March 17, 1962: Ray Charles Goes Country

March 17, 1962: Ray Charles releases his album Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music. Because of the segregationist nature of the South, black performers had never made it in country music. But because of country's influence on rock and roll, Ray wanted to show his fans how important it was to him. It was one of the first great "crossover" music projects.

Following his groundbreaking tenure with Atlantic Records, ABC-Paramount Records signed Ray to the best deal any pop music performer had ever gotten. They had so much faith in him, they let him record pretty much whatever he wanted. When he recorded his version of Hoagy Carmichael's "Georgia On My Mind" in 1960, he insisted on a racially integrated orchestra. He got it, and the song hit Number 1. It was the biggest hit the label ever had. So they had no problem trusting him with "going country."

The album opened with "Bye Bye Love," by the husband & wife team of Boudleaux & Felice Bryant. It was the 1st hit for The Everly Brothers, in 1957. It was followed by Eddy Arnold's "You Don't Know Me," Curley Williams' "Half as Much," Floyd Tillman's "I Love You So Much It Hurts," Arnold's "Just a Little Lovin' (Will Go a Long Way) and Ted Daffan's "Born to Lose."

Side Two had the Daffan-Davis collaboration "Worried Mind," the Tillman-Davis collaboration "It Makes No Difference Now," Hank Williams' "You Win Again," the Gospel tune "Careless Love," Don Gibson's "I Can't Stop Loving You," and Williams' "Hey, Good Lookin'."

Any one of those 12 songs' titles, had the listener not already known the songs, could have fit a blues song, a rhythm & blues song, or a rock and roll song. On this album, each one became a Ray Charles song. "I Can't Stop Loving You" was Number 1 for 6 weeks in 1962, making it the biggest hit song of the year. "You Don't Know Me" hit Number 2. Anyone who considered the album a gamble had to admit that Ray had come up seven.

Like Ray, Frank Sinatra had already worked with music producer and arranger Quincy Jones. Around this time, Frank was quoted as saying, "Ray Charles is the only true genius in our business." Ray responded, "I think genius is a higher category, and I don't think Ray Charles is anywhere near it."

If he didn't consider himself a genius, I wonder who he did consider to be one, because his success with this album -- and with a Volume Two released in October -- sure made him look and sound like a genius.

That Volume Two would include "Oh Lonesome Me," the flip side to Gibson's original record of "I Can't Stop Loving You"; and, with each becoming a Top 30 hit for Ray, also Jimmie Davis' "You Are My Sunshine," and Williams' songs "Take These Chains from My Heart" and "Your Cheating Heart."

In 1966, former Negro League and minor-league baseball player Charley Pride became the 1st black performer to start in country music and make it big there. There are now 3 black men -- as of 2022, no women -- who are members of the Grand Ole Opry: Pride, DeFord Bailey, and Darius Rucker, who left the rock band Hootie & The Blowfish to sing country.

UPDATE: In 2024, Beyoncé released an album titled Cowboy Carter, reminding everyone of country music's African-American roots. A year later, it received the Grammy Award for Album of the Year -- not Country, but overall. Both times, the white country establishment was okay with it, but the corporate-owned media, with an interest in appeasing Donald Trump, was furious. She didn't care, and announced a Cowboy Carter Tour. (As the wife of rapper Jay-Z, whose real name is Shawn Corey Carter, Beyoncé has sometimes billed herself as "Mrs. Carter.")

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March 17, 1962 was a Saturday. Kalpana Chawla was born. She was the 1st native of India to fly in space, but was killed in the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster in 2003.

This was also the day that pharmaceutical company Richardson-Merrell at last withdrew their FDA application to market the drug thalidomide. I have a separate entry for that event.

Baseball was in Spring Training. Football was out of season. There was 1 game played in the NBA: The Cincinnati Royals beat the Detroit Pistons, 129-107 at the Cincinnati Gardens. Oscar Robertson scored 33 points.

There were 2 games played in the NHL. The Montreal Canadiens beat the New York Rangers, 2-0 at the Montreal Forum. And the Chicago Black Hawks beat the Toronto Maple Leafs, 3-1 at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto. The Boston Bruins and the Detroit Red Wings were not scheduled.

And in English soccer, Arsenal and Cardiff City played to a 1-1 draw at the Arsenal Stadium, a.k.a. Highbury, in North London.