Ray Price Honky Tonk Years (1950-1966) CD - Import

 Hear Ray Price evolve into a legend
This album may seem to overdo the collection of classic country songs we have inherited from Ray Price but the more you listen, the more you want to hear. He shared a house with Hank Williams in his early years and probably spurred by Hank's success sang in imitation of his then idol. As the years passed, however, Ray Price discovered he had his own voice and, more importantly, his own style. Once he began using that style, he created hit after hit. He didn't follow the norm of country music and used drums, more than one fiddle and let his voice take shape as the music instrument it is. Some songs are repeated in this 10 CD collection, but they are not duplicated. Compare one recording of a song to another and you hear how he improved. The hard-cover book that is part of this set was produced without Price's input and that is a shame, because, having met him twice, I believe he would have given valuable and interesting information on how his career evolved. At $100 less than the so-called leading Internet CD store, this collection is really a bargain. The best part is that Ray Price is still making concert appearances and I'll see him in May in Las Vegas. Country music has changed for the worse, but Ray Price remains the icon who refused to change and still plays to sell out audiences. That's a plateau few entertainers have achieved. With this CD collection, you can hear Ray Price anytime. And the quality is excellent. Ed Dodrill
Submitted by Editoredd (Las Vegas, NV) 
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 Worth the Price, so to speak
I have bought several of these big Bear Family box sets. They're expensive. They're thorough. And, not surprisingly, they're often too much. There's a reason a lot of music is not widely available and developing a jones for box sets, as I've done, is a hard lesson in that fact. This one is the counterlesson. Is there ANYTHING on here not worth hearing? Sure. Some of the gospel stuff is not to my taste, and of course when you get this many songs there's going to be some unevenness. If you want evenness, get The Essential Ray Price, which is the same thing as this collection in bite-size form. After you've owned that one for about a year, if you like honky-tonk at all, you'll be back. This is a motherlode.
Submitted by donarmstrg (Quincy, MA, USA)
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 it dont get any better than this
Ray Price,as shown and heard on this set did indeed create an entire sound and era,with few exceptions no one has done what Price has done for country music,not only can you hear his evolving as an artist but country music as well and the greatness of its players,there will never be another era in country music as wonderful as those golden years between 1950-1967.
Submitted by rcshuffle (Knoxville,TN,USA)
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