"All I Have to Offer You (Is Me)" is a song written by

Dallas Frazier Dallas Frazier (October 27, 1939 – January 14, 2022) was an American country musician and songwriter who had success in the 1950s and 1960s. Life and career Frazier was born in Spiro, Oklahoma, on October 27, 1939, but was raised in Bakersfi ...

and A.L. "Doodle" Owens, and recorded by American

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

artist

Charley Pride Charley Frank Pride (March 18, 1934 – December 12, 2020) was an American singer, guitarist, and professional baseball player. His greatest musical success came in the early to mid-1970s, when he was the best-selling performer for RCA Rec ...

. It was released in June 1969 as the first single from his compilation album '' The Best of Charley Pride''. The song, released that June, reached the top of the ''

Billboard magazine ''Billboard'' (stylized as ''billboard'') is an American music and entertainment magazine published weekly by Penske Media Corporation. The magazine provides music charts, news, video, opinion, reviews, events, and style related to the musi ...

Hot Country Singles Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data from Nielsen BDS along with digital sa ...

chart that August, and in doing so it was Charley Pride's first No. 1 song. It also accomplished a feat not done in 25 years: an

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

entertainer having a No. 1 hit on the ''Billboard'' country chart. The last song by a black performer to reach the summit was "

Is You Is Or Is You Ain't My Baby "Is You Is or Is You Ain't My Baby" is a song written by Louis Jordan and Billy Austin. The song's first recording, by Jordan, was made on October 4, 1943. It was released as the B-side of a single with "G.I. Jive" with the title "Is You Is or Is ...

" by Louis Jordan, in July

1944 Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * January 2 – WWII: ** Free French General Jean de Lattre de Tassigny is appointed to command French Army B, part of the Sixth United States Army Group in Nor ...

. Pride became the third black singer to have a No. 1 country hit (the

Nat King Cole Nathaniel Adams Coles (March 17, 1919 – February 15, 1965), known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American singer, jazz pianist, and actor. Cole's music career began after he dropped out of school at the age of 15, and continued f ...

-led King Cole Trio had a No. 1 hit earlier in 1944). While Cole would top the charts only once and Jordan twice, "All I Have to Offer You Is Me" would be the first of 29 No. 1 hits for Pride, spanning to 1983's "Night Games."

Content

The narrator speaks to his future wife, and tells her that if she chose to be with him forever, then she won't live a luxurious life every girl dreams about, as he says "All I have to offer you is me".

Chart performance

Cover versions

The song has also been recorded by: * Conway Twitty on his 1970 album To See My Angel Cry *

The Statler Brothers The Statler Brothers (sometimes simply referred to as The Statlers) were an American country music, gospel, and vocal group. The quartet was formed in 1955 performing locally, and from 1964 to 1972, they sang as opening act and backup singers fo ...

on their 1970 album

Bed of Rose's "Bed of Rose's" is a song written by Harold Reid, and recorded by American country music group The Statler Brothers. It was released in October 1970 as the first single and title track from the album '' Bed of Rose's''. The song reached its popul ...

McBride & the Ride McBride & the Ride is an American country music band consisting of Terry McBride (lead vocals, bass guitar), Ray Herndon (background vocals, guitars), and Billy Thomas (background vocals, drums). The group was founded in 1989 through the assista ...

on their 1992 album '' Sacred Ground'' *The Kaʻau Crater Boys on their 1995 album ''On Fire'' *

Tammy Wynette Tammy Wynette (born Virginia Wynette Pugh; May 5, 1942 – April 6, 1998) was an American country music artist, as well as an actress and author. She is considered among the genre's most influential and successful artists. Along with Loretta Ly ...

and

George Jones George Glenn Jones (September 12, 1931 – April 26, 2013) was an American country musician, singer, and songwriter. He achieved international fame for his long list of hit records, including his best-known song " He Stopped Loving Her Today", ...

on their 1995 album '' One'' *Aaron Tippin on his 1998 album "The Essential Aaron Tippin" *

Ricky Van Shelton Ricky Van Shelton (born January 12, 1952) is an American retired country music singer. Active between 1986 and 2006, he charted more than 20 singles on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Songs charts. This figure includes 10 Number One hits: " Somebo ...

on his 2000 album '' Fried Green Tomatoes''.

References

{{authority control 1969 singles Charley Pride songs The Statler Brothers songs Conway Twitty songs McBride & the Ride songs Ricky Van Shelton songs Songs written by Dallas Frazier Songs written by A.L. "Doodle" Owens Song recordings produced by Chet Atkins Song recordings produced by Jack Clement Song recordings produced by Bob Ferguson (musician) Song recordings produced by Felton Jarvis RCA Records singles 1969 songs