Sultry Facts About Ray Charles, The Crossover King
Frank Sinatra called him a genius. Billy Joel called him more important than Elvis Presley. Country singer Glen Campbell sang at his funeral. So what kind of performer gets this wide variety of attention? The answer is Ray Charles, the crossover king. Charles had his hands in all kinds of music styles and, in his spare time, was enmeshed in his fair share of scandal. Oh, did I mention he was also blind? Keep reading to see how this complex, multi-talented—and occasionally infuriating—man became known as the Crossover King.
1. He Was From Humble Roots
In Albany Georgia, Aretha Robinson gave birth to Ray Charles Robinson on September 30, 1930—but the story is a little more complicated than that. You see, Aretha had lost her mother when she was a girl, and her father, unable to care for a baby, did something drastic. He simply handed his little girl over to his boss, Bailey Robinson. Robinson and his wife Mary promised to raise Aretha as if she were their own.
Let’s just say…that did not happen. Not at all.
2. There Was A Scandal
By the time Charles’ mother Aretha Robinson was 15, she was pregnant. But that wasn’t the worst news. It turns out that the man who got her pregnant was none other than Aretha’s adoptive father.
A scandal erupted, and Aretha Robinson escaped her family home to be with her aunts and uncles. It was there that she gave birth to Ray Charles Robinson.
What Aretha did next, however, defied explanation.
3. She Returned
For some reason, Aretha Robinson packed up her young son and returned to the home of Bailey and Mary Robinson—the very place where her assault had taken place.
Bailey quickly took flight from the volatile situation, and Aretha quietly set up house with Mary Robinson, the wife of the man who’d attacked her. The two women raised Charles together—which may have been more than a little awkward.
4. He Liked To Boogie Woogie
At the tender age of three, Charles was hanging out at the Wylie Pitman’s Red Wing Cafe. Pitman liked to play piano in the boogie-woogie style popular at the time, and people started to notice how much young Charles liked it.
Pitman was a family friend and he took Charles under his wing, even teaching him to play the piano. Little did Pitman know the talent he was kindling.
Before Charles could become famous, however, there was a whole lot of heartache coming his way.
