Country Legend Charley Pride Dies of COVID-19 Complications at 86

Charley Pride was the first Black member of the Country Music Hall of Fame and the first Black person to host the Country Music Association Awards

By Ally Mauch December 12, 2020 04:20 PM

Country legend Charley Pride — a pioneer for Black musicians in country music — died on Saturday in Dallas, Texas, at the age of 86 due to complications from COVID-19, a statement on his website confirmed.

With top hits including “Kiss an Angel Good Morning” and “Is Anybody Goin' to San Antone,” Pride became the first Black member of the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2000.

Country Music Musician. He established himself as one of the earliest African-American country music stars to enjoy commercial success. Born Charley Frank Price (some sources state year of birth as 1938), he was brought up with an appreciation for music which included the Gospel, Blues and Country genres and purchased his first guitar during his middle teenage years. Pride also had a love for baseball and for a significant period pitched with the Memphis Red Sox and Birmingham Black Barons of the Negro Leagues and played at an all star level. For a period, he played in the New York Yankees' organization and later had tryouts with the Los Angeles Angels and New York Mets following service with the United States Army. Simultaneously, he pursued a career in music before ending his dream of becoming a Major League Baseball player during the early 1960s. After cutting a few singles, he landed a contract with the RCA label and recorded his debut album "Country" in 1966. At the height of his popularity, he performed on numerous TV programs including "Hee Haw", "The Johnny Cash Show", "The Mike Douglas Show" and "Sha Na Na" and was a performer at The Grand Ole Opry. He scored a number one hit on the Billboard Hot Country Charts with the single "Is Anyone Going to San Antone?" (1970) and bridged to Popular Music when his hit "Kiss An Angel Good Mornin'" earned him a Top 30 placing on the American Pop Charts and gold record status in late 1971. During the course of his career, he received three Grammy Awards and achieved a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for his work as a recording artist. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2000.

• Reference: Find A Grave Memorial - SmartCopy: Dec 13 2020, 16:53:10 UTC
• Reference: Find A Grave Memorial - SmartCopy: Dec 13 2020, 16:58:12 UTC

Charley Pride, who sold millions of records and was a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame, among many other honors, has died at age 86. A statement posted on the singer's website said Pride passed away in Dallas, Tex. on Saturday from complications due to COVID-19.

A sharecropper's son from Mississippi, Rising to prominence in the 1960s and '70s, Pride recorded dozens of songs that topped the country music charts, including "Kiss an Angel Good Mornin'" and "Is Anybody Goin' to San Antone."

Pride had at least 30 number one hits on the country music charts, and won nearly every major award in available to a country musician. In all, Pride won three Grammys, including "Best Male Country Vocal Performance" in 1972 as well as several awards from the Country Music Association, who named him their Entertainer of the Year in 1971. His final performance was on November 11 at the CMA Awards, where he performed "Kiss and Angel Good Morning'" with Jimmie Allen.

• Reference: Find A Grave Memorial - SmartCopy: Dec 13 2020, 17:01:28 UTC

Complications of COVID-19 is the cause of death for ironic music legend Charley Frank Pride who died Saturday, December 12, 2020 in Dallas, Texas. A mix-up in Charley's birth certificate caused him to be named Charley instead of Charl. He was the fourth of eleven children born to Mack and Tessie B. Stewart Pride on March 18, 1934 in Sledge, Mississippi.

His parents were share croppers and Charley earned the money to purchase his first guitar from picking cotton at the age of 14.

In 1953, he debut for the Memphis Red Sox in the Negra League. His last appearance for this team was in 1958. He also played for the Birmingham Black Barrons in 1954.

He played in the Minor Leagues for several teams between 1953 to 1960. He was a 2x Negro league All Star (1956-1957) and a member of the All Army Championship (1957). Charley was a part-owner of the Texas Rangers. In 1960, he retired from baseball and went on to become one of the most successful black country musicians of all time.

He met his wife to be while he was playing baseball in Memphis, Tennessee. While on leave from Army basic training, he married Rozene Cohran December 28, 1956. To this union, three children were born, two boys and one girl.

He was signed by RCA Records and became their best selling performer since Elvis Presley. He had 52 top 10 hits on the Hot County Songs Billboard. Of those 52 hits, 30 made it to number one. In 1971, Charley was the entertainer of the year at the Country Music Association Awards. He was only one of three African-American singers to become a member of the Grand Ole Opry. In 2000, he was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.

According to a release from Pride’s publicists, his final performance was on November 11th at the Country Music Association Awards where he sang "Kiss An Angel Good Mornin'". He was given the Lifetime Achievement Award.

• Reference: Find A Grave Memorial - SmartCopy: Dec 13 2020, 17:02:51 UTC

Additional sources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charley_Pride

Awards:

Academy of Country Music Awards 1994 Pioneer Award

• American Music Awards
• 1973 Favorite Country Album
• 1973 Favorite Country Male Artist
• 1976 Favorite Country Male Artist

Ameripolitan Music Awards

• 2016 Master Award Country

Music Hall of Fame and Museum

• Inducted in 2000 Country Music Association
• 1971 Entertainer of the Year
• 1971 Male Vocalist of the Year
• 1972 Male Vocalist of the Year
• 2020 Lifetime Achievement Award

Grammy Awards

• 1971 Best Sacred Performance (Musical) – "Did You Think to Pray"
• 1971 Best Gospel Performance (other than soul gospel) – "Let Me Live"
• 1972 Best Country Vocal Performance, Male – Charley Pride Sings Heart Songs
• 2017 Lifetime Achievement Award

Scandinavian-American Hall of Fame

• 1996 Merit of Distinction Award in the Performing Arts