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.
still
Ray Price Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Over an ocean
And your pain cried out for me
Across the way
You here, half dead
Numb to any emotion
Cause you were a prisoner
We both stopped searching for any exceptions
And rejection always was our bitter pill
And I have no precious gifts to give you
I only have our words
Darling, I love you
I love you
Still
I never thought someone would ever see
Or make a prisoner of my heart
But like a warrior dressed in armor
You carved your name in it right from the start
You held my soul a hostage
In your tower on the hill
All I pray for when I sleep or lie awake
Is that you love me still
Cause my heart cried out for you
Over an ocean
And your pain cried out for me
Across the way
Cause we hid, half dead
Numb to any emotion
Now you are my prisoner
And I am your slave
We both stopped searching for any exceptions
And rejection had always been our bitter pill
And I have no precious gifts to give you
Oh, I only have these words
Darling, I love you
I love you
Still
Oh, baby I love you
I love you
Still
Whoa, baby I love you
Oh.... Still
Baby, I love you
Oh.... Still
I love you still
Baby I love you
Still
I love you still
oh, oh, baby I love you
Still
Still
Still
The first verse of Ray Price's song Still begins with a proclamation of a deep emotional connection despite physical distance. The persona describes how he or she yearns for their lover who is separated by an ocean. The second line of the same verse hints that the persona's lover is also beset by intense emotions as evident by the lines "your pain cried out for me". However, the second verse tells a different story of a physically conjoined but emotionally distant couple. The persona's lover is now "a prisoner" while in contrast, the persona is "a slave".
The third and final verse brings together the two earlier verses and aims to establish the bedrock upon which the relationship is built. The persona confesses to having been a prisoner to their lover’s love all along, though initially unaware of it. The song ends with a poetic declaration of love that is all-consuming, all-encompassing, and all-inclusive, "Darling, I love you/I love you/Still."
Line by Line Meaning
My heart cried out for you
My heart yearned and ached for your love
Over an ocean
Despite the distance between us, my heart still longed for you
And your pain cried out for me
You were hurting and needed my love and comfort
Across the way
Even though we were separated, I could feel your pain and longing for me
You here, half dead
Now that you are here, you seem lifeless and devoid of emotion
Numb to any emotion
You are emotionally detached and unfeeling
Cause you were a prisoner
Your past experiences have left you feeling trapped and powerless
And I was a slave
I was completely devoted to you and willing to do anything for you
We both stopped searching for any exceptions
We gave up on finding anything better than what we already had
And rejection always was our bitter pill
Rejection was something we both feared and had experienced before
And I have no precious gifts to give you
I have nothing materialistic to offer you
I only have our words
All I have is my love for you expressed through words
Darling, I love you
My love for you is deep and sincere
I love you
My love for you is unwavering
Still
Even after all we have been through, my love for you remains
I never thought someone would ever see
I never imagined someone would have the ability to capture my heart
Or make a prisoner of my heart
You have a hold on my heart, and I feel helpless against it
But like a warrior dressed in armor
You came into my life with strength and power
You carved your name in it right from the start
You marked my heart with your love from the very beginning
You held my soul a hostage
My heart and soul belonged to you
In your tower on the hill
In your heart, you were always above me and in control
All I pray for when I sleep or lie awake
All I hope for when I am alone with my thoughts
Is that you love me still
Is that your love for me remains unchanging
Now you are my prisoner
Now the tables have turned, and you are under my control
And I am your slave
I am willing to do anything for you, and my love for you still remains
Oh, baby I love you
My love for you is strong and real
Still
My love remains undiminished even after everything we have been through
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: LIONEL RICHIE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
dragknuckle
Another great example. "Don't Worry 'Bout Me" was one of the first uses of distorted guitar. Marty crafted his own unique style.
jthardy
Thanks for sharing this one. I first heard it in the mid 60s on Ray's CL-2189 Love Life album (mono).
redwarrior Williams
Good music, country blues
dragknuckle
@lilyplane It is true that virtually all of the great artists we call traditional today were actually bold and different in their day: Buck Owens, Ray Price, Hank Williams, Merle Haggard, Ernest Tubb, Johnny Cash, Waylon, Willie, Conway Twitty; nobody remembers the guys who played it the same as the people who came before them.
JESPENGAR
Still It Doesn't Matter What Song RAY PRICE SINGS, All OF His Songs Are The Best.....
Gerard Savage
and don't leave Lefty off this list. From Mom and Dad's Waltz to Long Black Veil, his sound and style defied all conventions.
jeriw
I agree, I have that one on video, totally cool video and funny. Of course Marty was all about being crazy. Funny, Ray started with Nudie suits and Marty started with "suit and ties", Marty ended up with Nudie Suits and Ray went to the suit and ties. Go figure!!
jeriw
AND don't forget Marty Robbins. I swear he sang rock before "rock" was around. Mabeline etc before the big stars recorded them. It was still country then. But Ray is still first on my list but Marty is a close second.