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.
Kiss The World Goodbye
Ray Price Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I owed the devil some debts boys and paid 'em all up but one
I don't even regret the living that I'll be leaving behind
I've gotten weary of searchin' for something I couldn't find
I'm going down to the shades by the river one more time
And feel the breeze on my face before I die
I'm gonna leave whatever's left of my luck to the losers
I'm kinda lucky-in-lovin' I never had no complains
They never said I was evil but then I wasn't no saint
I'm just a river that rolled forever and never get to the sea
I ain't blamin' nobody I had it coming to me
I'm going down...
In Ray Price's song "Kiss The World Goodbye," he shares his reflections on life and the end of his journey. He starts by stating that he has no regrets for anything he has done, even though he owed the devil some debts and has paid almost all but one. He acknowledges that he is tired of searching for something that he couldn't find and is prepared to move on. He then talks about going down to the shades by the river one more time to feel the breeze on his face before he dies. He makes peace with his fate and is ready to leave behind whatever is left of his luck for the losers.
The song portrays a man who is coming to terms with his mortality and has accepted the consequences of his actions. He acknowledges that he wasn't a saint but wasn't evil either, and he's just a river that rolled forever and never gets to the sea. He doesn't blame anyone but himself for his fate and seems to be at peace with it. He ends the song by saying that he's going down to the shades to kiss the world goodbye.
Overall, this song is about accepting the end of one's journey and preparing to move on without any regrets. It's a beautiful reminder to make peace with oneself and others before it's too late.
Line by Line Meaning
I never had no regrets boys not for nothing I've done
I have no regrets for anything I have done in my life
I owed the devil some debts boys and paid 'em all up but one
I have settled all my debts with the devil except for one
I don't even regret the living that I'll be leaving behind
I have no regrets about leaving the life I have lived behind
I've gotten weary of searchin' for something I couldn't find
I am tired of searching for something that I could never find
I'm going down to the shades by the river one more time
I am going to the riverbank one last time
And feel the breeze on my face before I die
I want to feel the wind on my face before I pass away
I'm gonna leave whatever's left of my luck to the losers
I will leave whatever luck I have left to those who have not been as lucky as me
And then bend down and kiss the world goodbye
And then I will say my final goodbyes to the world
I'm kinda lucky-in-lovin' I never had no complains
I have been fortunate in love and have no complaints in that regard
They never said I was evil but then I wasn't no saint
I have not been considered evil but I have not been a saint either
I'm just a river that rolled forever and never get to the sea
I am like a river that has flowed endlessly but never reached the sea
I ain't blamin' nobody I had it coming to me
I am not blaming anyone for my fate, as it was bound to happen
I'm going down...
I am going to pass away soon
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: KRIS KRISTOFFERSON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind