“What’d I Say” was the song that propelled Ray Charles from R&B stardom into the mainstream. Released in 1959, it reached No. 6 on the pop chart and helped set up his extraordinary run during the 1960s.
The song reportedly began as an improvisation. Charles and his band had reached the end of their planned performance but still had time left to fill, so he started playing a riff and told the musicians and singers to follow him. The audience’s reaction made it clear that they had created something special.
That opening Wurlitzer electric-piano riff still sounds slightly dangerous. Add the Latin-influenced rhythm, the gospel-style exchange between Charles and the Raelettes, and the increasingly excited vocal performance, and the recording becomes part church revival, part smoky nightclub and part celebration that is getting wonderfully out of control.
“What’d I Say” is famous enough that everyone thinks they know it. But when was the last time you actually sat down and listened to the whole thing?