<"i feel="" terrific="" and="" am="" so="" thankful="" to="" the="" good="" lord="" that="" all="" is="" going="" well="" for="" me,"="" charles="" said="" in="" a="" statement="" tuesday.="" "i="" can't="" wait="" to="" get="" back="" on="" the="" road,="" which="" is="" my="" second="" home."="">
Acute discomfort in his left hip forced the 73-year-old singer in August to cancel his remaining 2003 tour dates. It was the first time Charles had canceled a tour in 53 years.
Charles is undergoing physical therapy and expects to start a national tour again in March, spokesman Jerry Digney said.
While hospitalized in November, Charles donated $1 million to Dillard University in New Orleans for the creation of a program about black culture. He's also been working on a duets album at his private studio, Digney said.
Charles, who was 7 years old when he lost his eyesight, has won 13 Grammy Awards, including a lifetime achievement award. He also was one of the original inductees to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986.
He's recorded classic songs such as "I Got a Woman," "What'd I Say" and "Georgia on My Mind."
A movie based on his life story, "Unchain My Heart: The Ray Charles Story," starring Jamie Foxx, recently finished filming.
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