Trying to Get Out Alive

A founding father of soul, whose career spanned half a century, Ray Charles cannot be reduced to a handful of famous hits. He is above all the master of the high-end musical crossover that makes an art of mixing genres, approaching one to better embrace the other. Ray Charles secularised gospel, enriched the blues, played jazz, sang country and approached rock'n'roll. Let's take a look back at his unique style based on the five listed here.

Fifty years ago, on 3 July 1971, Jim Morrison died mysteriously in a Parisian bathtub, survived by his three partners: Ray Manzarek, Robby Krieger and John Densmore, who had worked tirelessly for six years to translate his dreams into music.

Fleetwood Mac led two consecutive lives: a blues-driven outfit from the 1960s led by Peter Green, one of the greatest guitarists of his generation, and another, a pop-rock band that became one of the most acclaimed groups of its era. Their 1977 album, “Rumours”, remains, forty years later, one of the best-selling records of all time and yet the band’s lesser-known early years are no less captivating.