Legendary singer Ray Charles has been honoured by the US Postal Service with a stamp in his name.
Charles will be commemorated on a new Forever Stamp issue from the U.S. Postal Service as part of the Music Icons series.
The stamp is being released on what would have been Charles’ 83rd birthday.
In conjunction with the stamp release and the singer’s birthday, Concord Music Group will release a new CD/DVD combo, Ray Charles Forever, that contains 12 of Charles’ performances, including the unreleased They Can’t Take That Away From Me. The DVD features rare live performances of Imagine (Goodwill Games, 1998), They Can’t Take That Away From Me (Earth, 1992), and A Song For You (North Sea Jazz Fest, 1997) along with interview segments culled from the BBC’s Live In London (1986) and Norman Seeff’s The Session Project (1985). The package has a special book with liner notes, photos and other special material.
Valerie Ervin, President of the Ray Charles Foundation and executive producer of the release, said “No matter how many awards and accolades he received, Mr. Charles was genuinely humbled by each and every honor. To him, it meant people appreciated what he loved doing so much—his music. Georgia On My Mind, Hit The Road Jack, What’d I Say and I’ve Got A Woman are among the many hits that are standards and meet the test of time. But to mark this momentous occasion, I selected songs that also exemplify the forever quality of his performances.”
A special edition version of the package will be sold at U.S. Post Offices that contains a bonus track, I Didn’t Know What Time It Was.
Chief Marketing Officer Nagisa Manabe said “Ray Charles was a musical genius whose fans spanned the globe. The U.S. Postal Service is delighted to partner with Concord Music Group to announce the release of this new CD featuring the legendary Ray Charles. This CD, including an exclusive song never before released, serves as a stellar companion to the limited-edition Ray Charles Forever Stamp the Postal Service is issuing September 23, as the latest addition to the Postal Service’s music icons series.”
The track list:
Song For You
I’m Gonna Move To The Outskirts Of Town
Ring Of Fire
Come Rain Or Come Shine
They Can’t Take That Away From Me
Till There Was You
Isn’t It Wonderful
None Of Us Are Free
Imagine
If I Could
So Help Me God
America the Beautiful
I Didn’t Know What Time It Was (U.S. Postal Service edition only)
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