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.
Body & Soul
Ray Price Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Why haven't you seen it I'm all for you body and soul
I spend my days in longing and wondering why it's me you're wronging
I tell you I mean it I'm all for you body and soul
I can't believe it it's hard to conceive it that you turn away romance
Are you pretending it looks like the ending unless I could have one more chance
To prove dear my life a wreck you're making
I'd gladly surrender myself to you body and soul
My life a wreck you're making you know I'm yours for just the taking
I'd gladly surrender myself to you body and soul
Ray Price's song "Body & Soul" is a love ballad that explores the emotions of someone deeply in love. The lyrics speak to the heartache and longing that comes with loving someone who doesn't return your feelings. The singer's heart is sad and lonely, and they cry out for the person they love. They are all in for this love, body and soul.
Despite their deep love, the singer is left wondering why they are being wronged. They spend their days longing and wishing for their love to be reciprocated. The singer pleads for one more chance to prove their love, to show that their life is nothing without the person they love. The lyrics tug at the heartstrings, expressing a sincere and deep longing for love.
Line by Line Meaning
My heart is sad and lonely for you I sigh for you dear only
I am feeling immense sadness and loneliness because of your absence, and I long for you and you alone.
Why haven't you seen it I'm all for you body and soul
I wonder why you cannot see that I am completely devoted to you, with everything that I am, my body and soul.
I spend my days in longing and wondering why it's me you're wronging
I pass each day consumed by longing and questioning why you are doing me wrong and causing me this immense pain.
I tell you I mean it I'm all for you body and soul
I am telling you that I truly mean it when I say that I am wholly devoted to you, with every fiber of my being.
I can't believe it it's hard to conceive it that you turn away romance
It is difficult for me to comprehend that you are rejecting this romance that I have offered to you.
Are you pretending it looks like the ending unless I could have one more chance
It seems as though you are feigning interest in me, and it appears as though this relationship is doomed to its end, unless I am given another chance.
To prove dear my life a wreck you're making
In order to demonstrate, dear, that you are ruining my life and causing it to be a complete mess,
You know I'm yours for just the taking
I want you to understand that I am completely devoted to you and you alone, and I am ready and willing to give myself fully to you.
I'd gladly surrender myself to you body and soul
Without hesitation, I would joyfully give every part of myself to you, both physically and spiritually.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: PAUL MICHAEL BARRY, PHIL SIMPSON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind