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.
There'll Be No Teardrops Tonight
Ray Price Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'll pretend I'm free from sorrow
Make believe that wrong is right
Your weddin' day will be tomorrow
So there'll be no teardrops tonight.
Why, oh why, should you desert me
Are you doing this for spite
If you only want to hurt me
--- Instrumental ---
I'll believe that you still love me
When you wear your veil of white
But you think that you're above me
So there'll be no teardrops tonight.
Shame, oh shame, for what you're doing
Other arms will hold you tight
You don't care whose life you ruin
So there'll be no teardrops tonight...
In Ray Price's "There'll Be No Teardrops Tonight," the singer is pretending that he doesn't feel the pain of his lover's imminent wedding day. He understands that his love is about to get married and he is giving in to the inevitable event, but at the same time, he's hurt that his lover is apparently marrying to spite him, and not for the love she has for her betrothed. He happily reminisces about their past and wonders whether she still loves him or not, or if her wedding is just a way to punish him, which breaks his heart. The singer is asking why his lover is doing this to him when he is still in love with her, but she has moved on from him, and his pain is evident in the lyrics.
The song "There'll Be No Teardrops Tonight" is about the pain of lost love, its unfulfillment, and the final acceptance of reality. It's a song that speaks directly to the heart, with skillful lyrics and a melody that almost mirrors the sadness and despair of the singer. The song's voice is melancholic, which makes it a perfect song to listen to during a period of end-of-love reflection.
Line by Line Meaning
I'll pretend I'm free from sorrow
I'll act as if I'm not upset and everything is alright, even when it isn't.
Make believe that wrong is right
I'll deceive myself into thinking that a mistake or wrong decision is actually the right one.
Your weddin' day will be tomorrow
Your wedding day is approaching soon.
So there'll be no teardrops tonight.
I won't cry tonight, despite my sadness and heartbreak.
Why, oh why, should you desert me
Why are you leaving or abandoning me?
Are you doing this for spite
Are you doing this to hurt me?
If you only want to hurt me
If your intention is to cause me pain.
Then there'll be no teardrops tonight.
I won't let myself cry even if you hurt me purposely.
--- Instrumental ---
No lyrics are sung. It's just an instrumental break.
I'll believe that you still love me
I'll convince myself that you still have feelings for me.
When you wear your veil of white
On your wedding day when you wear your white veil.
But you think that you're above me
But you believe that you're better than me.
So there'll be no teardrops tonight.
Even though you're marrying someone else and feel superior to me, I won't cry over it tonight.
Shame, oh shame, for what you're doing
You should feel ashamed of what you're doing to me.
Other arms will hold you tight
Someone else will hold you tightly, now that you're getting married.
You don't care whose life you ruin
You're not concerned about the damage you're causing in other people's lives.
So there'll be no teardrops tonight...
Despite your lack of concern for me, I won't cry over it tonight.
Contributed by Kaelyn C. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Jenny
A wonderful version of this song, sung by the greatest voice the universe is ever likely to hear...
Kenny Dobbins
I love Ray too, but in my opinion Johnny Cash is the best.
webbjr37
When Ray Price does a song its been done no need for anyone else to try,Ray has one of the best voices ever recorded.end of story
L.D. Wood
I remember when Ray Price and Hank Williams toured together, I got to see both of them in Oklahoma City in 1950.
Simply Learning
And so jealous! Awesome blessings re seeing/hearing those two. Thanks. :)
robert clark
lucky duck
gardeeoh
Boy, buddy you are dating yourself
Charles Canterbury
One of my favorite voices
The Gillelands
Ol' Ray put that "Texas Scald" on this one!
robert Last
Ray Price is great, of course Hank Williams did a fine job as always, Hank Jr. did a great job, but the best version, in my opinion only, is none other than the great lady herself "Miss June Webb"