Ray Price was one of the greatest singers of his era, an era that included Frank Sinatra and still includes Tony Bennett. In horseracing terms I think Sinatra wins, but would have a hard time making bets whether Price or Bennett would place or show. On a given day, either might be just a bit behind Sinatra and a bit ahead of whoever is in third place.
Sinatra would probably agree with you about Dean Martin (and the Nick Tosches bio "Dino" is worth a read if you haven't seen it). On the other hand, just as many would say Vic Damone had better pipes than Sinatra but Frank is the enduring icon, I would suggest Ray had better pipes than Elvis but there is only one King.
That said, revisiting all those Texas Shuffle tunes as sung by Ray later in his career (when the voice had mellowed and he was no longer channeling Hank Williams) is more entertaining for me than listening to early Elvis or late Elvis these days. . . and keep in mind that I came of age musically in the late fifties, listening to country radio, pop/rock radio, and my dad's big-band records from the forties and his jazz records from the fifties interchangeably with one another on any given day.
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Ray Price was one of the greatest singers of his era, an era that included Frank Sinatra and still includes Tony Bennett. In horseracing terms I think Sinatra wins, but would have a hard time making bets whether Price or Bennett would place or show. On a given day, either might be just a bit behind Sinatra and a bit ahead of whoever is in third place.
I am actually a Dean Martin man, Elvis second, Ray a solid third.
Sinatra would probably agree with you about Dean Martin (and the Nick Tosches bio "Dino" is worth a read if you haven't seen it). On the other hand, just as many would say Vic Damone had better pipes than Sinatra but Frank is the enduring icon, I would suggest Ray had better pipes than Elvis but there is only one King.
That said, revisiting all those Texas Shuffle tunes as sung by Ray later in his career (when the voice had mellowed and he was no longer channeling Hank Williams) is more entertaining for me than listening to early Elvis or late Elvis these days. . . and keep in mind that I came of age musically in the late fifties, listening to country radio, pop/rock radio, and my dad's big-band records from the forties and his jazz records from the fifties interchangeably with one another on any given day.
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