16 Biggest Hits
Here's a career that defies explanation. Ray Price, the father of the Texas shuffle, achieved dance-hall immortality in 1956 with "Crazy Arms," with its walking bass; heavily bowed, single-string fiddle; and slightly tetched lyrics. He may never have topped it, but hits like "City Lights," "The Other Woman," and "Heartaches by the Number" proved it was no fluke. Price's big, mellow voice made country music sound erotic. Then in 1967 he threw away his honky-tonk reign with "Danny Boy" of all things, cut with a 47-piece orchestra. That one may have left something to be desired, but his 1970 reading ofKris Kristofferson's "For the Good Times" was certainly as earthy and compelling as Countrypolitan got. It's hard not to want more Harlan Howard and Hank Cochran songs, and less Jim Weatherly, but Price is as contrary as country stars come, and this set represents him accurately.--John Morthland