Ronnie Milsap

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Ronnie Milsap

Ronnie Lee Milsap (born January 16, 1944 in Robbinsville, North Carolina) is an American Country/Pop Singer and Musician.[1] He was one of Country Music's most popular singers in the 1970s and 1980s. He became Country Music's first blind superstar. He was one of the many crossover Country singers in Country Music at this time, which was also called Countrypolitan or Country Pop. His biggest crossover hits include "(There's) No Gettin' Over Me", "Smoky Mountain Rain", and "Lost In the Fifties Tonight". He is credited with forty number-one songs, third only to George Strait and Conway Twitty.

Biography

Early Life & Rise to Fame

Ronnie Milsap was one of Country Music's most influential artists in the 70s and 80s, becoming one of Country's biggest stars, appealing to both Country and Pop markets. Milsap was born with a congenital defect leaving him blind. [2] Milsap lived with his grandparents until the age of six, when he was placed in the State School for the Blind in Raleigh, North Carolina[3] When Milsap was seven, his instructors noticed his musical talents, and he soon began studying classical music formally. Soon, Milsap became interested in rock and roll music and soon formed a Rock band called "The Apparitions." Milsap was awarded a full college scholarship and attended college briefly in Atlanta, Georgia, until he decided to become a full-time musician. In the early 1960s, he got his first professional gig, as a member of J. J. Cale's band.

He released his first single, "Total Disaster", in 1963. This was followed by several Ashford & Simpson compositions, including the memorable "Let's Go Get Stoned", which, unfortunately for Milsap, was relegated to a B-side. A few months later, it would become a million-selling single for the more popular blind pianist, Ray Charles. Milsap moved to Memphis, Tennessee to become a session musician. He frequently worked in Memphis for Chips Moman, and can be heard playing the piano on the Elvis Presley hit "Kentucky Rain". He also sang harmony on another Presley hit, "Don't Cry Daddy." In 1970, Milsap enjoyed brief Pop Music success with "Loving You Is a Natural Thing." Following that success, he released his debut album.

1973 - 1979: "(All Together Now) Let's Fall Apart"

In 1973, Milsap moved to Nashville to pursue his dream of Country Music stardom. In 1973, he worked with Charley Pride's producer, Jack D. Johnson and was signed onto RCA Records that year. He released his first single from RCA that year called "I Hate You", which became his first Country hit and also just breaking the Country Top 10. The next year, 1974 he had two #1 hits. His first was "Pure Love" and then "Please Don't Tell Me How the Story Ends", along with another Top 20 hit that year. In 1975, he revived the Don Gibson hit "(I'd Be) A Legend In My Time". That year, he scored another #1 hit with "Daydreams About Night Things". Milsap had a handul of Top tens, along with a string of #1 hits that made Milsap a star overnight. The remarkable thing was that he didn't leave the Country Top Ten for 15 years straight. In 1977, he crossed over to the Pop Music charts with his #1 Country hit "It Was Almost Like a Song". The song became a Top 20 hit on the Pop charts and was also a Top Ten Adult Contemporary hit. However, it was his only crossover hit in the 1970s. He kept gaining hits on the Country Music charts, however, with hits like "Let My Love Be Your Pillow", "Let's Take the Long Way Around the World" and "Nobody Likes Sad Songs".

By late 1979, his material shifted from straight-up Country to Countrypolitan or Country Pop, which gave Milsap the ability to crossover to the Pop Music charts, which he did successfully in the 1980s.

1980-1992: Moving Towards Country-Pop

In 1980, things changed a lot more for Milsap. He had a string of #1 hits that year with the double-sided songs "Cowboys and Clowns"/"Misery Loves Company," and "My Heart"/"Silent Night (After the Fight)." However, he managed no entries into the Pop charts that year. The next year, 1981 yielded Pop Music crossover success for Milsap. That year, two songs were crossover hits, "There's No Gettin' Over Me" and "Smoky Mountain Rain". "There's No Gettin' Over Me" became Milsap's biggest hit on the Pop charts, making it to the Top 5, as well as being an Adult Contemporary hit for him. The other crossover hit, "Smoky Mountain Rain", didn't break the Pop Top 20, but did top the Adult Contemporary charts, as well as topping the Country Music charts too. The song also has become one of his signature songs.

In 1982, he had other crossover hits, with the songs "He Got You", "Any Day Now", and "I Wouldn't Have Missed It For the World". These songs were big Pop hits, making Milsap one of Country Music's most successful crossover singers. He was not the only crossover superstar in Country Music at the time. It seemed that all of Nashville in the early 1980s, was switching their artists over into Pop material. Although not all of Nashville's artists were crossing over into the Pop charts, a lot of them did, like Crystal Gayle, Lee Greenwood, Juice Newton, Eddie Rabbitt, Kenny Rogers, and Sylvia.

Between 1985 and 1987, Milsap enjoyed a string of uninterrupted #1 hits, enjoying his biggest success at this time. The big #1 hits were "She Keeps The Home Fires Burning", "In Love", "Snap Your Fingers", and "Where Do the Nights Go". As other Country Popsingers were beginning to fade away from the Country Music charts, Milsap was one of the few Country singers to continue to achieve success, well after Country Pop was big.

In 1989, Milsap had his last #1 hit with "A Woman In Love". Although he had his last #1 hit, he still remained successful on the charts. Other Top Tens between 1989 and 1990 include "Turn The Radio On" and "Houston Solution". In 1992, he had his last major hit, "All Is Fair In Love and War". The song just missed making the Top Ten, peaking at #11. By 1992, Milsap's chart success faded away, but he didn't stop touring the country. He has remained as one of Country Music's most popular concert attractions.

1993-Present: Life Today

Ronnie Milsap has remained one of Country Music's greatest influences. In 1993, he released another single called "True Believer". In 2000, Milsap released another single called "Time, Love, and Money". It was evident that by this time Milsap's chart success days were over, but in 2006, he released another single called "Local Girls", which went to #54.

His biography has been featured on A&E Networks's Biography television series. He has been featured on CMT's numerous shows, including 40 Greatest Men of Country Music. Milsap has forty #1 hits, which few Country singers have achieved.


Discography

Singles

Year Single U.S. Country U.S. Hot 100 U.S. AC Album
1973 "(All Together Now) Let's Fall Apart" flip - - Where My Heart Is
1973 "I Hate You" 10 - - Where My Heart Is
1973 "That Girl Who Waits on Tables" 11 - - Where My Heart Is
1974 "Pure Love" 1 - - Pure Love
1974 "Please Don't Tell Me How the Story Ends" 1 95 - Pure Love
1974 "(I'd Be) a Legend In My Time" 1 - - A Legend In My Time
1975 "Too Late to Worry, Too Blue to Cry" 6 - - A Legend In My Time
1975 "Daydreams About Night Things" 1 - - Night Things
1975 "Just In Case" 4 - - Night Things
1976 "What Goes On When the Sun Goes Down" 1 - - 20/20 Vision
1976 "(I'm a) Stand By My Woman Man" 1 - - 20/20 Vision
1976 "Let My Love Be Your Pillow" 1 - - Ronnie Milsap Live
1977 "It Was Almost Like a Song" 1 16 7 It Was Almost Like a Song
1977 "What a Difference You've Made In My Life" 1 80 - It Was Almost Like a Song
1978 "Only One Love In My Life" 1 63 - Only One Love In My Life
1978 "Let's Take the Long Way Around the World" 1 - - Only One Love In My Life
1979 "Back On My Mind Again" 2 - - Only One Love In My Life
1979 "Santa Barbara" flip - - Only One Love In My Life
1979 "Nobody Likes Sad Songs" 1 - - Images
1979 "In No Time At All" 6 - - Images
1979 "Get It Up" flip 43 - Images
1980 "Why Don't You Spend the Night" 1 – - Milsap Magic
1980 "My Heart" 1 - - Milsap Magic
1980 "Silent Night (After the Fight)" flip - - Milsap Magic
1980 "Misery Loves Company" flip - - Milsap Magic
1980 "Cowboys and Clowns" 1 - - Bronco Billy (O.S.T)
1980 "Smoky Mountain Rain" 1 24 1 Greatest Hits
1981 "Am I Losing You" 1 - - Out Where the Bright Lights Are Glowing
1981 "(There's) No Gettin' Over Me" 1 5 2 There's No Gettin' Over Me
1981 "I Wouldn't Have Missed It For the World" 1 20 3 There's No Gettin' Over Me
1982 "Any Day Now" 1 14 1 Inside
1982 "He Got You" 1 59 15 Inside
1982 "Inside" 1 - 27 Inside
1982 "Carolina Dreams" flip - - Inside
1983 "Stranger In My House" 5 23 8 Keyed Up
1983 "Don't You Know How Much I Love You" 1 58 12 Keyed Up
1983 "Show Her" 1 - 17 Keyed Up
1984 "Still Losing You" 1 - 29 One More Try For Love
1984 "Prisoner of the Highway" 6 - - One More Try For Love
1984 "She Loves My Car" - 84 - One More Try For Love
1985 "She Keeps the Home Fires Burning" 1 - - Greatest Hits, Volume 2
1985 "Lost In the Fifties Tonight (In the Still of the Night)" 1 - 8 Greatest Hits, Volume 2
1986 "Happy, Happy Birthday Baby" 1 - - Lost In the Fifties Tonight
1986 "In Love" 1 - - Lost In the Fifties Tonight
1986 "How Do I Turn You On" 1 - - Lost In the Fifties Tonight
1987 "Snap Your Fingers" 1 - - Heart & Soul
1987 "Make No Mistake, She's Mine"
(w/ Kenny Rogers)		 1 - - Heart & Soul
1987 "Where Do the Nights Go" 1 - - Heart & Soul
1988 "Old Folks"
(w/ Mike Reid)		 2 - - Heart & Soul
1988 "Button Off My Shirt" 4 - - Heart & Soul
1989 "Don't You Ever Get Tired (Of Hurting Me)" 1 - - Stranger Things Have Happened
1989 "Houston Solution" 6 - - Stranger Things Have Happened
1989 "A Woman In Love" 1 - - Stranger Things Have Happened
1990 "Stranger Things Have Happened" 2 - - Stranger Things Have Happened
1991 "Are You Lovin' Me Like I'm Lovin' You" 3 - - Back To The Grindstone
1991 "Since I Don't Have You" 6 - - Back To The Grindstone
1991 "Turn That Radio On" 4 - - Back To The Grindstone
1992 "All Is Fair In Love and War" 11 - - Back To The Grindstone
1992 "L.A. to the Moon" 45 - - Greatest Hits, Vol. 3
1993 "True Believer" 30 - - True Believer
2000 "Time, Love and Money" 57 - - 40 #1 Hits
2006 "Local Girls" 54 - - My Life
2006 "You Don't Know My Love" - - - My Life

Albums

Compilations

  • Greatest Hits (1980) (Certified 2x Multi-Platinum by the RIAA
  • Greatest Hits, Vol. 2 (1985) (Certified Platinum by the RIAA)
  • Greatest Hits, Vol. 3 (1991)
  • The Essential Ronnie Milsap (1995)
  • 40 #1 Hits (2003) (Certified Gold by the RIAA)

Notes

  1. ^ In his autobiography, Ronnie claims that his original surname was Millsaps, and that it was a record company that mis-spelled his name on a contract, so it is commonly spelled now with only one "l" and no "s". Milsap, Ronnie; Carter, Tom (1990), Almost like a song, New York, N.Y.: McGraw-Hill, ISBN 0-070-42374-1 The same thing happened to Buddy Holly.
  2. ^ Although most reports state that Milsap was born blind due to congenital glaucoma, some state he was born blind due to congenital cataracts.
  3. ^ In his autobiography, Ronnie claimed that his remaining sight was lost when an instructor at the school injured his "good" eye. See Milsap, Ronnie; Carter, Tom (1990), Almost like a song, New York, N.Y.: McGraw-Hill, ISBN 0-070-42374-1

See also

References

  • "Just The Facts." The Official Ronnie Milsap Website. Retrieved Aug. 18, 2004.
  • Goldsmith, Thomas. (1998.) "Ronnie Milsap." In The Encyclopedia of Country Music. Paul Kingsbury, Ed. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 348-9.
  • Milsap, Ronnie (with Tom Carter). (1990) "Almost like a song." New York, NY. : McGraw-Hill.
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