Category Archives: Country

Today: Ray Price is 87

Ray Price has covered — and kicked up — as much musical turf as any country singer of the postwar era. He’s been lionized as the man who saved hard country when Nashville went pop, and vilified as the man who went pop when hard country was starting to call its own name with pride.
~Dan Cooper (allmusic.com)

For The Good Times:

From Wikipedia:

Birth name Ray Price
Also known as The Cherokee Cowboy
Born January 12, 1926 (age 87)
Origin Perryville, Texas, U.S.
Genres Country, Western swing
Occupations Singer, songwriter, guitarist
Years active 1948–present
Associated acts Johnny Bush, Merle Haggard, Rosetta Tharpe, Harlan Howard, George Jones, Roger Miller, Willie Nelson, Johnny Paycheck

Ray Price (born January 12, 1926) is an American country music singer, songwriter and guitarist. His wide-ranging baritone has often been praised as among the best male voices of country music. His more well-known recordings include “Release Me”, “Crazy Arms”, “Heartaches by the Number”, “City Lights”, “My Shoes Keep Walking Back to You”, “For the Good Times”, “Night Life”, “I Won’t Mention It Again”, “You’re the Best Thing That Ever Happened to Me”, and “Danny Boy”. He was elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1996 and—now in his 80s—continues to record and tour.

….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…..

ray price & hank williams

Heartaches by the number:

Industry Awards:

Academy of Country Music

  • 1970 Album of the Year – “For The Good Times”
  • 1970 Single of the Year – “For The Good Times”

Country Music Association

  • 1971 Album of the Year – “I Won’t Mention It Again”

Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum

  • Inducted in 1996

Grammy Awards

  • 1971 Best Male Country Vocal Performance – “For The Good Times”
  • 2008 Best Country Collaboration with Vocals with Willie Nelson – “Lost Highway”

Album of the day:

The Essential Ray Price (1951-1962) – (1991)

album-the-essential-ray-price-1951-1962

@Spotify:

More January 12: Continue reading Today: Ray Price is 87

Today: Elvis Presley released Elvis Country 2 Jan 1971

Elvis Country

“Elvis has come out with a record which gives us some of the very finest and most affecting music since he first recorded for Sun almost 17 years ago”
– Peter Guralnick (Rolling Stone Magazine 1971)

Elvis Country (I’m 10,000 Years Old) is the thirty-seventh studio album by Elvis Presley, released on RCA Records (LSP 44600 in January 1971. Recorded at RCA Studio B inNashville, it reached #12 on the Billboard 200. It was certified Gold on 12/1/1977 by the RIAA. It peaked at #6 in the United Kingdom, selling over one million copies worldwide.

The lead single for the album, “I Really Don’t Want to Know” b/w “There Goes My Everything” was released on December 8, 1970 and peaked at #21 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Tomorrow Never Comes:

Elvis Presley started a great run with his 1968 Comeback Special, then went on to  the brilliant From Elvis in Memphis , and then the “bonus” album, Back in Memphis), the very good  live abum On Stage, and the studio/live That’s the Way It Is in 1970.

And then…

In January 1971 Elvis Presley returned with Elvis Country: I’m 10,000 Years Old, and again the artist was addressing his roots, though with some more modern sounds. This is Elvis at the top of his game and it is one of his best albums.

It is available in several editions, theoriginal single Album version, The FTD version with many outtakes and the Legacy edition that includes the album, Love Letters from Elvis. Love Letters was drawn from the same four days of Nashville sessions as Elvis Country. It also has a few bonus tracks and good liner notes on both the albums, written by Stuart Coleman in 2011.

This is The Legacy edition on Spotify

Allmusic:
by Bruce Eder

“…Elvis was at his peak when he cut Elvis Country. Actually, Elvis Presley was positively on a roll at the time. A decade after the end of what were thought to be his prime years, he was singing an ever-widening repertory of songs with more passion and involvement than he’d shown since the end of the 1950s…”

 

Other 2 January:
Continue reading Today: Elvis Presley released Elvis Country 2 Jan 1971

Christmas music: Nothing but a child by Steve Earle

nothing

Steve Earle is next out in our series of christmas videos. It’s an incredible song from the album “Copperhead Road”, released in 1988. The background voice was provided by the wonderful Maria McKee on the album version.

In this version it’s just Steve and his guitar:

It shows that our hero Mr. Steve Earle is not always political, he seems to have a little religion in him as well. Maybe it was just the holiday season approaching that inspired him, who knows? A very nice song it is.

Here is the version from the album (with Maria McKee on background vocals):

Nothing But A Child
(Steve Earle)

Once upon a time in a far off land
Wise men saw a sign and set out aross the sand
Songs of praise to sing, they travelled day and night
Precious gifts to bring, guided by the light
They chased a brand new star, ever towards the west
Across the mountains far, but when it came to rest
They scarce believed their eyes, they’d come so many miles
And the miracle they prized was nothing but a child

Nothing but a child could wash these tears away
Or guide a weary world into the light of day
And nothing but a child could help erase these miles
So once again we all can be children for awhile

Now all around the world, in every Iittle town
Everyday is heard a precious little sound
And every mother kind and every father proud
Looks down in awe to find another chance allowed

Another fine live version from 1988 (MTV):

– Hallgeir

Free Christmas music 3: Over The Rhine – Snow Angels

Today we’ve found a real treat for you! One of my favourite Christmas albums , now completely free via Noisetrade. The southern Ohio-based husband-and-wife team of multi-instrumentalist/vocalist Linford Detweiler and vocalist/multi-instrumentalist Karin Bergquist, otherwise known as Over the Rhine, released this collection of wistful holiday music back in 2006.

Some info from Wikipedia:

Snow Angels is the ninth studio album, and second Christmas album, by Over the Rhine, released independently in 2006. The album was released by Great Speckled Dog on October 2, 2007.

Snow Angels was released ten years after the group’s first Christmas disc, 1996’s The Darkest Night of the Year. While Darkest Night was largely composed of interpretations of traditional Christmas songs, Snow Angels was almost entirely original material. The only non-original track in the album is a lounge-inspired take on “Jingle Bells” that debuted during the 2004 Christmas tour.

Over The Rhine – Snow Angels:

Here’s a nice  jazzy live version of North Pole Man:

Or you can stream it on Spotify:

– Hallgeir

Look out for: Lily and Madeleine

Lily and Madeleine are two songwriting sisters  from Indianapolis. Lily is 15 and Madeleine is 18. I’ve only heard one song, the beautiful “In The Middle”, but it is enough to get us exited about their new EP “The Weight of the globe”. It will be released early next year.

The Web site “My Old Kentucky Blog”(MOKB ) compares them to First Aid Kit, and it’s an understandeable comparison. Young sisters singing wonderful harmony infused americana. So thanks to MOKB for this find, check out the site, it’s one of the best.

We are really looking forward to hear their new EP and following them in the future.

Lily & Madeleine – In The Middle:

Written by Lily & Madeleine with Kenny Childers
The Weight of the Globe EP coming in January
Recorded at White Arc Studio with Paul Mahern
Video by Stuart Hotwagner and Nicole Lehrman

(the pictures are from their Facebook page)

– Hallgeir