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.
O Come All Ye Faithful
Ray Price Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
O come, let us adore Him, Christ, the Lord
O come, all ye faithful joyful and triumphant
O come, ye , O come ye to Bethlehem
Come and behold Him, born, The King Of Angels
O come, let us adore Him, O come, let us adore Him
Sing choirs of angels, sing in exultation
Sing all ye citizens of heaven above
Glory to God in the highest glory
O come, let us adore Him, O come, let us adore Him
O come, let us adore Him, Christ, the Lord
The lyrics of Ray Price's version of the Christmas song "O Come All Ye Faithful" is a call to worship and adore Christ, the Lord. Through the repetition of "O come, let us adore Him", the song highlights the importance of worshipping the miraculous birth of Jesus Christ. The first verse calls all the faithful people to come together to praise and honor Jesus. The second verse transports the listener to Bethlehem, the birthplace of Jesus, and encourages them to behold the newborn King of Angels. The third verse urges the angels and citizens of heaven to sing in exultation and glorify God for the birth of Jesus. The song is both a joyful celebration and a reverent act of worship to honor the birth of Jesus.
Line by Line Meaning
O come, let us adore Him, O come, let us adore Him
Let us express our sincere reverence and worship to Him who deserves it all
O come, let us adore Him, Christ, the Lord
Let us come and worship Christ, our Lord, who is worthy of all praise and honor
O come, all ye faithful joyful and triumphant
All the believers should come together with joy and triumph to worship the Lord
O come, ye , O come ye to Bethlehem
Everyone should come to Bethlehem to witness the birth of the Savior
Come and behold Him, born, The King Of Angels
Come and see the newborn King of Angels
Sing choirs of angels, sing in exultation
The choirs of angels should sing with joy and triumph
Sing all ye citizens of heaven above
All the citizens of heaven above should join the angels in singing praises to the Lord
Glory to God in the highest glory
Let us give glory, honor, and praise to God who is in the highest place
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Traditional
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind