"America, Communicate With Me" reached #45 in 1970 but its message still rings true today. This Georgia born singer and songwriter deserves to be remembered for being more than a funny guy.
Monday, March 30, 2020
"America, Communicate With Me" by Ray Stevens
Ray Stevens is often remembered as a comedic singer due to novelty hits like "Gitarzan" (#8 in 1969) and "The Streak" (3 weeks at #1 in 1974). But there was a more serious side, one that earned him another chart topper and a Grammy: "Everything Is Beautiful" spent 2 weeks at #1 in 1970. Dabbling in all sorts of genres through his chart career in the 60s and 70s, Stevens saw his last entry in 1979 when "I Need Your Help Barry Manilow" peaked at #49.
"America, Communicate With Me" reached #45 in 1970 but its message still rings true today. This Georgia born singer and songwriter deserves to be remembered for being more than a funny guy.
"America, Communicate With Me" reached #45 in 1970 but its message still rings true today. This Georgia born singer and songwriter deserves to be remembered for being more than a funny guy.
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As a gigantic fan of Ray Stevens I agree with the sentiments that comedy shouldn't define his entire body of work but Ray has long since come to the realization that the general public will recall/remember his comedy performances more than anything else. In his memoir from a couple of years ago he wrote that he's just thankful that people remember his music...whether it's something comical or something serious that he's recorded. This 1970 single hit the Adult-Contemporary chart and did well in that format. In 1970 it was called Easy-Listening. It reached the Top-20. He had several big radio hits in that Easy-Listening format but the Top-40 pop stations didn't touch those records. It's their loss. The 1979 single you mentioned, in addition to hitting #49 on the Hot 100, it hit #11 on the Adult-Contemporary chart. Afterward he charted exclusively Country. He was elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame last year. A couple of months ago he turned 81 and he's still actively recording. The COVID-19 virus that's going around caused him to temporarily close his CabaRay showroom in Nashville due to State and Federal health guidelines banning the gathering of large numbers of people and the closure of small businesses. Once life gets back to normal and businesses are allowed to open up the CabaRay will once again be back in business, too.
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