Sep 22, 2026 12:26 PM
Hyde Park Jazz Fest on Chicago’s South Side to Present 20th Edition
The Hyde Park Jazz Festival will take place for the 20th time on the final weekend of September 2026. Beginning half…
Charles was born Ray Charles Robinson in Albany, Ga. on September 23, 1930, at the height of the Depression. During his early years, Charles' impoverished family traveled throughout the Southeast in search of work, but when he was four Charles' vision began to deteriorate. By age seven he was blind, assigned to a special school in St. Augustine, Fla. where he studied music and math. At age 16 Charles left school to become a professional musician, playing wherever he could, struggling to survive. One day, fed up with Florida, he decided to travel as far away as possible and relocated to Seattle, Wash. In Seattle, Charles became a popular local talent, forming a Nat King Cole-inspired group in the late 1940s called the McSon Trio, with fellow musicians Gossady McGee and Milt Jarret.
During the reign of boxer "Sugar" Ray Robinson, Ray Charles Robinson shortenedhis name to Ray Charles to avoid confusing fans, but continued cutting records and performing throughout America, scoring his first minor hit with 1951's"Baby, Let Me Hold Your Hand." The following year Charles signed to Atlantic Records and produced his first big hit with 1955's "I Got A Woman." Over the next few years Charles built a national following with his soulful voice and keyboard prowess, frequently collaborating with friend Quincy Jones as well as various jazz musicians.
After signing to ABC in 1959, Charles' career took off. He became one of thetop pop/R&B performers in North America, releasing No. 1 hits like "George" and "Born to Lose." In 1961 he formed his first big band, and later started his own recording studio, RPM. Charles freely switched between R&B, jazz, country androck, demonstrating his musical versatility while winning over new fans. During the Civil Rights movement, Charles was a friend of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.,and participated in many civil rights marches. Despite his advancing age, Charles' talent remained undiminished, and he continued churning out records throughout the '60s, '70s, '80s and '90s.
Early last summer, he performed his 10,000th career concert at the Greek Theater in Los Angeles.
In May 2003, he also received his fifth doctorate from Dillard University in New Orleans.
In 2002, Charles and Adams endowed both Morehouse College and Albany State Univ., in Charles' birthplace of Albany, GA, with substantial contributions, exceeding $1 million each.
Sixteen years ago, Charles established the Ray Charles Robinson Foundation for the hearing impaired. Since its creation, the foundation, with Charles' encouragement and generous, on-going funding, has blazed a trail of discovery in auditory physiology and hearing implantation.
Charles recently recorded an album of duets for Concord Records, which is slated for a late summer release.
A solo concert by saxophonist Joshua Redman will close the first night of the Hyde Park Jazz Festival on Sept. 26.
Sep 22, 2026 12:26 PM
The Hyde Park Jazz Festival will take place for the 20th time on the final weekend of September 2026. Beginning half…
“It was just that suddenly … I could hear it,” Ravi Coltrane said of an epiphany he experienced during his late teens regarding his father’s music. “And it was almost like a calling, like something saying, ‘Hey, man, come on. It’s time to get serious.’ And the first time you really tune in and dial in and focus like that, it can be very life-changing.”
Sep 22, 2026 1:39 PM
Editor’s Note: Tomorrow, Sept. 23, is the 100th anniversary of John Coltrane’s birth. In honor of the tenor and…
Camille Thurman took to the stage alongside bassist Kenny Davis and drummer Tommy Campbell for a rendition of Johnny Mercer’s “I’m An Old Cowhand” that recalled Rollins’ epochal 1957 trio outing Way Out West.
Oct 6, 2026 1:33 PM
As emcee Mark Ruffin noted at the commencement of an epic tribute to saxophonist Sonny Rollins at the Cathedral of Saint…
Kurt Elling, Katherine Russell and Emmet Cohen (host on the 2027 Jazz Cruise) share a laugh at sea.
Sep 8, 2026 11:52 AM
It began in 2001. A travel agent named Anita E. Berry had been booking clients on “partial” jazz cruises that took…
Sep 17, 2026 11:00 AM
The 2027 DownBeat College Guide is an invaluable resource for music students, especially jazz students, to find a school…
