My World | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 1993 | |||
Length | 44:42 | |||
Label | Warner Bros. [1] | |||
Producer | Richard Perry | |||
Ray Charles chronology | ||||
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My World is an album by the American musician Ray Charles, released in 1993. [2] [3] Charles incorporated elements of gospel, funk, and New jack swing. [4]
The album peaked at No. 145 on the Billboard 200. [5] " A Song for You" won a Grammy Award, in the "Best R&B Vocal Performance, Male" category. [6]
The album was produced by Richard Perry. [7] Charles covered Leon Russell's "A Song for You" and Paul Simon's " Still Crazy After All These Years". [8] Mavis Staples duetted with Charles on "Love Has a Mind of Its Own". [9] Billy Preston and Eric Clapton also contributed to My World. [10]
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [11] |
Chicago Tribune | [12] |
Robert Christgau | [13] |
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [14] |
Entertainment Weekly | B− [9] |
Rolling Stone | [15] |
Rolling Stone wrote: "Over the years, a benign, grandfatherly quality has crept into Charles's singing. In bringing this amused overview to 'Still Crazy', Charles turns the Simon gem into a jubilant, frisky declaration of independence by a proud eccentric." [15] Ebony stated that Charles "continues to infuse his music with social messages, smooth productions and rhythmic funk." [16]
The Chicago Tribune noted that "producer Richard Perry inexplicably insists on separating the Genius from his keyboards; that's a cardinal sin." [12] Newsday called the album "surprisingly potent, awash in rhythms and production techniques not even imagined when Ray first entered a studio." [17] The Baltimore Sun concluded that "what Brother Ray needs first and foremost are songs, and when you hear how much he makes of a classic, Paul Simon's 'Still Crazy After All These Years', it suddenly becomes obvious how cut-rate the rest of the writing here is." [18]
AllMusic wrote that the album "marked an attempt to somewhat 'modernize' Ray Charles by incorporating elements of hip-hop and New Jack swing into his trademark sound." [11]
No. | Title | Length |
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1. | "My World" | 4:01 |
2. | " A Song for You" | 4:12 |
3. | " None of Us Are Free" | 4:59 |
4. | "So Help Me God" | 3:59 |
5. | "Let Me Take Over" | 5:25 |
6. | "One Drop of Love" | 4:22 |
7. | "If I Could" | 4:52 |
8. | "Love Has a Mind of Its Own" | 4:06 |
9. | "I'll Be There" | 3:48 |
10. | " Still Crazy After All These Years" | 4:58 |