano etc. for 48 years

  • Great Showcase of Ray's talent

  • H.S.M. I didn't know he could play sax!

  • @jhndnlds yeah he played at the age 7 same with the harmonica and much more

  • @jhndnlds made a typo i meant at age 5.

  • My first time EVER seeing Ray play another instrument besides the piano. Life is full of surprises! What a treat to see this after nearly a 50 year knowledge of only his piano playing.

  • I swear to god he's quoting "Cool Blues" by Bird at 1:42

  • I am overwhelmed. Awesome.

  • he got nirvana))))

  • DAMN!!! I Didnt know ray was that multi-talented!!!!

  • He was an amazing music ARRANGER. The older he got the more amazing his arrangements, which is why he switched to more big band and crossover music later. Yes he got a larger audience, but he earned it by showing the establishment that his arranging power and drawing power was par non.

  • He was high. Really high, in every meaning of the word :)

  • If y'all like his alto playing on this, get the Atlantic album he made with Milt Jackson called "Soul Brothers".

  • Awesome vocalist, unbelievable piano, and killer sax! What a guy... universal entertainer!

  • @jacobjoes and don't forget organ (Genius Plus Soul = Jazz)

  • le piano est laineux c cool

  • 0:54 some epic headbanging from the sax section!

  • I never knew Ray could play the sax but I guess when you ooze music/soul/talent, you can pretty much play anything and sing anything!

  • The phrase 'Jack of all trades, master of none' could not be more wrong. Ray was the master of all he surveyed.

  • what is this song called?!

  • A excentricidade e a elegância deste som misto que vai dos anos 40 aos anos 60,simplesmente maravilhoso.

  • He plays just as he sings! Amazing...

  • He incorporates all the Bird licks with a healthy dose of the blues. Thank god he went on to be the musician he did, but he could've potentially been a monstrous alto player if he wanted to.

  • he moves better than the groove of the song!

  • didnt know that raycharles could play the saxophone too

  • me ether...

    But it sounds great!

  • what kind of saxophone does he play on? the model i mean...

  • not totally sure, but the crook looks similar to that of the selmer model before the mark VI.

  • 0:36 .. hand faster than eye? FTW!

  • his prasing is so unique whether it be on the sax or keys. he has mad chops on both

  • I did not know he played the sax but I am not surprised he's one of a kind KILLER!

  • oleeeeeeeeeeeeeee mi rai charles el piano el saxofon y lo q le pongan es un artista es un maestro q sabiduria le dio dios a este hombre oleeeee

  • amaiiiizing

  • genius

  • What a tasty jam. Ray Charles is amazing.

  • Comment removed

  • Dirty... Oh Soo very dirty... Making every change... and that key change.. damn

  • what key change

  • Right at 1:35 ... you can't hear it?

  • oh yeah that's right, I didn't notice it before

  • up a 4th

  • He is to one the best saxephone player,s !

  • That's the man - stunning

  • fool

  • Are you kidding me? This is deffinetly him!

  • @commanderkeen08 yo...

  • I have now gained a whole new respect and admiration for this man.

    He's the shit!

  • I didn't know that Ray Charles played the saxophone, did he play it growing up or did he just kind of pick it up one day (I wouldn't be surprised if he did, his brilliance in music exceeds my understanding)

  • he played the clarinet in school as a kid, then at some point switch to sax and started piano. he has a very interesting biography

  • Killin' it as if he were Cannonball!

  • the first time I ever saw Ray play the alto was on the Smothers Brothers Show !!! I am not bullshitting you. . . Ray guest hosted one of their shows (I think it was on their last season) and there was this skit he did with Tommy Smothers were they played these street corner musicians. . . Tommy was a deaf guitarist and Ray "played" a blind sax player. I am still looking for that show (and better yet, the skit). Hopefully it will appear on Youtube.

  • Man this guy can play an eggplant with his ass and make it sound good..

  • holy shit that was funny. i bet he can i bet he can

  • There is no substitute for pure fucking genius. The "artists" today that try to pass themselves off as "talent" couldn't carry Ray's fucking jockstrap. And that is some real mutherfucking talk.

  • @kingbob3009 FA SURE!!!!

  • i forgot but isnt this guy blind

    wow he rocks

  • he litterally does rock in this song, back and forth.

  • Amazing!!!!!!!!!!!1

  • wow that was sick...

  • Ray Charles is no were near as good as anyone says he is.His genius cannot be described!

  • wow

  • Wow - the first bar he quotes another song. What a rare post! What a brilliant man he was!

  • scary how much Jamie Foxx looked like him

  • Ray could've played an eggplant with his ass and made sound good.

  • I had heard he could swing a sax, but never saw or listen to his sax playing. He sure does a great job with that sax.

    Robert Smokinglouis.

    Do you have anything of Ray's called 'Busted'

    Thansk a Million

  • Thank you Smokin Louis for posting this !

    So many people don't know that Ray also arranged and had control on ALL aspects of his music...AWESOME video !

  • HOLY crap the thing he starts at 1:48 is friggin EXCELLENT. Simple but oh so effective! I'm gonna cop that!!

  • i agree 100%

  • Absolutely, I just watched an oscar peterson 1964 show on bbc where he uses that phrase - either he's quoting Ray or that is from an old tune they both know. It is just TOO FREAKIN GOOD!

  • It's the Sailor's Hornpipe- you may remember it from such cartoons as Popeye. Learn your Sea Shanties, fellas...

  • Kafası güzel herhalde ... :)))

  • lol he quoted a parker riff on 1 43 man genius fkn genius brother ray your missed man i hope your up there jamming ,sweeeet

  • THAT's FCUKIN COOOL - I HAD NOOO IDEA RAY COULD SWING THE SAX LIKE THIS --- THANKS FOR POSTING A THOUSAND TIMES !!!

  • Ray was so talented he played the sax too most don't know it. I'm so glad he got his statue on friday!

  • Brother Ray was truly the embodiement of music, business and showmanship. He could see from within and he beared witness to his audience that it wasn't his eyes that gave him vision.

  • where can I get this song?

  • thanks smokinlouis for posting these Ray Charles movies they are great!

  • man I love that early 60's sound!!!! Ray you are still the greatest!

  • nice

  • Is there a way i can download this song?

  • Ray toured and played Sax with little walter for a while.

  • Let's see..Ray sings...ray plays the piano...Ray plays the sax.....he's got a great sense of humor...what else does he do? Oh yeah, I forgot...Ray's a genius.

  • lol at the end of this video i actually clapped out loud. excellent, wot a talented man

  • You have to take heed that the brother was blind so the fact he could even play sax THAT good is great enough. He truly was the GENIUS. Wow. RIP, Ray.

  • wow i thought he only played the piano and clarinet. this rocks

  • Ray is the man..I didnt even kno he played the sax..Straight up genius..No one greater..!!!

  • i forgot but isnt this guy blind

    wow he rocks

  • They didn't call Ray a genius for nothing.

  • He played the sax?!! Now THAT'S new to me!! WOW... Got TALENT!

  • For some one who isn't a sax player he does a pretty decent job. He plays nice bop lines and that key change is done really well.

  • Awesome...the end

  • ray charles is not a sax player... why are ppl comparing him to someone who is actually a sax player.

  • Hey, guys, stop arguing the academic points and enjoy the music!

  • lo mejor que he escuchado.

  • Man alive, I had no idea that Ray Charles could play the sax. And all you people who say that he is copying Charlie Parker and that the solo isn't that good, let me see you play the sax half that well. Then you can talk about Ray Charles. Also, maybe a few licks are copied from Charlie Parker, but even modern jazz musicians still listen to and copy ideas from Charlie Parker.

  • we are human beings, its our nature to improve. thats how different styles evolve. so good on him for givin it ago. no body said the same bout hendrix's all along the watchtower.

  • cuz all hendrix did was give it ago

  • i dont know much about thos sax greats, i know a bit more about the sole side of it and how music works. and i also know that if no body copied the great musicians music wouldnt progress the way it does.

  • I agree. It is copied from Charlie Parker. It is not a great solo and it is copied. Ray was a great muscian but not good on the saxophone.

  • please post something with u playing so we can see how it is done.

  • For those who can't tell the difference between Charlie and Ray playing, stop pretending that you know anything about music. Charlie Parker is a so much better than Ray that the music community doesn't even put them in the same category. Charlie Parker is the basis for all contempary Jazz musician's education. Charlie Parker's music and style is taught at every major music university around the world that has a jazz program. Ray is not. You can't even put these 2 on the same page.

  • You are a sax GOD and you are SO musically educated!@#!#!

  • thanks

  • If cbr900rr77 could play (or post) something better than this, he wouldn't be on fucking youtube arguing with people about a video put up purely for entertainment.

  • ray charles is one of the most talented musicians EVER!! and if you people think this isnt good...theres something wrong with you

    RAY NAILED IT!!!

  • I didn't say it was bad. i said it was copied and not very well.

  • What couldn't this guy do?!

  • Some Has to be mentally challenged to say Ray had no talent at sax!! Ofcourse BIrd is one of his influences. But this solo is all Ray.The sequential motif he plays at 1:47 is a straight Ray Charles blues moment. Bird would never have played that. The man was so gifted that he could have easily had a career solely being a sax player. I challenge anyone to find a Bird recording that mirrors this. This is all RAY!! RIP SIR.

    -JAMEEL

  • you are out of your mind if you think that he didn't rip this from charlie parker. you know it is cool to say that you don't know what you are talking about. Any one who was played and studied charlie would understand. later

  • I'm going to have to go with dextorg on this one...that lick in particular is more Oliver Nelson on "Hoe Down" than anything Charlie Parker ever did.

  • Incredible!

  • he should have stuck to the piano. He ripped his whole solo from charlie parker.

  • ... he's a fucking piano player. you know any piano players who can rip a bird solo? that's farely impressive in my mind man.

    RIP Ray

    Elliot

  • He did not rip a bird solo. he killed it. He has no talent on the sax. He is a good piano player and a great singer, but he is no sax player. Don't make him out to be more than he was. Plus it takes zero skill and talent to rip off somebody' solo. Props to him for singing and piano, but he sucks at the sax.

  • dude if u think he sucks so bad why dont u post a vid of u doing beter huh u ass hole ray charls was a saint and i truly wish he was still alive

  • like i said, it takes no talent to play someones else stuff and as a matter a fact if i wanted to i could play and post something better than this, but it not worth the time to appease someone with no music education. later

  • You know, I would almost go with you on what you said if you weren't talking about Ray Charles. But you're talking about a guy who basically invented soul music and a guy who could move from jazz, to pop, to soul, to R&B, to gospel, to country in the same concert. You might have studied the great Charlie Parker, but aren't up on Ray Charles

  • Ray is a great singer and writer. He was a good piano player. But as a sax player, he is not good. His solo is copied and done badly, considering that it is all Parker. This was not really strange for that time since everyone copied Charlie, including me. Every great contemparay sax player has studied and stolen from Charlie. Ray was one of the greats, but the [eople on this site seem to think he was a great sax player, which he was not. I appreciate your comment.

  • First of all I want you to read Quincy Jones' autobiography. Jones is perhaps one of the greatest musical minds of our time and even he professes Ray to have outrageous talent on sax and piano. I am a sax player on the New York jazz scene I know talent when I hear it. You said you could post a solo of you playing better than that. I want to hear it. Post away!

  • As a sax player you should know that he stole this solo from charlie parker. For shame.

  • you shut the fuck up u ignorant mother fucker

  • Ray and Stevie Wonder.  True ICONS and multi-talented musicians

  • wow.. what a talent!!

  • R,I,P SEÑOR!!

  • Talent!, Talent!, Talent!! Thank you for your music Ray.

  • the best ever!r.i.p

  • heaven on earth

  • is that you, jamie?? lol

  • I have this concert on DVD

  • I never saw Ray play the Saxophone so SUPERIOR! He is very talented.

    R.I.P. to the legend.

  • of course jammie is not ray... but they are both great! we can not stick to the past... ray rocks but fox is alive.. PEACE

  • Sounds like his musical talent surpasses his technical skill on the saxophone... This guy is awesome.

  • Ray has done it again!

  • Dang, I never knew Ray could blow the horn!!! Thanks for putting this up!

  • Me Neither...!

  • From Stockholm: Oh, man, this is so good!! He is 'mean' on that sax! :-)

  • Nice .

  • play that sax ray!!!!

  • Ray used to campaign against the military industrial complex. this song was called funk my sweet potato. A full ten years before james brown mashed it up. Ray you play on the hay not yeterday but all the way don't matter if you gay which you ain't mr ray play play play.

  • muito bom ray e um genio.

  • why was i born so late.

  • que ha pasado con los hermanos afroamericanos de EE.UU.? Ya nos vemos hombres hermosos y finos como R. Charles, o J. Coltrane...

  • I'm not a religious man, but thank God for Ray Charles

  • Classic stuff. The band is swinging hard. Almost sounds like Basie's band. Great solo by Ray.

  • Don 't shed a tear for Ray . He is swinging in heaven with Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald, Jaco Pastorius , Ray Barreto, Miles Davis, Benny Goodman, Glenn Miller and Satchmo Louis Armstrong and the rest of that heavenly orchestra. Keep on swinging in heaven Ray - you and your music will never die.

  • This is sweet ! Brother Ray has some mean chops on the sax !

  • godamn! ray rokd it!

  • Well I never knew Ray played the Alto Sax how sweet man.

  • This is awesome I already loved Ray but now that I've heard him play the sax, I'm completly In Love with him!

  • A musical genius! Did you know he played Piano,sax and Clarinet! He even mixed is own recordings! just saw a Presentation by the Nashville Sympnony orchestra-featuring Ellis Hall(who aws accompanied by Ray's Assistant of 40 years, and Gregg Phipps-Ray Drummer! What awesome evening! happy Birthday-Papa Ray!

  • happy birthday,old fella.wherever you are,ray,play something good..farewell:-)

  • yep, and he also plays the battery

  • He played saxo !?  O.o

  • HE IS GOD

  • damn i'm still in awe!! this man was pure talent!!

  • my gosh I didnt know Ray played sax :|

  • The resemblence between him and Jamie Foxx is amazing. Incredible.

  • re redWinter: Do not even entertain that thought ! Jamie Foxx is not even in the same solar system and worthy to wipe the dirt from Ray Charles' shoes. There is no comparison. That is similar to comparing a Yugo to a Ferrari Testarossa.

  • Foxx was personally trained by Charles during preproduction of his biopic, you know. Foxx does a great Ray Charles impression, and is pretty technically gifted. What makes Charles better is that he basically invented modern music.

  • Yes, thank you for saying that (a month ago). I scrolled down these comments in disbelief that anyone would compare the two. Totally unreasonable comparison, particularly the comment that seems to suggest added value to Jamie Fox for simply being alive while Charles is dead!

  • i've just bought "genius loves company". it's amazing