Ray Charles was the musician most responsible for developing soul music. Singers like Sam Cooke and Jackie Wilson also did a great deal to pioneer the form, but Charles did even more to devise a new form of black pop by merging '50s R&B with gospel-powered vocals, adding plenty of flavor from contemporary jazz, blues, and (in the '60s) country. Then there was his singing; his style was among the most emotional and easily identifiable of any 20th century performer, up there with the likes of Elvis and Billie Holiday. He was also a superb keyboard player, arranger, and bandleader. The brilliance of his 1950s and '60s work, however, can't obscure the fact that he made few classic tracks after the mid-'60s, though he recorded often and performed until the year before his death.

Fill your world with 75 inspirational songs, perfect for starting your day, ending your day, and every moment in between! Beautiful, familiar melodies and uplifting, moving lyrics speak to our hearts, graciously filling our spirits and affirming our beliefs. Listen for yourself and feel the wonder music can make in your life. Be swept away by favorites like "Blowin' in the Wind" by Judy Collins, "The Battle Hymn Of The Republic / All My Trials" by J.D. Sumner & The Stamps, "God Bless The Child" by Rosemary Clooney, "Shenandoah" by The Michaels, "The Glory Of Love" by Patti Page, "Gone Fishin'" by Louis Armstrong with Bing Crosby and so many more.

While not as ferocious as 1968's Elvis TV special or In Person at the International Hotel Las Vegas from 1969, this expanded 30th anniversary edition of the soundtrack to That's the Way It Is retains the excitement and exhaustion of his stage show of the time. The set is broken up into three separate discs. Disc one, special edition, includes the original 12-track album with seven bonus tracks taken from the same Las Vegas concerts and Nashville sessions. Disc two, the concert, includes the entire performance from the midnight show at the Las Vegas Hilton on August 12, 1970, consisting of mainly unreleased tracks highlighted by a rushed version of "Suspicious Minds," which finds the horn section falling behind an exhausted Elvis as he pushes the tempo. Disc three, the rehearsal, contains bits and pieces from these sessions..

Third album from the acclaimed British Electronic rockers featuring vocal and musical assistance from Mark Lanegan, Will Oldham, Jason Pierce, Richard Hawley, Gibby Haynes and Mike Patton. Soulsavers began as more of an electronic affair, with Rich Machin partnering with studio engineer Ian Glover. Their sophomore album, It's Not How Far You Fall, It's How You Land set a new benchmark, threading Soul, Gospel, Rock, Jazz and Country into the mix and a matching spread of singers. Now, you must be prepared to follow Soulsavers even further, for Broken is even better, a future classic that delivers 13 tracks of wide-ranging majesty. Lanegan handles vocals on 10 of the album's tracks, joined by many guest collaborators.

A remarkable gospel and jazz singer, with a substantial following in both fields. Alongside Willie Mae Ford Smith, Sister Rosetta Tharpe is widely acclaimed among the greatest Sanctified gospel singers of her generation; a flamboyant performer whose music often flirted with the blues and swing, she was also one of the most controversial talents of her day, shocking purists with her leap into the secular market - by playing nightclubs and theaters, she not only pushed spiritual music into the mainstream, but in the process also helped pioneer the rise of pop-gospel.

An astounding voice, a thrilling guitar, encounters with blues and boogie pianist Sammy Price and with the super contralto Marie Knight, Sister Rosetta Tharpe continues to swing the gospel in her own inimitable fashion!

A remarkable gospel and jazz singer, with a substantial following in both fields.
Alongside Willie Mae Ford Smith, Sister Rosetta Tharpe is widely acclaimed among the greatest Sanctified gospel singers of her generation; a flamboyant performer whose music often flirted with the blues and swing, she was also one of the most controversial talents of her day, shocking purists with her leap into the secular market - by playing nightclubs and theaters, she not only pushed spiritual music into the mainstream, but in the process also helped pioneer the rise of pop-gospel…

Russell Taff (born November 11, 1953) is an American gospel singer and songwriter. He has sung a variety of musical styles throughout his career including: pop rock, traditional southern gospel, contemporary country music, and rhythm and blues. He first gained recognition as lead vocalist for the Imperials (1976-1981). One of his best-known performances is the song "Praise the Lord". He has also been a member of the Gaither Vocal Band, and occasionally tours with Bill Gaither in the Gaither Homecoming concerts. As a solo artist and songwriter, Taff is known for the 1980s anthem "We Will Stand".

Three years in the making, Grammy ® nominated recording artist Jonathan Butler is set to release his highly-anticipated new gospel CD, Free, on October 30, 2015 through Rendezvous Music. The smooth jazz artist first catapulted onto the Gospel music scene with the Grammy-nominated hit "Falling In Love With Jesus," and Butler once again impresses with his emotional testimony on Free, reflecting his life the past few years. "I've been through a fire and all kinds of challenges. It's been a crazy three or four years," Butler said. "So this album is a testimony of God's goodness. With the timing of all these things happening to me and in the midst of all of that, writing a record was pretty heavy. I was going through quite a lot personally and I wanted to make that statement very clear on this album that I'm in a new season in my life."

Tupelo, Mississippi's Paul Thorn was a prizefighter and skydiver before becoming a rootsy singer/songwriter. As a boxer Thorn once fought against Roberto Duran, and as a musician he has toured and collaborated with Sting, Paul Carrack, Joe Diffie, Tanya Tucker, Ronnie Milsap, and Carole King, to name a scant few. Collection includes: Are You With Me? (2004); What The Hell Is Goin On? (2012); Too Blessed To Be Stressed (2014); Don't Let The Devil Ride (2018).

Since the release of his 1997 major label debut Lie To Me, the then 16 year-old Lang has built a reputation as one of the best live performers and guitarists of his generation. It s been seven years since he released a new studio album but the wait is finally over. On September 17th, 2013 Lang will release Fight For My Soul the follow up to his 2006 GRAMMY Award-winning album Turn Around. Recorded over a period of three years, Lang collaborated with producer/songwriter Tommy Sims (who co-wrote Eric Clapton s GRAMMY-winning Change the World ) crafting the album s elegant rock n soul tracks from the ground up.

For the hardcore Little Richard fan – the kind that has to hear every recording the architect of rock & roll ever made – there's little question that Ace's Specialty Box Set is the motherlode. Spanning six discs and over a hundred tracks, this is for serious listeners. Since Specialty's condensed, three-disc version of this set also included numerous working versions, alternate takes and commercials, it was also targeted for dedicated listeners, but this set – which is twice as large – is for fans who love to immerse themselves in minute details and unfinished takes. For those listeners, this set is certainly worth the money, since it is lavishly produced and boasts every single thing Little Richard recorded at the label.

In 2008, nine-time GRAMMY Award winner Wynton Marsalis was commissioned to write a piece commemorating the 200th anniversary of Harlem’s Abyssinian Baptist Church. The result was a sacred celebration: a sweeping composition for a big band and 70-piece gospel choir. In 2013, award-winning recording artist Damien Sneed and his choir, Chorale Le Chateau, joined the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis on a 16-city, 19-show tour across the American south and into deep dialogue with the black tradition. Now, The Abyssinian Mass—Marsalis’s first original recorded composition in six years—documents this piece’s immense power to make audiences clap their hands and sing along to its joyous spirituality, its profound swing, and its bluesy swagger.

Bop till You Drop is Ry Cooder's eighth album, released in 1979. This was the first major-label digitally recorded album of Pop music. The album consisted almost entirely of covers of earlier R&B and rock'n'roll classics, including Elvis Presley's "Little Sister" and the 1965 Fontella Bass-Bobby McClure hit "Don't Mess Up a Good Thing", on which Cooder duetted with soul star Chaka Khan, who also performed on the only original track on the album, "Down in Hollywood".