Georgia on my mind

When I think about the song of the South, I can only think about 'Georgia on my mind' by Ray Charles. I was in choir when I was in high school and we sang this song. I really loved the rhythm and the lyrics. Who would have known that I would come to Georgia, the place where it seems like peaceful yet graceful, according to the lyrics.

The lyrics represent the South through depicting Georgia's beauty. First of all, the song contains one of the southern states, Georgia. Georgia is a state that has a important history and was really involved in the Civil War. The song's lyrics mentions the finding of no peace, because Georgia has gone through so many wars that keeps Georgia on Ray's mind. The lyrics also mentions the love for Georgia, "Other arms reach out to me Other eyes smile tenderly."

Moreover, Ray Charles is a blind African-American man. Although he may be blind, he still views the south in the same perspective as other people. The song was recorded around the Civil Rights Movement, but the fact that it gained so much recognition in Georgia state illustrates that the song was important and somehow relevant to the state of Georgia. Furthermore, Charles essentially brought another genre of music: soul music, into the R&B world of the South.

-Hye Jin Ahn-