We humans are inclined to attach meaning to everything. That is just how we are genetically created, as to attach meaning to something is to make sense of the world. Although, at times, especially when it comes to attaching meaning to a song, are tendency to create meaning could not be more wrong. One instance where this is seemingly true is with Ray Charles‘ quintessential single, “Georgia On My Mind”.
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Ray Charles released “Georgia On My Mind” in 1960. It is one of the most well-crafted and beautiful love songs of the 20th century, and arguably all time. Given the melancholic, romantic, and epic sentimentality residing in the lyrics and melody, it is fair to assume all three of those adjectives exist in the subtext of the masterpiece.
Also, Ray Charles is from Georgia, so it is also fair to analyze these lyrics as a longing for a home or for a person that embodies home. However, that is not the case, as “Georgia On My Mind”, written by Hoagy Carmichael and Stuart Gorrell, is not about anything. Rather, according to Charles, the song was merely gorgeous. Thus, he wanted to record and release it under his name.
Ray Charles’ Motivation Was Merely About Aesthetics
One could make an argument that there is more beauty in crafting one’s own meaning than picking up on a prescribed meaning. Well, that notion seemingly applies to Ray Charles’ hit song, as the only meaning in this song is the motivation to create something aesthetically beautiful.
Concerning the lack of subtextual meaning in the song, Charles stated, “I wasn’t dreaming of the state when I recorded the song, even though I was born there,” per the book, Brother Ray. Also, regarding the romantic reading, Charles added, “I’ve never known a lady named Georgia.”
Charles was not the one to put pen to paper on this song. Nevertheless, it seems these lyrics and the potential meaning within them are not what attracted Charles to record the song. Instead, Charles simply loved the song’s beauty. He divulged in the book, “It was just a beautiful, romantic melody.”
So, there you have it, folks, Ray Charles simply recorded the song because it was beautiful. Per his comments, he held no affinity for the lyrics and how they might have related to his life. Instead, he just wanted to make a gorgeously timeless masterpiece, and it is fair to say that he did just that.
Photo by David Redfern/Redferns
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