Wade Ray (April 13, 1913 in
Evansville, Indiana
Evansville is a city in, and the county seat of, Vanderburgh County, Indiana, United States. The population was 118,414 at the 2020 census, making it the state's third-most populous city after Indianapolis and Fort Wayne, the largest city in ...
– November 11, 1998 in
Sparta, IL) was an American
Western Swing
Western swing music is a subgenre of American country music that originated in the late 1920s in the West and South among the region's Western string bands. It is dance music, often with an up-tempo beat, which attracted huge crowds to dance ...
fiddler and vocalist.
His bands, the Wade Ray Five, Wade Ray And His Ozark Mountain Boys, etc., included musicians such as
Kenneth Carllile and
Curly Chalker. He retired to
Sparta, Illinois
Sparta is a city in Randolph County, Illinois, United States. The population was 4,095 at the 2020 census.
The city was the principal filming location for the 1967 film '' In the Heat of the Night''.
Consumer ammunition manufacturer Underwood a ...
in 1979 where he died in 1998.
Discography
;Singles
*"Are You Fer It?" B "Walk Softly", Wade Ray And His Ozark Mountain Boys 1951
*
Let Me Go, Devil, first recorded on July 2, 1953 by Wade Ray, followed a few weeks later by Georgie Shaw, Johnny Bond and Tex Ritter
*"Wild Heart", written by Cindy Walker, B "Little Green Valley" RCA Victor 1957
* "Idaho Red", the first 'trucker song', 1953
;Appearances on other artists' recordings:
*
Country Favorites-Willie Nelson Style
A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while t ...
*
The Gordons (duo)
*
Kenneth C. "Jethro" Burns The RCA Camden LP
*
Make Way for Willie Nelson
''Make Way for Willie Nelson'' is the fifth studio album by country music, country singer Willie Nelson.
The single "One in a Row", Nelson's only original included on the album, peaked at number 19 on ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard's'' Hot Cou ...
References
External links
Wade Ray deserved better by Rich Kienzle
1913 births
1998 deaths
20th-century American musicians
People from Posey County, Indiana
People from Sparta, Illinois
{{US-musician-stub