I never wanted to be famous. I only wanted to be great.

I did it to myself. It wasn't society... it wasn't a pusher, it wasn't being blind or being black or being poor. It was all my doing.

Music's been around a long time, and there's going to be music long after Ray Charles is dead. I just want to make my mark, leave something musically good behind. If it's a big record, that's the frosting on the cake, but music's the main meal.

I was born with music inside me. Music was one of my parts. Like my ribs, my kidneys, my liver, my heart. Like my blood. It was a force already within me when I arrived on the scene. It was a necessity for me - like food or water.

My music had roots which I'd dug up from my own childhood, musical roots buried in the darkest soil.

Music is my life, professionally, for nearly 60 years. To be recognized by the academy is still the highest honor.

Learning to read music in Braille and play by ear helped me develop a damn good memory.