Charles’ health poor as he
recorded his final album

updated 7:37 p.m. ET June 10, 2004

NEW YORK - When Ray Charles was recording what would be his last CD, “Genius Loves Company,” at times he felt too sick to sing his best.

But even as his heath waned, the consummate musician always managed to dazzle, said producer John Burk.

“He would say, ‘I’m not feeling well today but I’ll take a stab at it, and I can come back to it later,”’ Burk told The Associated Press on Thursday. “And he never had to come back to it later.”

Charles recorded his last song for “Genius Loves Company” in March. The CD of duets with old friends and lifelong admirers, including Willie Nelson, Diana Krall, Gladys Knight and Elton John, is due out Aug. 31 on Concord Records.

“The death of Ray Charles is an incredible loss for the world of music,” said John, who recorded a duet with Charles of “Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word.” “He inspired so many people and his music will live forever.”

Burk said working with the legend was intimidating at first, “but more than anything it was truly inspirational.”

“He blurred the boundaries of musical genres in that he effortlessly crossed over from soul to blues to country to jazz. Somehow, he had the gift of breaking down those barriers and being successful in different genres.”

In the studio, Charles was precise, able to turn in great performances without laboring, Burk said. He could be exacting and demanding, but not difficult: “He expected everyone around him to be as dedicated and professional as he was.”

Burk said Charles had a gift for “communicating the human emotion in a song. That’s something that I didn’t fully appreciate until I got a chance to work with him one-on-one.”

“That’s what we strive for in the recording process, is to find that human experience, and communicate it through a song...that was Ray’s gift.”

MORE FROM R&B-SOUL

R. Kelly writes new song about Virginia Tech

R. Kelly writes new song about Virginia Tech Joss Stone ‘Introducing’ her true self Beyonce's ‘B’Day’ on DVD   Add R&B-Soul headlines to your news reader: