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.
Welcome To My World
Ray Price Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Welcome to my world
Won't you come on in
Miracles I guess
Still happen now and then
Step into my heart
Leave your cares behind
Built with you in mind
Knock and the door will open
Seek and you will find
Ask and you'll be givin'
The key to this world of mine
I'll be waiting here
With my arms uncurled
Waiting just for you
Welcome to my world
The opening lines of Ray Price's song 'Welcome To My World' invite the listener into a world of wonder and possibility where miracles still happen. The singer wants the listener to step into his heart and leave all their worries behind. The world he describes is built with the listener in mind, and he promises to be waiting with open arms. The song is a beautiful invitation to escape from the mundane and embrace the beauty that life has to offer.
The lyrics in this song are so simple and straightforward, yet they speak to the universal longing we all have for connection, love, and acceptance. Ray Price has managed to capture the very essence of this longing in this song. He invites us to leave behind our worries and enter a world where we are loved and accepted just as we are.
Line by Line Meaning
Welcome to my world
I'm inviting you into my life and everything that comes with it.
Won't you come on in
I'm welcoming you openly and sincerely.
Miracles I guess
Unexplainable occurrences happen in this world that I've created.
Still happen now and then
These inexplicable events happen infrequently but are always a possibility.
Step into my heart
Feel free to enter my innermost feelings and emotions.
Leave your cares behind
When you're with me, you shouldn't worry or stress about your problems.
Built with you in mind
My world has been created and designed for your happiness and comfort.
Knock and the door will open
If you want to be part of my world, all you have to do is ask and it will be granted.
Seek and you will find
If you truly want to be a part of my world, you'll find a way to make it happen, and I'll be there waiting for you.
Ask and you'll be givin'
If you request something from me, I will provide it.
The key to this world of mine
The ability to access my world is yours if you want it.
I'll be waiting here
I'm always available to welcome you into my world.
With my arms uncurled
I'm open and ready to embrace you.
Waiting just for you
I'm eagerly anticipating your arrival to my world.
Welcome to my world
Once again, I'm inviting you to join me in my life, and I hope you are happy to accept!
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Jesse Collins, Kenny Blank
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Curly
The best version I've ever heard. Stellar. Thank you so very much, Jeri.
Patricia Peterman
I have all of the album's being shown in this video. For the past hour I've been listening and recalling how much I love Ray Price. Thank you for posting!
Frank Raymond
Thoroughly enjoyed listening to this song. Thank you.
Linda Bragg
A blast from the past. Good memories.
Rosemarie Brancato
You sing do beautiful, your music has do much meaning to life, beautiful words...love is wonderful.
Complete RV installation Gregory King Davies
I played and this to my daughter the day she was born.
Linda Bragg
The one and only.
Linda Bragg
Unblemished!