Johnnie ray i'll never fall in love again
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The life of Johnnie Ray, an Oregon-born ‘50s singing sensation, is explored in OPB documentary
In the days before Elvis Presley and The Beatles shook up the music world, an Oregon native named Johnnie Ray was making a name for himself as an emotional performer who combined influences from rhythm and blues to pop. Though he was a star in the 1950s, Ray isn’t as well remembered today, which makes OPB’s “Oregon Experience” documentary, “Johnnie Ray,” a compelling reminder of Ray’s successes and challenges.
Written and produced by Kami Horton, “Johnnie Ray” uses footage from early TV appearances, vintage photos and recordings to paint a picture of a singer whose intensely physical performance style and full-throated renditions of such hits as “Cry” and “The Little White Cloud That Cried” briefly made him a sensation.
Raised on a farm near Dallas, Oregon, Ray later moved to Portland, where he sang on the “Stars of Tomorrow” radio show. Ray was hearing-impaired, and sometimes wore a hearing aid onstage. In addition to singing, Ray also wrote music, and after moving to Detroit, he per
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Johnnie Ray
American singer and pianist (1927–1990)
This article is about the singer. For the other people with similar names, see Johnny Ray.
Musical artist
John Alvin Ray (January 10, 1927 – February 24, 1990) was an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. Highly popular for most of the 1950s, Ray has been cited by critics as a major precursor to what became rock and roll, for his jazz and blues-influenced music, and his animated stage personality.[1]Tony Bennett called Ray the "father of rock and roll",[2] and historians have noted him as a pioneering figure in the development of the genre.
Born and raised in Dallas, Oregon, Ray, who was partially deaf, began singing professionally at age 15 on Portland radio stations. He gained a local following singing at small, predominantly African-American nightclubs in Detroit, where he was discovered in 1949 and subsequently signed to Okeh Records, a subsidiary of Columbia Records. He rose quickly from obscurity in the United States with the release of his debut album Johnnie Ray (1952), as well as with a
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Johnnie Ray was completely different from anything that went before him. . . . I consider Johnnie Ray to be the father of rock and roll.—Tony Bennett
In the early 1950s, Johnnie Ray was arguably the biggest musical star in the world. His emotional singing and sexually suggestive performances earned him the titles "The Prince of Wails," "The Cry Guy," and "The Million Dollar Teardrop," and put him at the top of the music charts. From Sydney to Chicago to London, teenage riots erupted wherever Ray went.
John Alvin Ray was born in Dallas, Oregon, on January 10, 1927, the second child of Elmer and Hazel Ray. From an early age, Ray astounded his family and friends with his musical talents and his penchant for the dramatic. At age twelve, Ray suffered a devastating accident on a Boy Scout trip, which left him partially deaf in his right ear and forced him to perform with a hearing aid throughout his career. The accident had a deep effect on Johnnie and was pivotal in his development as a person and an artist. Speaking about his emotional style of performing, Johnnie revealed: "The
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