Died: December 12, 2020. CHARLEY Pride, who has died aged 86 from complications of Covid-19, was a country singer who broke the mould several times over. His honey-sweet, easy-going voice on deep-fried classics such as Kiss an Angel Good Mornin’ and Crystal Chandelier saw him sell millions of records and become successful all over the world. He released more than 50 albums, and scored 29 No.1’s in the Country music chart. During his 3- years with the RCA label, only Elvis Presley sold more records than he did. As a black artist operating within what has historically been a predominantly white genre, his talents came to the fore during an era of institutionalised racism, and his early records were issued without a picture of him. He was only the second artist of colour to become a member of the home of country royalty, the Grand Ole Opry.
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Photo: Jason Kempin | Getty Images for the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum
Charley Frank Pride was a rare commodity. Not only was he an icon with universal appeal, but his six-decade career also embodied a strong message that many to this day still don t understand. He was living proof that being true to yourself and what you love is the highest form of cultural authenticity, and that country music as much as music of any other tradition belongs to everyone. Pride, who died Dec. 12 at 86 of complications from COVID-19, was the first Black superstar in country music s modern era, although he knew better than most that he wasn t the idiom s first African American performer.
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Photo: Jason Kempin | Getty Images for the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum
Charley Frank Pride was a rare commodity. Not only was he an icon with universal appeal, but his six-decade career also embodied a strong message that many to this day still don t understand. He was living proof that being true to yourself and what you love is the highest form of cultural authenticity, and that country music as much as music of any other tradition belongs to everyone. Pride, who died Dec. 12 at 86 of complications from COVID-19, was the first Black superstar in country music s modern era, although he knew better than most that he wasn t the idiom s first African American performer.
By Peter Cooper and Barb Hall
Often referred to as the “Jackie Robinson of Country music,” merging the line between country music and baseball was a seamless transition for Charley Pride.
Raised as less than a citizen in segregated Mississippi, Pride’s buttery voice and steely resolve earned him a place as one of American music’s most impactful artists. He landed in Nashville in 1963, the same year the Tennessee capital was the site of sit-ins and racial violence. Two years later, he was a major label recording artist in the otherwise lily-white country music field, and in short time he became a superstar whose path would lead him to a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award and a place in the Country Music Hall of Fame.
Country Legend Charley Pride Dies From Covid At 86
American country music legend Charley Pride has become a victim of the Covid-19 pandemic. Pride is dead at age 86.
RCA Records recording artist Pride was at one time the second biggest selling RCA artist after Elvis Presley. He is also one of only three African-American artists to become a member of the Grand Ole Opry.
In the 1950s Pride excelled in sport and was a baseball player for the Memphis Red Sox.
In 1958 Charley visited Sun Records in Memphis and diverted his vocation to music. In 1971 he had his biggest hit ‘Kiss An Angel Good Mornin’.