Although he died on June 10th of 2004 at the age of 73, the music industry won’t soon forget Ray Charles. First came the big screen hit, Ray, which earned its star, Jamie Foxx, an Oscar for Best Actor. And now, The Country Music Hall of Fame has announced a major new exhibition which will open on March 10th of 2006. “I Can’t Stop Loving You: Ray Charles and Country Music” will trace a lifelong love affair Charles had with country music – one that ultimately helped redefine American popular music.
Although Ray Charles’ music was hardly limited to country, given such hits as “What’d I Say” and “My Melancholy Baby,” the biographical exhibition will provide an overview of Ray Charles’ remarkable career with special emphasis on his country music influences and his contributions to the growth and popularity of the genre. The exhibition will include artifacts, instruments, song manuscripts, costumes, photographs and moving images to tell the story about an impoverished blind child who grew up listening to the Grand Ole Opry and went on to record such classic songs as “Georgia on My Mind,” and “Hit the Road, Jack.”