Genius + Soul = Jazz

This is a magnificent album, but the sound quality of the two CDs I received was simply dreadful. The sound was low, muffled and not what I would expect from a new CD. Amazon must have gotten a defective lot of CDs, because I complained about the first one and was sent a replacement that was equally bad. It's damned shame because this is a great album, but the sound quality on the CD made it unlistenable.

This is a tremendous double CD set. It's actually 4 albums plus an additional bonus track. Disc 1 features arrangements by Quincy Jones and Ralph Burns. Disc 2 has arrangements by Roger Neumann, Alf Clausen, Teddy Edwards and Jimmy Heath. The personnel passing through includes many jazz greats such as Clark Terry, "Snookie" Young and Blue Mitchell on trumpet, Urbie Green and Steve Turre on trombone, Marshall Royal, Frank Wess, Frank Foster and "Fathead" Newman on sax, Freddie Green on guitar and Sonny Payne and Roy Haynes on drums. Of course there's Ray Charles himself on piano, organ and a few vocals. With so many members from the Count Basie band this is a great lineup. If you love Big Band and Ray Charles the way that I do this must be in your collection.

Absolute classic gem! That's it. I bought this album when it was originally produced, but maybe did not appreciate it enough. Now, a million years later, I bought it again. What a stellar recording it is. Big band/jazz/Ray Charles ? Wonderful.

The record has a distant, subaquatic, tiny, muffled sound, with no highs or lows, and an indistinct middle. Worst recording I have ever heard. The seller ought to give me my money back.

If you haven't listened to this one you are missing something . Get it. Listen often. Let Ray work on your soul.

The sound quality is muddy and flat. I don't know what source they used to "remaster" this issue but it didn't work. It's a great album but not this edition. Save your money.

This is an excellent example of Ray Charles, the Basie Orchestra, and Quincy Jones at their finest. The engineering was also suberp. I shave this album on the 50th anniversary reissue as well as the original LP, and I'd can say you can't go wrong with either. The engineering is superb, sorry the aural experience​is excellent. Just a lot of laid back, swinging jazz. You can tell all of the people on this recording really loved what they were doing. I particularly enjoy "Mister C", a purely instrumental number that really swings and "I'm Gonna Move to the Outskirts of Town", a slow, sultry blues with a great arrangement of vocals and instruments. On the latter track, there is an excellent trumpet-band call and response, which is reminiscent of a lot of classic Basie.

he is outstanding, america's best. what a genius.

I very rarely complain about a CD. But this is an absolute disaster. I had the LP over 50 years ago and loved the music (and elsewhere on Amazon I have posted a very favourable review of the CD version put out on another label). But on this particular version - put out on a label called Hallmark - it's impossible to HEAR the music. A complete waste of money.

I have never complained about the quality of an album before and I have been buying them for over 40 years! This Hallmark version is truly dreadful. I don't know what they have done with it but the sound is appallingly poor and I mean poor. I am holding back from using some very unprintable language. DON'T BUY THIS VERSION. I have now bought a second hand copy of the other version from Zoverstocks.

bellissimo...grazie.

An absolute classic and perhaps the finest brass arrangements I've ever heard...and that's just the cd. Service was perfect and delivery was speedy. Sold as described.

I am a big fan of Ray Charles but the quality of the recording on this CD is terrible I though my hi-fi had major problem when I first put the CD on. It's a very muffled sound quality, and worst of all Ray only sing on 2 of the tracks. There are much better recording of Ray Charles so go for one of those.