The Architects of Soul

Ray Charles – I Got A Woman

The year of 1955 started out with Ray Charles and his first gospel/R&B crossover hit “I Got A Woman” an R&B #1 (on January 22nd) hit in January, which was a song built on the Southern Tones “It Must Be Jesus”, to which Ray added improved lyrics. The song is a great example of using gospel-styled music mixed with “secular” lyrics (that is, not religious or non-sacred lyrics) which caused quite a stir within the black gospel communities when it first came out. This song captures a bit of that bad-boy image of who he has a woman “way over” town, who’s “good to me”, giving him love, money, and gifts.

Due to its mixture in gospel, R&B, and jazz, this song would be considered a precursor to a new genre that would soon be called “Soul”. Ray Charles would later go on to be considered the “Father of Soul” music, a genre that was to manifest in the early 60’s along with the song “What I’d Say” in late 59′.  However, in 1955, I consider Ray Charles to be one of the seven “Architects of Rock & Roll” who with this song helped orchestrate the musical phenomenon Rock & Roll. (see article of the Seven Architects of Rock & Roll) The song, “I Got A Woman”, was rated #235 on the Rolling Stones 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

(One of the) Father(s) of Rock & Roll

Ray Charles, not only was he an “architect” of Soul Music, but he also was one of the founders of rock & roll. He took a secular lyric (dirty line) and added it to sacred rhythms and syncopated call & response between solo and choruses of Gospel Music. Ray Charles was influenced by groups like the Pilgrim Travelers singer Jesse Whitaker and his influence on Ray Charles’ “Soul Singing”. Ray Charles following in Nat King Coles footsteps branches out with his own new style by combining gospel music with “secular lyrics”, in other words, non-sacred suggestive or explicit lyrics.