Price, born in Perryville, Texas, served with the U.S. Marines from 1944–1946, and began singing for KRBC in Abilene, Texas during 1948. He joined the Big D Jamboree in Dallas in 1949. He relocated to Nashville in the early 1950s, rooming for a brief time with Hank Williams. When Williams died, Price managed his band, the Drifting Cowboys, and had minor success. He was the first artist to have a success with the song "Release Me" (1954), a top five popular music hit for Engelbert Humperdinck in 1967.
In 1953, Price formed his band, the Cherokee Cowboys. Among its members during the late 1950s and early 1960s were; Roger Miller, Willie Nelson, Darrell McCall, Van Howard, Johnny Paycheck and Johnny Bush, Buddy Emmons, Pete Wade, Jan Kurtis, Shorty Lavender and Buddy Spicher. Miller wrote one of Ray Price's classics in 1958, "Invitation to the Blues", and sang harmony on the recording. Additionally, Nelson composed the Ray Price song "Night Life".
Price became one of the stalwarts of 1950s honky tonk music, with hit songs such as "Talk To Your Heart" (1952) and "Release Me". He later developed the famous "Ray Price Shuffle," a 4/4 arrangement of honky tonk music with a walking bassline, which can be heard on "Crazy Arms" (1956) and many of his other recordings from the late 1950s.
During the 1960s, Ray experimented increasingly with the so-called Nashville sound, singing slow ballads and utilizing lush arrangements of strings and backing singers. Examples include his 1967 rendition of "Danny Boy", and "For the Good Times" in 1970 which was Price's first country music chart No. 1 hit since "The Same Old Me" in 1959. Written by Kris Kristofferson, the song also scored No. 11 on the popular music chart and featured a mellower Price backed by sophisticated musical sounds, quite in contrast to the honky tonk sounds Price had pioneered two decades before. Price had three more No. 1 country music successes during the 1970s: "I Won't Mention It Again", "She's Got To Be A Saint", and "You're the Best Thing That Ever Happened To Me." His final top ten hit was "Diamonds In The Stars" in early 1982. Price continued to have songs on the country music chart through 1989. Later, he sang gospel music and recorded such songs as "Amazing Grace", "What A Friend We Have In Jesus", "Farther Along" and "Rock of Ages."
In 2006, Price was living near Mount Pleasant, Texas and still performing in concerts throughout the country. In 2009, Price made two performances for the Fox News show Huckabee. The first was with the Cherokee Cowboys and host Mike Huckabee, and he performed "Crazy Arms" and "Heartaches By The Number". Weeks later he performed with the Cherokee Cowboys and Willie Nelson (again with Huckabee playing bass guitar). This time they performed duets of "Faded Love" and "Crazy."
Price worked on his latest album, Last of the Breed, with fellow country music singers Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard. This album was released on March 20, 2007 by the company Lost Highway Records. The two-disc set features 20 country classics as well as a pair of new compositions. The trio toured the U.S. from March 9 until March 25 starting in Arizona and finishing in Illinois. This was Price's third album with Nelson and first album with Haggard. After the tour, Haggard remarked, "I told Willie when it was over, 'That old man gave us a goddamn singing lesson.' He really did. He just sang so good. He sat there with the mic against his chest. And me and Willie are all over the microphone trying to find it, and he found it."
On November 6, 2012, Ray Price confirmed that he was fighting pancreatic cancer. Price told the San Antonio Express-News that he had been receiving chemotherapy for the past six months. An alternative to the chemo would have been surgery that involved removing the pancreas along with portions of the stomach and liver, which would have meant a long recovery and stay in a nursing home. Said Price, "That's not very much an option for me. God knows I want to live as long as I can but I don't want to live like that." The 87-year-old Country Music Hall of Famer also told the newspaper, "The doctor said that every man will get cancer if he lives to be old enough. I don't know why I got it – I ain't old!" Price retained a positive outlook and hoped to play as many as a hundred concert dates in 2013.
As of early February 2013, the cancer appeared to be in remission. Sometime in May 2013, Price was hospitalized with severe dehydration. On December 2, 2013, Price entered a Tyler, Texas, hospital in the final stages of pancreatic cancer, according to his son, then left on December 12 for home hospice care. Price died at his home in Mt. Pleasant, Texas, on December 16, 2013.
April's Fool
Ray Price Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
April doesn't shower her sweet love on me
What someone gets in one day may take me two or three
Yes, it's true, she leads me like a puppet on a string
But my life without April is like next year without spring
People say that April treats me cruel
But I just smile when they say
There goes April's fool
And she's taught me so many things I'd rather not remember
In winter time she has me wearing summer clothes
In summer she has Jack Frost nipping at my nose
People say that April treats me cruel
But I just smile when they say
There goes April's fool
In Ray Price's song April's Fool, the lyrics are describing a tumultuous relationship with a woman named April. The singer describes feeling like April does not show him the same love and attention he gives her, and that he is always a step behind her. Despite this, he cannot imagine his life without her, comparing it to a year without spring. The lyrics suggest that April is manipulative, leading the singer along like a puppet on a string.
The second verse describes meeting April in December and how she has changed the singer's life, but not necessarily for the better. She has him wearing summer clothes in the winter and experiencing Jack Frost nipping at his nose in the summer. Despite her treatment of him, the singer brushes off criticism from others who say that April treats him cruelly. Instead, he accepts the role of "April's fool" with a smile.
April's Fool is a melancholic and relatable song that touches on themes of love, manipulation, and heartbreak. It is a reminder of the power dynamics that sometimes exist in relationships, where one person can hold all the cards and the other is left feeling lost and frustrated. The song's nostalgic sound and evocative lyrics resonate with listeners of all ages, and continue to be popular even today.
Line by Line Meaning
April's Fool
I am foolishly in love with April
April doesn't shower her sweet love on me
April does not reciprocate my love
What someone gets in one day may take me two or three
It's harder for me to achieve things that come easily to others
Yes, it's true, she leads me like a puppet on a string
I am easily controlled by April
But my life without April is like next year without spring
My life is incomplete without April
People say that April treats me cruel
Others think that April mistreats me
But I just smile when they say
I don't want others to know how much her treatment affects me
The first time I met April was the middle of December
I fell in love with April at an unexpected time
And she's taught me so many things I'd rather not remember
April has hurt me in many ways
In winter time she has me wearing summer clothes
April makes me do things that are uncomfortable or out of season
In summer she has Jack Frost nipping at my nose
April makes me do things that are uncomfortable or out of season
People say that April treats me cruel
Others think that April mistreats me
But I just smile when they say
I don't want others to know how much her treatment affects me
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: KIRBY, MARTIN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind