Ray Charles mourned at funeral

Ray Charles played 10,000 concerts during his 58-year career

More than 1,200 people are saying their final farewells to musician Ray Charles at his funeral in Los Angeles.

Actor Clint Eastwood, ex-US president Bill Clinton and country music star Glen Campbell are among those paying their respects to the R&B star.

 

Charles died of acute liver disease last week, aged 73.

 

Fellow artists Stevie Wonder, Willie Nelson and BB King are performing musical tributes at the First African Methodist Episcopal Church service.

 

Veteran politician Reverend Jesse Jackson and actress Cicely Tyson are also attending the funeral.

 

Recorded tributes from producer Quincy Jones, and comedian Bill Cosby are being played during the service.

 

After the funeral, Charles' cortege will pass in front of his Los Angeles recording studio and pause for a minute's silence, before travelling to Inglewood, California, for a private burial.

 

On Thursday, Charles' body went on public display at the Los Angeles Convention Centre to allow thousands of fans to pay their respects.

 

Charles' publicist Eric Raymond said the star's family had requested he be put on display as a final tribute to his fans.

 

Fans filed slowly by the coffin that stood on a catafalque - a raised platform - inside the Convention Centre, many of them stopping to sign the condolence book or write a message on a huge poster of Charles in performance.

 

One of the star's trademark black and silver jackets sat on the empty seat of the piano.

 

'Magical'

 

"The man is magical. He was one of the great musicians of all time... It was like he was God-sent," said Evelyn Alexander, 61, from Inglewood.

 

"I love Ray Charles. I love his music absolutely. He was a virtuoso, he played everything," said 70-year-old Berta Morley, choking back tears.

 

"There is no one else who can sing a song with the deep feeling he had," she added.

 

A pioneer of soul music, Charles went blind at the age of six.

 

He made standards of songs such as Georgia on My Mind, Hit the Road Jack and I Can't Stop Loving You, and played 10,000 concerts during a 58-year career.

 

Charles kept a largely low profile during his recent ill health - but still managed to collaborate with other musicians. He had planned to tour again this summer.

 

Friday, 18 June, 2004

Source: BBC

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