One of the great voices in country music history, Charley Pride sang like Shaker furniture, with clean and simple lines, sturdy joints and unadorned expression of the intended design. He was among the least showy in Nashvilleâs artistic pantheon; he wasnât a yodeler, nor much of a note-bender, neither a keener nor a growler. Composer Harlan Howard once said that all of country songwriting boils down to âthree chords and the truth.â Pride was easy on the chords and generous with the truth.
Complications of COVID-19 ended Prideâs life at the age of 86. Obituaries and appreciations invariably describe him as country musicâs first Black star â or some version thereof. âThe Jackie Robinson of country musicâ is especially apt, because before he was a famous singer, Pride was a professional baseball player. An injury to his pitching arm prevented him from making the step from the last days of the Negro Leagues to the newly integrated Majors. Bas