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 Two Lips
Ray Price Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Are the same same two lips that now tell me goodbye
And the same two hands that once held mine so tightly
Are the same two hands that now push me aside
The same two eyes that looked at me so fondly
Are the same two eyes that look at someone else
And the same two lips I taught to say they love me
Now teach I love you to somebody else
They say that time will change us completely
And I guess that we're no different you and me
Well there was a time we got along so sweetly
But that old feeling's gone and there's nothing we can do
The same two arms that once held mine so tightly
Are the same two arms that now hold someone else
And the same two lips I taught to say I love you
Now teach I love you to somebody else
The lyrics to Ray Price's song "The Same Two Lips" express irony and sadness. The song talks about how the same lips, hands, eyes, and arms that were once used to express love to the singer are now being used to push him aside and love someone else. The singer says that time has changed them, and they can no longer get along sweetly. He is helpless as the same love he taught is now being taught to someone else. The tone of the song is nostalgic, with a touch of bitterness.
The song resonates with anyone who has been in a relationship that has ended. The singer's pain is palpable, and the lyrics are relatable. The song shows how time changes everything, and the love that once existed between two people can disappear. The singer is helpless as he watches the person he loves move on with someone else.
Line by Line Meaning
The same two lips that once told me they love me
The lips which expressed love to me earlier
Are the same same two lips that now tell me goodbye
The lips which bid farewell now are the ones which once expressed love
And the same two hands that once held mine so tightly
Hands that firmly grasped mine earlier
Are the same two hands that now push me aside
Hands that moved me away now are the ones that once held me tightly
The same two eyes that looked at me so fondly
Eyes that watched me intently with affection
Are the same two eyes that look at someone else
Eyes that now gaze upon another person
And the same two lips I taught to say they love me
Lips that I trained to express love towards me
Now teach I love you to somebody else
The same lips I taught now express love for someone else
They say that time will change us completely
Time can bring significant changes in our lives
And I guess that we're no different you and me
You and I are no exception in this regard
Well there was a time we got along so sweetly
There was a time when we shared a pleasant relationship
But that old feeling's gone and there's nothing we can do
We no longer possess the same emotions and there is nothing that can revive them
The same two arms that once held mine so tightly
The arms that firmly embraced mine earlier
Are the same two arms that now hold someone else
Those arms now embrace another person
And the same two lips I taught to say I love you
The lips which I guided to express love for me
Now teach I love you to somebody else
The very same lips that I once guided now express love for another person
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: MARTY ROBBINS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind