Perhaps the most formative years for rock and roll were 1945 to 1964. It is evident that the social climate of the time period shaped the music. However, music also shaped the social climate. The musical meaning of songs from the era is vital to understanding the social implications of music. At a primitive level, the lyrics of a song give an idea of ​​its musical meaning. Often, however, lyrics paint an incomplete picture of a song's true social meaning. By studying other factors, such as the instruments, the melody, and the artists themselves, one can gain much deeper insight into the musical meaning of a song. Through this analysis, common themes such as sex, drugs, and race relations are usually found. The 2004 film Ray chronicles the life of Ray Charles. The film is set from 1948 to 1979 and embodies the social impact of Ray Charles' music. It shows how society shaped Ray Charles' music and also how Ray Charles and his music shaped society. A focal point of the film was the importance of music to Ray Charles. The pure passion that Ray Charles displays for his music adds to the musical significance of his work. A Ray Charles song with important musical meaning is "What'd I Say". The lyrics of this song provide a starting point for an analysis of the musical meaning of the song. In the film Ray, after recording "What'd I Say", the producer says "It's just too damn sexual for kids." This quote exemplifies an important social aspect surrounding the song "What'd I Say". It's a phenomenon that appears throughout post-war rhythm and blues music: the generation gap. One of the ways that teenagers of the 1950s rebelled against their parents was through music. Acco...... middle of paper...... Georgia, as the film Ray portrays, segregation was present in Georgia. The fact that in a state where blacks and whites could not even drink from the same drinking fountain a state song sung by a black man was chosen shows great progress in race relations. It is best summed up in the film Ray: “Ray Charles changed American culture by touching people's hearts” (Ray, 2:24:05). It is clear that music has shaped the social climate and the social climate has shaped the music. . By analyzing the musical meaning of the songs of the time it is possible to better understand post-war society. Post-war music helped create a generation gap and was ultimately a precursor to the civil revolution of the 1960s. Given the severity of social changes inspired by music, it is evident that musical meaning plays a vital role in shaping culture.