From:   "Dik de Heer" 
Date:  Wed Jan 23, 2002  7:37 pm
Subject:  Born To Be With You : Ray Stevens

RAY STEVENS

Born Harold Ray Ragsdale, 24 January 1939, Clarkdale, Georgia

Singer / songwriter / multi-instrumentalist / producer / arranger.
Ray's association with professional music started early. At fifteen he
had his own group and was employed as a disc jockey by Radio
WGPC in Albany, Georgia. After graduating from high school, he
studied musical theory and composition at Georgia State University.
He first recorded for the Prep label in 1957, later for NRC and other
labels, mainly rock 'n' roll. But he had no chart success until he
started recording novelty songs for Mercury in 1961. "Ahab The Arab"
was a # 5 hit in 1962, followed by more minor hits in the same vein,
with accompaniment from Nashville's finest session men.
His B-sides showed him to be a fine straight vocalist as well.
In 1966 he switched to Monument, where he also did production
work with Dolly Parton and Waylon Jennings. The controversial 1968
hit "Mr. Business Man" showed his more serious side. More hits
followed on Andy Williams's Barnaby label, both serious ("Everything
Is Beautiful", 1970) and humourous ("The Streak", 1974); these two
went all the way to the top of the charts. His country adaptation of
Erroll Garner's "Misty" (1975) won him a Grammy. Altogether, Ray
had 27 entries in the Billboard Hot 100 between 1961 and 1979.
Later recordings were for Warner Bros, RCA and MCA, still a mix
of straight vocals and novelties ("Shriner's Convention", 1980,
"Mississippi Squirrel Revival", 1984). He formed his own label, Clyde
Records (named after the camel from "Ahab the Arab"), in 1988 and
signed his own daughter, Suzy Ragsdale, a succesful songwriter.

Website: http://www.raystevens.com
CD recommendations: "Ray Stevens All-Time Greatest Hits" (2 CD)
on Varese Sarabande (2001) or "The Best of Ray Stevens" (Rhino, 1997).