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Charley Pride was country music's Civil Rights pioneer, period. Folk Music has the great Odetta and the pantheon of black Blues legends. Rock has Jimi Hendrix. Pop-crossover has Ray Charles, the Supremes, and several groups who dressed alike and did dance steps as they sang. But mainstream Country in the 1960s and 1970s was a lot of talented white men and a few even more talented white women -- except for Charley Pride.
The fans of an entire genre were won-over by the voice and gentle presence of this one man. And now the world has lost him to COVID-19.
Somewhere out there, whether by radio waves that travel into infinite space, or by some other means, perhaps those who dwell beyond this Earth will "Kiss an Angel Good Morning."
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Nashville, Tenn. - Charley Pride, whose rich baritone voice and impeccable song-sense altered American culture, passed away Saturday, December 12, 2020, in Dallas, Texas of complications from COVID-19 at age 86.
Charley Pride's family and close friends will hold a private wake and memorial in Dallas this week, with future plans for a public celebration of life memorial ceremony to be announced at a later date. In lieu of flowers, the family asks for donations to The Pride Scholarship at Jesuit College Preparatory School, St. Phillips School and Community center, any local food bank, or the charity of your choice.
CMT Remembers Charley Pride
As part of a special tribute announced today by CMT, ' CMT Remembers Charley Pride' is a celebration honoring the extraordinary life and legacy of one of the most influential, decorated, and impactful country artists in the history of the genre. Featuring three decades of interviews and commentary from Pride himself, blended alongside archival footage of his greatest hits and most memorable performances, the half-hour event follows the Country Music Hall of Famer from his humble beginnings in Mississippi to his rise to CMA Entertainer of the Year with an unprecedented string of hits. Despite facing pervasive racism throughout this legendary career, Pride’s perseverance and unmatched talent transcended generations, broke down barriers, and blazed a new path for black country artists.
The special will include appearances and footage from some of Pride’s closest friends, colleagues, and admirers, including Darius Rucker, Loretta Lynn, Merle Haggard, Tim McGraw, Shania Twain, and more, alongside his beloved family, his wife Rozene, son Dion, sister Maxine and his brother Joe.
This will air Wednesday, December 16th at 5 pm Pacific/ 8 PM ET / 7 PM CT on CMT.
☆ The special will receive two encore presentations: Thursday, December 17th (9 AM ET / 8 AM CT) and Saturday, December 19th (12 PM ET/11 AM CT).
For more information, visit CMT.com, follow @CMT on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.
About Charley Pride:
Charley Pride celebrated more than 50 years as a recording artist. He enjoyed one of the most successful careers in the history of country music and is credited with helping to break color barriers by becoming the first black superstar within the genre. A true living legend, he sold tens of millions of records worldwide with his large repertoire of hits. A three-time GRAMMY® award and Recording Academy “Lifetime Achievement Award” winner, Pride garnered no less than 36 chart-topping country hits, including “Kiss An Angel Good Morning,” a massive #1 crossover hit that sold over a million singles and helped Pride land the Country Music Association’s “Entertainer of the Year” award in 1971 and the “Top Male Vocalist” awards of 1971 and 1972. A proud member of the Grand Ole Opry, Pride performed concerts worldwide and has toured the United States, Canada, Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand over the last several years. He received the Crossroads Of American Music Award At the 2019 GRAMMY Museum® Mississippi Gala in November of 2019, and the Country Music Association’s Willie Nelson Lifetime Achievement Award one year later in November 2020. On December 12, 2020, Pride died at the age of 86 from complications due to COVID-19. His memory and storied legacy will live on through his vast library of stories and songs, with forthcoming plans for a final album release, public celebration of life ceremony, tribute concert, and biopic film.
About CMT:
CMT is a leading authority on country music and lifestyle, offering a mix of original series, music events, and specials. CMT is everywhere its fans are including two cable channels (CMT and the 24-hour music channel, CMT Music), radio (CMT Radio), digital (CMT.com), and social (@CMT on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube). CMT is a unit of ViacomCBS Inc. (Nasdaq: VIACA, VIAC) (“ViacomCBS”). For more information, please visit cmtpress.com.
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NEXT TIME (in our next scheduled edition)...
Artists play benefits and record singles for the holidays, contributing their music for charitable causes ranging from the United Nations to local food banks.
Join us next time to celebrate them, learn how you can help, and find some great new music for your sequestered celebration!
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Stay healthy, stay safe.
Honor the health care people who are, in the words of one COVID unit ER doctor, "Not the front line first responders, but the last line of defense, if it comes to keeping you alive."
How to honor them?
Don't be a maskhole who joins the Branch Covidians.
This will all be over and we can brag about how well we came through -- if we don't get reckless in these final days of great risk.
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On mobile devices, click "view web edition" to bring-up the left side bar with navigation tools and direct click access to all recent editions, month-by-month archives to everything this year, and each previous year since we moved to Blogspot.
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in this new world of the improbable unknown...
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