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.
I've Got To Know
Ray Price Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
That I'm still in love with you though you let me down
I hate to admit it but I guess the talk is true
Or else you couldn't make my heart ache the way you do
I've got a new heartache about an old sweetheart
That left me for somebody new
I've got a new heartache about an old sweetheart
Why did you turn up again I was doing fine
I'd found another sweetheart to drive you from my mind
I thought that I'd forgotten you but I know that it's not true
Or else you couldn't make my heart ache the way you do
I've got a new heartache...
The lyrics to Ray Price & the Cherokee Cowboys' song, "I've Got A New Heartache," convey a sense of heartbreak and conflicting emotions that come with encountering an old flame. The singer's ex-lover returns to town, and rumors circulate that the singer is still in love with them. The singer realizes that the rumors are true since they wouldn't be hurting and feeling heartache towards their ex-lover otherwise. Despite finding another partner, they can't seem to forget their old sweetheart.
The lyrics explore the lingering feelings that one can have for an ex-lover, even after moving on. The singer describes the inner turmoil of trying to forget their old sweetheart, only to be reminded of their love for them by their return. The song captures the pain and uncertainty of heartbreak, a universal experience that everyone can resonate with at some point in their lives.
Line by Line Meaning
You're back in town again spreadin' talk around
You have returned and are spreading rumors about me in the town
That I'm still in love with you though you let me down
You are telling people that I still love you despite you betraying me
I hate to admit it but I guess the talk is true
As much as I dislike it, I have to confess that the gossip is correct
Or else you couldn't make my heart ache the way you do
Your actions are causing me immense emotional pain, which suggests that I still have feelings for you
I've got a new heartache about an old sweetheart
I have a fresh pain in my heart concerning a former lover
That left me for somebody new
My old flame left me for another person
And that's why I'm feeling so blue
This is the reason why I am feeling sad and melancholic
Why did you turn up again I was doing fine
Why did you reappear when I was living my life peacefully?
I'd found another sweetheart to drive you from my mind
I had found someone else in an attempt to forget about you
I thought that I'd forgotten you but I know that it's not true
Although I believed that I had moved on from you, deep down, I know that isn't the case
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: RAY PRICE, WAYNE P. WALKER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
L.D. Wood
I am 1 year younger than Ray Price. I got to see him on the Grand Ole Opry in 1955, he was an awesome entertainer.
jeriw
May our Cherokee Cowboy rest in peace!!
joe blow
Shades of "You done me wrong."
Jenny
RAY IS GREAT - Jennyx