Studio Album · No. 3
Yes Indeed! Songwriting Credits by Ray Charles
Produced by Ahmet Ertegun, Jerry Wexler
Holds writing credit on 8 of 14 tracks
Authorship Breakdown 8 / 14 documented
Scored across the 14 tracks with documented writers, by whether Ray Charles carries a lyricist or composer credit.
Share of the 14 tracks where a band member is credited, by role.
By the Numbers
Yes Indeed! continued Atlantic's strategy of compiling Ray Charles's chart hits into LP form, a format more commercially reliable than albums of new material. The fourteen tracks span his Atlantic period from 1954 to 1958, with gospel-soaked workouts like "Drown in My Own Tears" and the raw earthiness of "Hallelujah, I Love Her So" alongside raw rhythm-and-blues output. Produced by Ahmet Ertegun and Jerry Wexler, the album finds Charles at the peak of his Atlantic phase, just before he would leave for ABC-Paramount and transform into a pop crossover phenomenon. The sound is deliberately unpolished, with live-feeling studio sessions where Charles served as de facto arranger, and it captures an intensity that his later, more orchestrated recordings would soften.
Yes Indeed! is a studio album by Ray Charles, released in 1958 on Atlantic Records and produced by Ahmet Ertegun and Jerry Wexler, continuing the soul and gospel-influenced R&B formula that Charles had established on the 1957 albums while expanding the range of the material to include more blues-influenced and uptempo content. Charles wrote or co-wrote several tracks; 'Talkin' 'Bout You,' 'What Kind of Man Are You,' and 'Get on the Right Track Baby' are among the principal tracks, reflecting the Atlantic-era Charles at his most directly blues-influenced. The album reflects the mature Charles Atlantic formula, small group R&B with gospel-influenced vocals, jazz piano, and the particular Baptist emotional intensity that gave his Atlantic recordings their defining character, at a moment before his commercial breakthrough on 'What'd I Say' (1959) expanded his audience dramatically. Yes Indeed! is primarily regarded as a consistent statement of the mid-Atlantic period Charles rather than a defining release, but it captures the same authentic synthesis of gospel, jazz, and blues that makes the entire Atlantic catalog significant as documentation of the invention of soul music. The album is part of the core Atlantic body of work, along with the 1957 self-titled album and The Genius of Ray Charles, that constitutes the documentary record of the invention of soul music, and its consistent quality within the genre Charles was simultaneously creating makes it an essential document of the Atlantic period even in the absence of a single defining track.
Track Listing & Credits 14 tracks
| # | Title | Lyricist(s) | Composer(s) | Producer(s) | Performers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
What Would I Do Without You
|
Ray Charles | Ray Charles | Ahmet ErtegunJerry Wexler | Ray Charles (Vocals, Piano) |
| 2 |
It's All Right
|
Ray Charles | Ray Charles | Ahmet ErtegunJerry Wexler | Ray Charles (Vocals, Piano) |
| 3 |
I Want to Know
|
Ray Charles | Ray Charles | Ahmet ErtegunJerry Wexler | Ray Charles (Vocals, Piano) |
| 4 |
Yes Indeed!
|
Sy Oliver | Sy Oliver | Ahmet ErtegunJerry Wexler | Ray Charles (Vocals, Piano) |
| 5 |
Get on the Right Track Baby
|
Titus Turner | Titus Turner | Ahmet ErtegunJerry Wexler | Ray Charles (Vocals, Piano) |
| 6 |
Talkin' 'Bout You
|
Ray Charles | Ray Charles | Ahmet ErtegunJerry Wexler | Ray Charles (Vocals, Piano) |
| 7 |
Swanee River Rock (Talkin' 'Bout That River)
|
Ray Charles | Ray Charles | Ahmet ErtegunJerry Wexler | Ray Charles (Vocals, Piano) |
| 8 |
Lonely Avenue
|
Doc Pomus | Doc Pomus | Ahmet ErtegunJerry Wexler | Ray Charles (Vocals, Piano) |
| 9 |
Blackjack
|
Ray Charles | Ray Charles | Ahmet ErtegunJerry Wexler | Ray Charles (Vocals, Piano) |
| 10 |
The Sun's Gonna Shine Again
|
Sam Sweet | Sam Sweet | Ahmet ErtegunJerry Wexler | Ray Charles (Vocals, Piano) |
| 11 |
I Had a Dream
|
Ray Charles | Ray Charles | Ahmet ErtegunJerry Wexler | Ray Charles (Vocals, Piano) |
| 12 |
I Want a Little Girl
|
Billy Moll | Murray Mencher | Ahmet ErtegunJerry Wexler | Ray Charles (Vocals, Piano) |
| 13 |
Heartbreaker
|
A. Nugetre | A. Nugetre | Ahmet ErtegunJerry Wexler | Ray Charles (Vocals, Piano) |
| 14 |
Leave My Woman Alone
|
Ray Charles | Ray Charles | Ahmet ErtegunJerry Wexler | Ray Charles (Vocals, Piano) |