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.
The Same Old Me
Ray Price Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
It hurt me in an old familiar way
And I know there is nothing I can do
But how long this'll be here waiting just for you
With the same two arms still missing you
And the same old heart still bein' true
And the same two lips they still belong to you
I have tried everything to drive you from my heart
But the mem'ry of you makes me feel so blue
And with every heartbeat I can feel the teardrops start
So you'll always find me waiting here for you
With the same two arms still missing you
And the same old heart still bein' true
And the same two lips they still belong to you
And the same old me keeps loving you
The lyrics of Ray Price's "The Same Old Me" is a poignant reflection on the struggles of unrequited love. The song's opening lyrics set the tone for the rest of the song, as the singer describes his pain upon seeing his former lover with someone new. Despite his deep hurt, he admits that there is nothing he can do except wait for her to come back to him.
The chorus is particularly heartbreaking, as the singer bares his soul and professes that he has not moved on and is still deeply in love with his ex-lover. The use of the phrase "the same old me" underscores the idea that he has not changed and still loves her with the same intensity as before.
The final verse highlights his futile attempts at forgetting about her and the emotional toll it has taken on him. He acknowledges that the memory of her continues to haunt him, and he is unable to shake off his love for her. Despite the sadness and pain, he resigns himself to the fact that he will always be waiting for her.
All in all, "The Same Old Me" is a powerful ballad that captures the aching pain of unrequited love and the helplessness that comes with it.
Line by Line Meaning
When I saw you with your new love today
Upon witnessing you with your new partner, I felt a painful sense of familiarity
It hurt me in an old familiar way
This pain is not new to me, I have experienced it before in the past
And I know there is nothing I can do
I am well aware that I cannot change your feelings or actions
But how long this'll be here waiting just for you
Despite this knowledge, I will continue to wait for you with no end in sight
With the same two arms still missing you
I still long to hold you with the same two arms that have been empty since you left
And the same old heart still bein' true
My heart has not changed and remains loyal to you
And the same two lips they still belong to you
My lips have not kissed another since you left and still belong to you
And the same old me keeps loving you
I am still the same person that loves you as deeply as ever before
I have tried everything to drive you from my heart
I have made many attempts to forget you and move on
But the mem'ry of you makes me feel so blue
Your memory still brings immense sadness and sorrow into my life
And with every heartbeat I can feel the teardrops start
My heart continues to ache for you, making me feel like crying
So you'll always find me waiting here for you
No matter what happens, you can always count on finding me here waiting and still loving you
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Fuzzy Owen
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind