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This page is not a forum for general discussion about Ray Charles. Any such comments may be removed or refactored. Please limit discussion to improvement of this article. You may wish to ask factual questions about Ray Charles at the Reference desk.

In 2016, U.S. President Barack Obama said

In 2016, U.S. President Barack Obama said, "Ray Charles's version of 'America the Beautiful' will always be in my view the most patriotic piece of music ever performed—because it captures the fullness of the American experience, the view from the bottom as well as the top, the good and the bad, and the possibility of synthesis, reconciliation, transcendence."

Looking at the quote source, you find this: “American history wells up when Aretha sings. That’s why, when she sits down at a piano and sings ‘A Natural Woman,’ she can move me to tears—the same way that Ray Charles’s version of ‘America the Beautiful’ will always be in my view the most patriotic piece of music ever performed—because it captures the fullness of the American experience, the view from the bottom as well as the top, the good and the bad, and the possibility of synthesis, reconciliation, transcendence.”

Makes me think everything after the hyphen is referring to Aretha's 'A Natural Woman' and not 'America the Beautiful.' Still, Obama definitely did say that his version is "in my view the most patriotic piece of music ever performed." — Preceding unsigned comment added by Steedamustang05 (talk • contribs) 22:04, 26 February 2020 (UTC)[reply]

I think you're exactly right; ignoring the previous hyphen changes the meaning entirely. The Obama quote should be limited to just what is between those hyphens, as it otherwise conflates what is otherwise comments on Aretha Franklin's music with Charles'. Deliusfan (talk) 03:26, 2 February 2022 (UTC)[reply]

Instruments

I see that the article is locked, and probably for a good reason. I see that the "instruments" parameter in the infobox currently says "vocals" and "piano", but Ray has been credited with playing organ and saxophone, too. I personally think that "organ" and "saxophone" should also be mentioned because he's been credited with playing these instruments on some recordings. Why is there no mention of them in the infobox?2601:153:881:3D60:6179:3F38:E8E4:F383 (talk) 20:12, 18 February 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Semi-protected edit request on 19 February 2023

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Although he's best known for singing and playing piano, Ray Charles has also played organ and saxophone on some recordings. I personally think organ and saxophone should also be added to the infobox. 2601:153:881:3D60:6179:3F38:E8E4:F383 (talk) 07:33, 19 February 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Partly done: added sax because it's already in the body of the article. Can you provide a reliable source for the organ? small jars tc 10:35, 19 February 2023 (UTC)[reply]