The United States of America (commonly abbreviated to the United States, the U.S., the USA, America, and the States) is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its forty-eight contiguous states and Washington, D.C., the capital district, lie between the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, bordered by Canada to the north and Mexico to the south. The state of Alaska is in the northwest of the continent, with Canada to the east and Russia to the west, across the Bering Strait. The state of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific. The country also possesses several territories in the Pacific and Caribbean.
At 3.79 million square miles (9.83 million km2) and with over 312 million people, the United States is the third or fourth largest country by total area, and the third largest by both land area and population. It is one of the world's most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, the product of large-scale immigration from many countries. The U.S. economy is the world's largest national economy, with an estimated 2011 GDP of $15.1 trillion (22% of nominal global GDP and over 19% of global GDP at purchasing-power parity). Per capita income is the world's sixth-highest.
Ray Charles Robinson (September 23, 1930 – June 10, 2004), known by his shortened stage name Ray Charles, was an American musician. He was a pioneer in the genre of soul music during the 1950s by fusing rhythm and blues, gospel, and blues styles into his early recordings with Atlantic Records. He also helped racially integrate country and pop music during the 1960s with his crossover success on ABC Records, most notably with his Modern Sounds albums. While with ABC, Charles became one of the first African-American musicians to be given artistic control by a mainstream record company.Frank Sinatra called Charles “the only true genius in show business.”
The influences upon his music were mainly jazz, blues, rhythm and blues and country artists of the day such as Art Tatum, Nat King Cole, Louis Jordan, Charles Brown, Louis Armstrong. His playing reflected influences from country blues and barrelhouse, and stride piano styles.
Rolling Stone ranked Charles number ten on their list of "100 Greatest Artists of All Time" in 2004, and number two on their November 2008 list of "100 Greatest Singers of All Time". In honoring Charles, Billy Joel noted: "This may sound like sacrilege, but I think Ray Charles was more important than Elvis Presley. I don't know if Ray was the architect of rock & roll, but he was certainly the first guy to do a lot of things . . . Who the hell ever put so many styles together and made it work?"
Tired eyes
Closed for days
There's no regret
'Cause there's no place
I don't know
What I believe
But if I feel safe
What do I need
A home
A home
A home
Revolution
Revolution
Revolution blues
What will they do
Revolution
Revolution
Revolution blues
What will they do to me
What will they do to me
What will they do to me
What will they do to me
Dulcet tongues
Whisper fast
The future yearns
Right now's the past
Rouse me soon
The end draws nigh
Who's side are you on
Your blood you cannot buy
Revolution
Revolution
Revolution blues
What will they do
Revolution
Revolution
Revolution blues
What will they do to you
Well I
I feel alright
So tonight
I got to ask you why
Why deny it
It's no surprise
I've got to survive
Freedom shines the light ahead
I'll lead the last charge to bed
I said my last rights
I don't have to run scared no more
Fight
I wanna fight
I wanna fight a revolution
Tonight
I wanna fight
I wanna fight a revolution
Tonight
At the light
At the light
Do you wanna watch me die
Let me be something good
Let me prove something real like I should
Let me embrace every single living thing