Ray Price "Sings Heart Songs" (Columbia Records, 1957) (LP)
Like many other first-generation honkytonkers, many of Price's earliest most legendary recordings came out on 78rpm singles, in the years before the LP format became the industry norm. This was his first long-play format album, and is mostly packed with country standards first recorded by the likes of The Delmore Brothers ("Blues, Stay Away From Me "), Ernest Tubb ("Letters Have No Arms"), Bob Wills ("Faded Love") and of course his old boss, Hank Williams ("I Can't Help It" and "Mansion On A Hill"). Price also reprises one of his own oldies, "I Saw My Castles Fall Today," which he first recorded in 1951.
Ray Price "Talk To Your Heart" (Columbia Records, 1958) (LP)
(Produced by Don Law)
Rock solid, super-cool honkytonk ballads, kicking off with the title track (a big hit for Price in '52), and on to winners like "Deep Water," the bluesy "I Gotta Have My Baby Back" and a stellar remake of Floyd Tillman's "I Love You So Much It Hurts." Plus, there are a bunch of other great weepers... great stuff from start to finish!
Ray Price "Faith" (Columbia Records, 1960) (LP)
(Produced by Don Law)
A gospel set...
Ray Price "Greatest Hits" (Columbia Records, 1961) (LP)
Although this is a "best-of" set, it fits in with his regular LPs because a bunch of these songs date back to the five-year period between when he first hit the charts and his Sings Heart Songs "debut" album. And, man, are these songs great. One winner after another -- "Crazy Arms," "Heartaches By The Number," "I'll Be There (If You Ever Want Me)," "City Lights," the cajun-flavored "You Done Me Wrong..." Honkytonk heartbreak never sounded so sweet!
Ray Price "San Antonio Rose" (Columbia Records, 1962) (LP)
(Produced by Frank Jones & Don Law)
Price's tribute to the great western swing big kahuna, Bob Wills.... Ahhhhhh-Hahhhhhh!
Ray Price "Night Life" (Columbia Records, 1963) (LP)
(Produced by Frank Jones & Don Law)
A swell set of modernized honkytonk ballads and boozin' tunes. The title track, penned by Willie Nelson but credited to others because of financial reasons, was to become one of Ray Price's signature songs. The song was released as a single with only moderate success, though the album itself was a hit, the first of five Ray Price albums that would top the Country charts over the years. In addition to "Night Life," there's another Willie Nelson song, "Are You Sure," as well as earthy numbers from Hank Cochran )"If She Could See Me Now"), Eddie Kirk ("Bright Lights And Blonde Haired Women"), Hank Thompson ("A Girl In The Night") and Charlie Rich ("Sittin' And Thinkin'.") Price is edging into the crooning sophistication of his later work, but still pretty rootsy... It sure didn't hurt to have a backing band that included Johnny Bush, Floyd Cramer, Buddy Emmons, Johnny Paycheck and Willie Nelson himself backing him up!
Ray Price "Love Life" (Columbia Records, 1964) (LP)
(Produced by Don Law & Frank Jones)
Ray Price "Burning Memories" (Columbia Records, 1965) (LP)
(Produced by Don Law & Frank Jones)
Common knowledge has it that Price's 1967 hit version of "Danny Boy" marked the end of his affiliation with the harder side of the country sound.... But albums like this clearly showed him swinging into the countrypolitan "Nashville Sound." A few songs have a strong backbeat and still shuffle like the goodle days, but many of the tracks on here have needless orchestrations, and Price hams it up vocally on a lot of his phrasing. Some songs work for me, but most do not -- this is an album I don't need to revisit that often... (It had a lot of hits on it, though, including the title track, which hit #2, as did his version of "Make The World Go Away," which preceded Eddy Arnold's version by a good two years...)
(Ray Price's) Cherokee Cowboys "Western Strings" (Columbia Records, 1965) (LP)
(Produced by Don Law & Frank Jones)
A mostly instrumental set from the mid-1960s lineup of Price's backing band, a set chock full of western swing-style fiddling, nice twangy guitar and some crisp, concise steel work as well. Charlie Harris and Wade Ray are credited as lead vocalists on a couple of tracks, but as is too often the case with these band albums, the full lineup of musicians remains a mystery; Ray Price is credited as arranger on most of the tracks, though the musicians themselves are not identified by name.
Ray Price "The Other Woman" (Columbia Records, 1965) (LP)
(Produced by Don Law & Frank Jones)
Ray Price "The Same Old Me" (Columbia Records, 1966) (LP)
Ray Price "Another Bridge To Burn" (Columbia Records, 1966) (LP)
(Produced by Don Law & Frank Jones)
Ray Price "Touch My Heart" (Columbia Records, 1967) (LP)
(Produced by Don Law & Frank Jones)
Ray Price "Danny Boy" (Columbia Records, 1967) (LP)
(Produced by Don Law & Frank Jones)
The title track crossed over to Pop... into the middle rungs of the Top 100... But, jeez, is it cheesy! Plus... "Greensleeves" and "Vaya Con Dios"? Yeesh.
Ray Price "Take Me As I Am" (Columbia Records, 1968) (LP)
(Produced by Don Law)
Ray Price "She Wears My Ring" (Columbia Records, 1968) (LP)
(Produced by Don Law)
Ray Price "Sweetheart Of The Year" (Columbia Records, 1969) (LP)
(Produced by Don Law)
Ray Price "Christmas Album" (Columbia Records, 1969) (LP)
(Produced by Don Law)
Ray Price "You Wouldn't Know Love" (Columbia Records, 1969) (LP)
(Produced by Don Law)
Ray Price "For The Good Times" (Columbia Records, 1970) (LP)
(Produced by Don Law & Charlie Bragg)
Ray Price "I Won't Mention It Again" (Columbia Records, 1971) (LP)
(Produced by Don Law & Charlie Bragg)
This album came super-close to being a Kris Kristofferson tribute album, albeit quite early in Kristofferson's career. The title track was written by arranger Cam Mullins, and is joined by covers of Paul Simon's "Bridge Over Troubled Water" and Mickey Newberry's "Sweet Memories," as well as "Forgive Me Heart," a fairly random offering from future Gong Show host Chuck Woolery. All the other songs were Kristofferson compositions, including well-known numbers such as "Sunday Morning Comin' Down" and "Loving Her Was Easier," as well as more obscure offerings like "The Burden Of Freedom" and "I'd Rather Be Sorry." Kind of a shame actually, they didn't just wait a couple of weeks for Kristofferson to pen a few more classics, and make and entire album of his work... they probably could have just bought him a six-pack and left him alone for a few hours and that would have done the trick. As it was, though, this proved to be one of Price's most successful records, topping the Country album charts one last time while riding on the success of his previous release.
Ray Price "The Lonesomest Lonesome" (Columbia Records, 1972) (LP)
(Produced by Don Law & Charlie Bragg)
Ray Price "She's Got To Be A Saint" (Columbia Records, 1973) (LP)
(Produced by Don Law & Charlie Bragg)
Ray Price "You're The Best Thing That Ever Happened To Me" (Columbia Records, 1974) (LP)
(Produced by Don Law & Stan Hutto)
The title track was penned by Jim Weatherly, whose earlier song, "Midnight Train To Georgia," was a huge pop hit for Gladys Knight in 1973. That same year, Ray Price took his single of "You're The Best Thing" to the top of the Country charts, while Ms. Knight made it a Top Five R&B hit. Ironically, his success with the song wasn't enough to prevent the corporate bean-counters at Columbia Records from dropping him from the label, but Price -- riding high on another #1 hit -- made Weatherly his new muse, recording an entire album of Weatherly's music the following year.
Ray Price "Like Old Times Again" (Myrrh Records, 1974) (LP)
(Produced by Larry Gordon & Larry Muhoberac)
Around 1973, several major labels purged their country music rosters of low-selling old-timers, marking a major shift in the industry's business model and in the music itself. Ray Price outlasted that culling for a while, though he eventually left Columbia and briefly took refuge with Myrrh Records, which specialized in gospel music. He released two albums on Myrrh pretty much at the same time, one religious, the other secular, with the secular set a showcase for songwriter Jim Weatherly, whose "You're The Best Thing That Ever Happened To Me" proved to be Price's last Number One hit. Despite coming out on a religious indie, the album did pretty well on the country charts, generating two Top 5 singles, the title track, "Like Old Times Again" and "Roses And Love Songs." However, these songs were the last Ray Price songs to chart that high until his 1980 duets album with Willie Nelson, San Antonio Rose, which scored a #3 hit with a version of "Faded Love." Price was able to consistently eke his way into the Top Forty for the rest of the decade, although after this album he steadily slipped further down the rungs into the further reaches of the Back Forty.
Although commercial success slipped away, his reputation as a musical stylist rose over the years, and for some twangfans, Price became seen as a revered, Sinatra-esque country elder. This was really the last of his big hit albums, though.
Ray Price "This Time, Lord" (Myrrh Records, 1975) (LP)
(Produced by Hugh Davies & Larry Muhoberac)
His other album for Myrrh was more what you'd expect, a gospel set, although one with a countrypolitan feel. It's interesting, though, that Ray Price chose to record new material rather than leaning on older hymns and standards: half the tracks on here were penned by Lee Dresser, a pop-rock artist who seemed to be flirting with a career in religious music, though apparently he never cut a gospel album of his own. Dresser's five offerings are joined by a tune from Ray Hildebrand and several others from more obscure Christian composers.
Ray Price "If You Ever Change Your Mind" (Columbia Records, 1975) (LP)
(Produced by Larry Gordon)
Ray Price "Say I Do" (Dot Records, 1975) (LP)
(Produced by Larry Gordon)
Ray Price "Rainbows And Tears" (Dot Records, 1976) (LP)
(Produced by Jim Fogelsong & Jim Williamson)
Ray Price "Hank 'N' Me" (Dot Records, 1976) (LP)
(Produced by Jim Fogelsong & Jim Williamson)
A Hank Williams tribute...
Ray Price & The Cherokee Cowboys "Reunited" (Dot Records, 1977) (LP)
(Produced by Jim Fogelsong & Jim Williamson)
Ray Price "Precious Memories" (Word Records, 1976) (LP)
Ray Price "How Great Thou Art" (Word Records, 1977) (LP)
(Produced by Kurt Kaiser & Tom Caccetta)
Ray Price "There's Always Me" (Monument Records, 1979) (LP)
(Produced by Ray Price & Fred Foster)
Ray scraped his way back into the Top 20 with a couple of tracks on this album, Jerry Fuller's "Feet," which charted at #19, and "That's the Only Way to Say Good Mornin'," which it #18. Bill Justis provided plenty of overly ornate yet still uncompelling string arrangements, in what was generally speaking a pretty syrupy and un-twangy album. [Reissued on CD as Hits On Monument. See below.]
Ray Price & Willie Nelson "San Antonio Rose" (Columbia Records, 1980) (LP)
(Produced by Willie Nelson & Bradley Hartman)
A sweet homage to the western-swing music both men grew up on, and also one of Willie's best duet albums of the '80s. It's also a reunion album of sorts: Willie played in Price's band in the early '60s, when Price was still a hard country hero, and the two men share a strong understanding of how to sing a heartsong the right way. The production and performances are solid, though notably laid back -- what's remarkable about this album, though, is how Willie pulled such a vigorous performance out of Price, who'd been in a sleepy country crooner mode ever since the '60s Nashville sound kicked in. This disc isn't electrifying, but it is nice, and quite classy. Their duet on "Faded Love" also provided Ray Price with his first (and final) Top Five single since the early 'Seventies, when his star really started to fall off the horizon. This was probably the album that really fueled a reevaluation of Ray Price's career, and helped reinvigorate his reputation with younger twangfans. Worth checking out.
Ray Price "Town And Country" (Dimension Records, 1981) (LP)
(Produced by Ray Pennington)
Ray Price "Somewhere In Texas" (Dimension Records, 1982) (LP)
(Produced by Ray Pennington)
Ray Price "Master Of The Art" (Viva Records, 1982) (LP)
(Produced by Snuff Garrett)
Ray Price "Welcome To Ray Price Country" (Step One Records, 1985)
(Produced by Ray Pennington & Kevin McManus)
Ray Price "Portrait Of A Singer" (Step One Records, 1986) (LP)
(Produced by Ray Pennington, Kevin McManus & Jim Williamson)
Ray Price "Greatest Hits" (Step One Records, 1986)
(Produced by Ray Pennington, Kevin McManus & Jim Williamson)
I have an enduring fascination with the indie-label albums recorded in the late 1970s and '80s by many former Nashville superstars who'd seen their fortunes fall after the countrypolitan era closed. These records often ride a fine line between rootsy and dispiriting... and this one's a fine example of the genre. Country crooner Ray Price revisits some of his classics, with backing by a usual-suspects studio crew, helmed by producer Ray Pennington. Because it's a retrospective collection, it has a back-to-basics undercurrent, though Price himself was, admittedly, a bit long in the tooth and had long since devoted himself to crooning ballads rather than honky-tonking the night away. Mostly, though, this is okay -- the one regrettable detail is that someone thought it would be fun to have a xylophone plippity-plopping alongside the vocal melodies, but the pedal steel playing and fiddle (Buddy Emmons and Buddy Spicher) sounds soulful and respectful of Price's prowess. Worth a spin, especially if you're a fan.
Ray Price "Greatest Hits, v.2" (Step One Records, 1986)
(Produced by Ray Pennington, Kevin McManus & Jim Williamson)
Ray Price "Greatest Hits, v.3" (Step One Records, 1986)
(Produced by Ray Pennington, Kevin McManus & Jim Williamson)
Ray Price "Revival Of Old Time Singing" (Step One Records, 1986)
A gospel offering...
Ray Price "The Heart Of Country Music" (Step One Records, 1987)
(Produced by Ray Pennington & Kevin McManus)
Ray Price "A Christmas Gift For You" (Step One Records, 1987)
(Produced by Ray Pennington & Kevin McManus)
Ray Price "Just Enough Love" (Step One Records, 1988)
(Produced by Ray Pennington & Kevin McManus)
Ray Price "By Request" (Step One Records, 1988)
Ray Price & Faron Young "Memories That Last" (Step One Records, 1991)
(Produced by Ray Pennington & Kevin McManus)
Ray Price "Hall Of Fame Series" (Step One Records, 1991)
Ray Price "Sometimes A Rose" (Columbia Records, 1992)
Ray Price "Prisoner Of Love" (BMG-Justice Records, 2000)
(Produced by Randall Jamail)
Texas shufflin' old-timer Ray Price, a veteran honkytonker who's been crooning the soft stuff for a few decades now, makes a "comeback" with this smooth, heavily orchestrated set of standards and pop vocals-ized oldies. The album opens on a strong note, with a swank version of "Better Class Of Losers," in which Price's voice falls flat in places, but is still reasonably strong, and the arrangements (courtesy of David Campbell) don't overshadow his phrasing. The rest of the album loses steam, though, and the orchestral aspect becomes increasingly intrusive. Ray's later work (notably his 2003 album with Willie Nelson) show that the flaw here was with the producers, not the singer...
Ray Price "Time" (Audium Records, 2002)
(Produced by Fred Foster & Buddy Sherrill)
Ray Price & Willie Nelson "Run That By Me One More Time" (Lost Highway Records, 2003)
(Produced by Willie Nelson, Ray Price & Joe Gracey)
Willie and Ray go back a long, long ways... For a time in the early 1960s, Willie played bass in Ray's band, and there's that little song he wrote, called "Night Life," which Price has recorded a time or two. Then, back in Nelson's decade-o-duets, one of his best collaborations was 1980's San Antonio Rose, a back-to-basics, western swing-oriented nostalgia trip that was also one of the most vigorous records Price had made in many a year. More amazing still, though, is that 23 years later these two old coots could get together and not only rise to the level of that album, but surpass it -- by far. This record is a stunner. A classic. A disc that will stand the test of time. Both of these guys understand the sincere emotional depth and resonance of old-fashioned heartsongs in a way that most of these pampered, formula-driven Nashville young'uns can simply no longer come close to. Willie and Ray make sad old songs like "Deep Water" and "Cold War With You" come alive, with understated pathos and beautiful, heartfelt performances. The band is right there with 'em, too, matching their soulful vocals with equally sympathetic backing... God bless Willie Nelson for pulling out all the stops and creating another masterpiece, here in his sixth decade in showbiz. That's a pretty neat trick.
Ray Price/Willie Nelson/Merle Haggard "Last Of The Breed, v.1 & 2" (Lost Highway Records, 2007)
(Produced by Fred Foster)
So sweet. Three venerable old coots get together and sing the kind of songs they love -- sappy old standards, soulful heartsongs, gospel tunes and heart-wrenching ballads, all performed with a light, loving touch. Each of these old-timers has had a creative renaissance in recent years, but it's really Ray Price who shines on here... Price sank into irrelevance during the 1970s countrypolitan years, but his old pal Willie Nelson keeps bringing him back into the spotlight, with ever-increasing creative rewards. Willie and Merle are no slouches, but Price really steals the show -- he delivers these songs with such depth and conviction, it's hard not to be blown away. What a treat to hear him in such fine form again. This 2-CD set is a worthy reprise of Willie and Ray's Run That By Me One More Time, an album that was one of my favorite country releases of 2003. And if you like this collection, you should definitely pick up a copy of Willie's recent tribute to songwriter Cindy Walker, You Don't Know Me,which was produced by Fred Foster, and taps into the same wellspring of classy, heartfelt sentimentality. This is a really rich, rewarding listening experience. Yay, Willie. Yay, Merle. Yay, Ray!
Ray Price/Willie Nelson/Merle Haggard "Live From Last Of The Breed Tour" (Image Entertainment, 2009)
Ray Price "Beauty Is... The Final Sessions" (Amerimonte Records, 2014)
(Produced by Fred Foster & Kyle Lehning)
Ray Price "The Honky Tonk Years: 1952-1966" (Bear Family Records, 2002)
Well, gee, if you just want to cut to the chase and pick up all the good stuff -- and I do mean all the good stuff! -- then this giganto 10-CD box set should just about do it for you... All of Price's best hard-country work... and then some! (I haven't heard this myself, but hope to someday... I have no doubt it has Bear Family's trademark high-quality sound and copious liner notes... A treasure trove for those fortunate enough to pick it up!
Ray Price "Greatest Hits" (Columbia Records, 1961) (LP)
Although this is a "best-of" set, it fits in with his regular LPs because a bunch of these songs date back to the five-year period between when he first hit the charts and his Sings Heart Songs "debut" album. And, man, are these songs great. One winner after another -- "Crazy Arms," "Heartaches By The Number," "I'll Be There (If You Ever Want Me)," "City Lights," the cajun-flavored "You Done Me Wrong..." Honkytonk heartbreak never sounded so sweet!
Ray Price "Collector's Choice" (Columbia-Harmony Records, 1966) (LP)
Ray Price "Greatest Hits, v.2" (Columbia Records, 1967) (LP)
Ray Price "Born To Lose" (Columbia-Harmony Records, 1967) (LP)
Ray Price "I Fall To Pieces" (Columbia-Harmony Records, 1970) (LP)
Ray Price "The World Of Ray Price" (Columbia Records, 1970) (LP)
Ray Price "Make The World Go Away" (Columbia-Harmony Records, 1970) (LP)
Ray Price "Welcome To My World" (Columbia Records, 1971) (LP)
Ray Price "Release Me" (Columbia-Harmony Records, 1971) (LP)
Ray Price "All Time Greatest Hits" (Columbia Records, 1972) (LP)
Well, here's a surprise: the CD reissue follows the original early '70s LP pretty closely! A few songs have been shuffled into a different order, but other than that, this is pretty much the same album.
Ray Price "Hits On Monument" (Sony Music, 1993)
Not that there were that many, mind you... But the four that actually charted are all here... Why, come to think of it... isn't this basically just a reissue of his lone Monument LP, There's Always Me, with uglier cover art...? Say... What kinda saps do they take us for, anyway?
Ray Price "Honkytonk Years" (Rounder Records, 1984) (LP)
Well, in the late pre-CD era, when the major labels had abandoned the old-time honkytonkers and let almost all their best stuff lapse out of print, good old Rounder Records took the initiative to dig into Price's priceless back catalog and put together this little gem of an album. Pure honkytonk gold... Still worth tracking down a copy and putting it on your shelves. Yummy stuff.
Ray Price "The Essential Ray Price: 1951-1962" (Sony Legacy, 1991)
K-I-L-L-E-R. Although he later became one of the cheesiest of the cheesy Nashville pop vocalists, Price's country credentials are pretty impeccable. After all, Hank Williams was crashing on his couch in the month's before he died, and Price filled in for Hank on the nights when he was too trashed to perform. Afterwards, Price took over the Hank Williams band, and it was with many of these great musicians that he recorded some of his best work in the early 'Fifties. This top-notch collection sticks strictly to Price's real country roots -- even though it coasts into the early 'Sixties, when Price was doing some pretty corny stuff, this disc features him covering great honkytonk material, stuff by writers like Wayne Walker and Mel Tillis, who were keeping the hard country flame alive. Price was a rather plain singer -- not as electrifying as most of his contemporaries -- but he had real country soul.
Ray Price "16 Biggest Hits" (Sony Music, 1999)
An okay introduction, but be forewarned: a few of these songs have been tinkered with after the fact, and don't sound the same as they did when they first came out, lo, those many years ago...
Ray Price "The Essential Ray Price" (Sony-BMG Legacy, 2007)
(Produced by Don Law & Frank Jones)
This 2-CD best-of set is a great study in contrasts, showing Price's path from honkytonker to lounge singer, paralleling the same evolution in the country music industry of the 1950s, '60s and '70s. Disc One is dominated with his deliciously robust hard country hits of the mid-1950s, back when Price was one of the most credible heirs to the Hank Williams mantle (especially since he inherited Hank's actual band, after Williams passed away. The powerful loping thump of the Texas shuffle -- Price's signature sound -- propels bombshells such as I've Got A New Heartache," "Crazy Arms" and "My Shoes Keep Walking Back To You." It's heaven. There were ballads, too, but Price excelled at uptempo material, and up through the early '60s that's what he concentrated on. Well into the 1960s, his work had a surprisingly earthy feel -- even while shifting gears to become a countrypolitan crooner, Price could cook up stunners like "A Way To Survive" and "Burning Memories," and he kept a bluesy undercurrent in his music long after contemporaries such as Hank Locklin and Eddy Arnold had abandoned all pretense at twang. This set basically picks up where the previous Essential album (from 1991) left off, and compliments that still-crucial collection: after all the twang and thunder, Price softened up and went pop, but an extra disc's worth of this later material is well worth having on hand. Gems from Hank Cochran, Kris Kristofferson and Price's longtime amigo, Willie Nelson, are nothing to sneeze at. Also, the early years are represented by a markedly different playlist: you'll want both best-ofs to grace your stereo, and every time you check this one out, you'll be rewarded in some new way. Classic country and countrypolitan at it's best!
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