Product Review

Combining Charles's earliest and most blues-oriented work for Atlantic with some of his best jazz-oriented work in a 2 CD package, this set shows us both that Ray Charles could function admirably in either of two worlds. Or maybe it says that, no matter what the style, Ray Charles was always his own category. Either way, he shows his greatness pays no mind to categories. The blues disc offers up true classics like "The Sun's Gonna Shine", and the jazz disc shows off both Charles and alto saxophonist David "Fathead" Newman as fantastic, bluesy soloists of the first water. --Skip Heller