Ray Charles - What'd I Say (45-rpm, Limited Edition) [2LP]

What'd I Say is the record where gospel and rhythm and blues collided hard enough to make soul music, and this 45-rpm 2LP cuts it at the speed audiophiles want it.

The title track exists because Ray Charles had time to kill. Playing a dance in 1958 with minutes left on the clock and nothing left in the setlist, he told the band to follow him and improvised the whole thing on the spot, Wurlitzer electric piano leading, the Raelettes answering him call and response. The crowd lost its mind. When it came out it climbed to number six and gave Charles his first Top 10 hit and first gold record, while the moaning back and forth in the closing section got it banned outright by radio stations who understood exactly what they were hearing.

The 1959 album around it holds up better than most hit-driven LPs of the era. Rockhouse is a pure instrumental strut, Tell Me How Do You Feel leans into the gospel side of his voice without a hint of restraint, and Roll With My Baby is jump blues delivered by a man who could do it in his sleep and clearly enjoyed not sleeping.

Spread across two records at 45 rpm, the piano finally hits like it should.