Floyd Collin Wray
(born August 22, 1960 in De Queen, Arkansas, USA
Throughout the 1990s, Collin continued to produce Top Ten singles on the country music charts. By the end of the decade, however, his momentum had slowed; 2001's Can't Back Down
was his first album that did not produce a Top 40 country hit, and he was dropped by his record label soon afterward.
Between 1991 and 2007, Raye charted thirty singles on the U.S. country charts; he has also charted twice on the Adult Contemporary format as a duet partner on two Jim Brickman songs. Four of Raye's singles have reached Number One on the Billboard
country music charts: 1992's "Love, Me" and "In This Life", 1994's "My Kind of Girl", and 1998's "I Can Still Feel You". He has also recorded a total of eleven studio albums, counting a Christmas album and a compilation of lullabies, in addition to releasing a Greatest Hits compilation, a live album, and a live CD/DVD package. His most recent album, Never Going Back
, was released via Saguaro Road Records on April 28, 2009.
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Early years
Floyd Collin Wray was born in
De Queen, Arkansas on
August 22,
1960. His mother, Lois Wray, was a local musician; in the 1950s, she served as an opening act for several
Sun Records artists, including
Jerry Lee Lewis,
Elvis Presley,
Johnny Cash and
Carl Perkins.
[1] [2] Later, she became a solo musician in her own right; she would occasionally bring both Floyd and his brother Scott onstage to sing harmony vocals.
By the 1980s, the two brothers began a country-rock band called the Wray Brothers Band, in which Collin assumed the stage name Bubba Wray.
The Wray Brothers Band performed primarily in the state of Texas, and later in
Reno, Nevada, eventually releasing singles on independent labels. By 1986, the band (which had shortened its name to The Wrays) signed to
Mercury Records, with two singles being released on that label.
After the singles failed to chart, the Wrays disbanded.
Solo career
Beginnings
By the end of the 1980s, Collin had considered leaving his music career and finding work at a factory to support his family; however, he changed his mind and continued pursuing a musical career. After altering the spelling of his last name to Raye, Collin was signed to a record deal with
Epic Records in 1990.
His debut single, "All I Can Be (Is a Sweet Memory)", entered the charts in 1991, reaching a peak of #29 on the
Billboard
Hot Country Singles & Tracks charts. Raye's first album, also titled
All I Can Be
, was released soon afterward.
The followup single, a ballad co-written by
Skip Ewing and titled "
Love, Me", quickly climbed to Number One on the country music charts in early 1992, holding the peak position for three weeks; in addition, the single received a Song of the Year nomination from the
Country Music Association.
Spurred by the success of "Love, Me",
All I Can Be
was certified platinum by the RIAA for U.S. sales of one million copies.
In This Life
and Extremes
Raye's second album, titled
In This Life
, was released in 1992. The album's title track, which served as its lead-off single, not only went to the top of the
Billboard
country charts, but also became a hit on the
Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks charts. In late 1992, Raye made an appearance on the television drama series "
Street Justice", where he gave a live performance of "In This Life". The album produced three additional Top Ten country hits, and was also certified platinum.
1993 saw the release of Raye's third album. Titled
Extremes
, it received critical acclaim for its more socially aware content, most evidently in the second single, "Little Rock", a story of a recovering alcoholic.
[3] The song's accompanying music video also promoted
Al-Anon, an international support group for friends and family of alcoholics.
Overall,
Extremes
produced five straight Top Ten hits on the country charts, including the Number One single "My Kind of Girl" in 1994; it also became Raye's third consecutive platinum album.
I Think About You
and The Best of Collin Raye: Direct Hits
I Think About You
was the title of Raye's fourth album. Released in 1995, it produced six singles overall and became Raye's fourth consecutive platinum-certified album.
The album's title track was a Top Five hit on the country charts; in addition, its music video won a Video of the Year award from the
Academy of Country Music.
[4]
In 1996, Raye also released a Christmas album titled
Christmas: The Gift
. He also appeared on
Stars and Stripes Vol. 1, a
Beach Boys album featuring lead vocals by country musicians. A year later, his first Greatest Hits package was issued; titled
The Best of Collin Raye: Direct Hits
, it comprised several of his hit singles from the past five years, as well as four new songs, of which three released as singles. "What the Heart Wants" and "Little Red Rodeo" both reached Top Five on the country music charts, while "The Gift", a collaboration with
Jim Brickman and
Susan Ashton, was a Top Five hit on the Adult Contemporary charts.
Direct Hits
received a gold certification from the RIAA for selling 500,000 copies in the United States.
The Walls Came Down
The Walls Came Down
was the title of Raye's fifth studio album. Released in 1998, it produced his fourth and final
Billboard
Number One single in "I Can Still Feel You".
"Someone You Used to Know" and the
Radney Foster-penned "Anyone Else" were both Top Five hits as well; however, "Start Over Georgia", the fourth single (co-written by Raye's brother), peaked at #39. Also included on
The Walls Came Down
was a ballad entitled "The Eleventh Commandment", in which Raye addressed the issue of
child abuse. Although not released as a single, "The Eleventh Commandment" was made into a music video, which featured a number for a child abuse hotline at the end.
[5]
The same year Collin appeared on compilation CD
Tribute To Tradition
(released on Columbia label) with cover versions of
Cold Cold Heart
(country classic recorded by
Hank Williams in 1957) and
Honky Tonk Heroes (Like Me)
(a major hit for
Waylon Jennings in 1973, written by
Billy Joe Shaver). Collin duets with
Joe Diffie on the latter song.
Counting Sheep
, a special album composed of lullabies for Raye's children, was released in 2000.
During this time Collin made a cameo appearance on
Walker Texas Ranger.
2000s
2001 saw the release of
Tracks
, Raye's sixth album. Its first release, the primarily spoken-word "Couldn't Last a Moment", was a Top Five hit on the country charts. "Tired of Loving This Way", which followed, was a duet with singer and actress
Bobbie Eakes. Although it was Raye's first single to miss the Top 40 entirely, it provided Eakes with her first and only appearance on the country music charts.
[6]
Can't Back Down
, Raye's last album for Epic, was released in 2001. Neither of the album's two singles entered Top 40 on the country music charts. Because of a conflict with his label, Raye asked out of his contract that year.
Although he did not have a record label at the time, he entered the Adult Contemporary charts for the third time in 2003, as a duet partner on Jim Brickman's single "Peace (Where the Heart Is)". 2004 saw the release of Raye's first live album,
Live at Billy Bob's Texas
, and a promotional single titled "World History 101" was released in 2005.
[8]
2005-present
In 2005, Raye signed to the independent Aspirion label, releasing his
Twenty Years and Change
album. Two singles were released from the album, although neither single charted. The same year, Raye appeared in television commercials for
Fruit of the Loom underwear, in which he sang the jingle "You Can't Over-Love Your Underwear".
[9] Another studio album,
Fearless
, was released in 2006 on Country Roads Records, although it did not produce any singles.
In 2007, a CD/DVD combination titled
The Power in You
was released, followed by an EP titled
Selected Hits
. The latter includes "That's My Story", "Little Rock", "I Think About You" and "Love, Me", as well as two new tracks: "A Soldier's Prayer" and "Quitters", the latter of which was co-written by Canadian country singer
George Canyon. Both of the new tracks were released as singles in 2007, and the former peaked at #59 on Hot Country Songs.
Raye's next album,
Never Going Back
, was released on April 28, 2009 on the Saguaro Road label. Its first single is "Mid-Life Chrysler".
Musical stylings
Collin's voice is described as a "warm, smooth tenor".
He is known primarily for his
country pop ballads, such as "Love, Me" (a popular choice at funerals)
and "In This Life" (one of the most popular wedding songs of the 1990s).
However, he has also shown a diverse musical style in his work, such as the spoken-word verses of "Couldn't Last a Moment",
or the more rock-tinged, up-tempo "That's My Story" and "I Want You Bad (And That Ain't Good)".
Raye is also known for dealing with social issues in his material. "Little Rock", for example, tells of a recovering alcoholic; its music video included the number for
Al-Anon, as a means of public service announcement. "What If Jesus Comes Back Like That", from his
I Think About You
album, is a
power ballad that poses questions about the return of
Jesus Christ in the modern world.
In "The Eleventh Commandment", a track from
The Walls Came Down
, Raye addresses child abuse, suggesting "honor thy children" as an eleventh commandment to accompany the
Ten Commandments.
[10] In the song's music video, a telephone number for the child abuse hotline ChildHelp USA was included.
Discography
Notes
References
- Collin Raye Biography
- Collin Raye: Biography
- Collin Raye Biography
- Collin Raye Homecoming Concert Slated for June 20 in DeQueen
- Raye Makes A Difference
- Collin Raye Makes "Tracks" to Turn Over a New Leaf
- Raye, Epic Parting Ways
- Collin Raye delights Orem audience
- 20 Questions with Collin Raye
- Thou Shalt Listen To Collin