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Tier 3 · vertical & regional
Ray Smith
Person · male · United States · Melber · born 1934 · died 1979 · recording since 1958
American musician, singer and composer (1934–1979)
official homepagestreamingdatabasedatabasedatabase
Also known as Raymond Eugene Smith · 레이 스미스
Timeline
7 events▣ Album 4◦ Birth 1★ Debut release 1† Death 1
1930s
1950s
· Debut release
Debut release: So Young / Right Behind You Baby
First documented Single in the MusicBrainz discography.
source: musicbrainz
1960s
1970s
2000s
Biography
English biography173 words · 3 sectionssource: wikipedia-en · licence CC BY-SA 4.0 · revision 1366863500
Biography
Ray Smith (October 30, 1934 – November 29, 1979) was an American rockabilly musician.
Career
Smith recorded for Vee-Jay Records, Tollie Records, Smash Records, Sun Records and Boot Records during his career, and had a hit with the song "Rockin' Little Angel" in 1960 on Judd Records. "Rockin' Little Angel" took a portion of its melody from the 1844 song "Buffalo Gals". The record sold over one million copies, earning a gold disc. It reached #22 on the Billboard Hot 100. Smith often recorded material written by Charlie Rich, and was influenced by Elvis Presley. Smith gave a concert at "Karregat" Hall in Eindhoven on April 21, 1979. It is recorded on an album called The Rocking Side and released by a Dutch label (Rockhouse, LP 7909).
Death
Smith committed suicide at his home in Burlington, Ontario Canada on November 29, 1979, at the age of 45, leaving behind his wife Lillian, and children Sheila, Johnny and Ray Jr.
Smith's Judd and Sun singles and session material have been released on Germany's Bear Family Records.
Discography & profile
Normalised profile
Percentiles are computed over every artist in the database, so a tier-3 artist can still sit in the 95th percentile on a single axis.
| Metric | Value | Percentile |
|---|---|---|
| Wikipedia language versions | 8 | 49.7th |
| Spotify monthly listeners | — | no data |
| Release groups in DB | 14 | 84.5th |
| Studio albums | 4 | 82.8th |
| Awards recorded | 0 | 0th |
| Timeline events | 7 | 82.6th |
| Recording span (years) | 21 | 47.7th |
| Genres | 2 | 74th |
Percentiles are computed at render time; missing values mean the artist has no data on that axis.
Discography (14 release groups · 4 studio albums)
Albums · 4
1960 · studio album
Search SpotifySearch YouTube Music
Tracklist · 12 tracks · 26:54
A1Rockin' Little Angel2:13A2Rebound1:39A3Baby Just Because2:26A4Makes Me Feel Good2:20A5Speak Low2:11A6Put Your Arms Around Me Honey2:13B1One Wonderful Love2:13B2Blond Hair, Blue Eyes2:06B3I'll Be Coming Home2:39B4Maria Elena2:47B5Little Miss Blue2:11B6That's All Right1:561978 · studio album
Search SpotifySearch YouTube Music
Tracklist · 8 tracks · 42:52
A1Let the Four Winds Blow2:01A2Jambalaya3:26A3Wahbash Cannon Ball2:14A4Wipe Out3:13A5I'm Gonna Rock Some More3:00A6Hang Up My Rock and Roll Shoes1:59A7Just a Closer Walk With Thee2:40B1The "King's" (medley)24:191978 · studio album
Search SpotifySearch YouTube Music
Tracklist · 11 tracks · 27:17
A1It Wasn't Easy2:07A2Thank Your Love3:22A3Lucille3:33A4Without YouA5Oh Danny BoyB1Light That Candle2:47B2How's His Memory Doing2:59B3Walking Into Your Life2:50B4One Hand On The Bottle & One Feet In The Grave3:02B5She's Pulling Me Back Again2:36B6Kawliga4:01The Complete Wix Sessions of ...
2001 · studio album
Search SpotifySearch YouTube Music
Tracklist · 12 tracks · 56:19
1Break Up2:282Room Full of Roses2:513Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On3:304Me and Bobby McGee4:435Let the Four Winds Blow2:056Jambalaya2:597Wahbash Cannon Ball2:178Wipe Out3:159I'm Gonna Rock Some More3:0310Hang Up My Rock and Roll Shoes1:5911The King's Medley24:2912Just a Closer Walk With Thee2:40
Single · 1
| Cover | Year | Title | Notes | First release |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1958 | So Young / Right Behind You BabySearch SpotifySearch YouTube MusicTracklist · 2 tracks · 4:511So Young2:26 2Right Behind You Baby2:25 | 9 April 1958 |
Album · 9
| Cover | Year | Title | Notes | First release |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1976 | It's Great, It's Ray SmithSearch SpotifySearch YouTube MusicTracklist · 20 tracks · 45:32A1You Made a Hit2:24 A2Why, Why, Why2:21 A3Rockin' Bandit2:07 A4So Young2:22 A5Right Behind You Baby2:27 A6Sail Away2:30 A7Candy Doll2:30 A8Let Yourself Go2:22 A9Johnny the Hummer2:14 A10Did We Have a Party1:53 B1Rockin' Little Angel2:14 B2Rebound1:44 B3Makes Me Feel Good2:25 B4That's All Right2:01 B5Little Miss Blue2:16 B6Blond Hair, Blue Eyes2:11 B7Put Your Arms Around Me Honey2:18 B8Robin' the Cradle2:14 B9Nice Guy2:31 B10Rockin' Robin2:28 | Compilation | 1976 | |
| 1981 | Live in '62Search SpotifySearch YouTube MusicTracklist · 12 tracks · 32:33A1Be Bop a Lula2:05 A2What'd I Say4:06 A3Hey Boss Man2:30 A4End of the Road2:14 A5Those Four Precious Years2:44 A6Return to Sender1:47 B1I Can't Help It3:18 B2Great Balls of Fire3:06 B3On My Knees2:48 B4She's Not You2:28 B5Rockin' Little Angel2:40 B6Let's Do the Twist2:47 | Live | 1981 | |
| 1991 | Rockin' With RaySearch SpotifySearch YouTube MusicTracklist · 20 tracks · 46:041Right Behind You Baby2:25 2Shake Around2:50 3You Made a Hit2:23 4Rockin' Bandit2:18 5Life Is a Flower2:03 6Two Pennies & A String2:37 7Sail Away2:28 8I Wanna Be Free2:09 9The Girl Was Meant for Me1:01 10Little Girl2:04 11Forever Yours3:05 12Why Why Why2:22 13Break Up1:55 14Willing & Eager2:10 15So Young2:26 16I Won't Miss You2:08 17Travelin' Salesman3:06 18Candy Doll2:29 19Hey Boss Man1:58 20Rockin' Bandit2:07 | Compilation | 1991 | |
| 1993 | Travelin' With RaySearch SpotifySearch YouTube MusicTracklist · 33 tracks · 1:13:481So Young2:23 2That's All Right1:56 3Little Miss Blue2:11 4One Wonderful Love2:13 5After This Night Is Through2:22 6Blond Hair, Blue Eyes2:06 7Makes Me Feel Good2:20 8Put Your Arms Around Me Honey2:13 9Rebound1:39 10Turn on the Moonlight2:27 11Rockin' Little Angel2:13 12You Made a Hit2:20 13Right Behind You Baby2:22 14Break Up1:47 15Shake Around2:46 16Rockin' Bandit2:06 17Sail Away2:26 18Candy Doll2:26 19Willing and Ready2:06 20I'll Be Coming Home2:39 21Life Is a Flower2:00 22Little Girl2:01 23Baby Just Because2:26 24Robin' the Cradle2:09 25Rockin' Robin2:23 26I Guess I Better Move Along1:58 27Trav'lin' Salesman3:05 28Nice Guy2:26 29Johnny the Hummer2:08 30Let Yourself Go2:17 31I'm Snowed2:04 32Turn Over a New Leaf1:58 33Did We Have a Party1:52 | Compilation | 1993 | |
| 1995 | Shake AroundSearch SpotifySearch YouTube MusicTracklist · 23 tracks · 53:181Break Up1:57 2Why, Why, Why2:22 3Willing & Ready2:12 4So Young2:27 5Right Behind You Baby2:25 6You Made Me A Hit2:25 7Shake Around2:51 8Rockin' Bandit [Dubbed]2:09 9Sail Away2:28 10Forever Yours3:06 11I Won't Miss You [Til You Go]2:09 12Travelin' Salesman3:06 13Candy Doll2:29 14Hey Boss Man1:58 15Life Is A Flower2:03 16Little Girl2:05 17I Wanna Be Free2:10 18Two Pennies & A String2:37 19This Girl Was Meant For Me1:01 20Rockin' Bandit [Undubbed]2:19 21Why, Why, Why [Alt Take]2:21 22Rockin' Robin2:27 23Robbin' The Cradle2:11 | Compilation | 17 October 1995 | |
| 1998 | Sings And RocksSearch SpotifySearch YouTube MusicTracklist · 19 tracks · 47:01A1When My Blue Moon Turns to Gold Again2:03 A2Young Love1:27 A3I'm Gonna Sit Right Down and Cry Over You1:59 A4How's the World Treating You1:51 A5Love Me2:24 A6Too Much2:28 A7Honky Tonk Man2:52 A8Mother You're Just an Angel to Me3:40 A9Jailhouse Rock3:13 A10Santa Claus Is Back in Town2:55 B1Baby I Don't Care2:35 B2Just Tell Her Jim Said Hello2:31 B3Sheila2:04 B4Portrait of My Love3:26 B5How Do You Think I Feel1:40 B6I'll Drink It Over2:38 B7I'm Human Same as You3:27 B8How's His Memory Doing Today2:59 B9Great Balls of Fire0:49 | Compilation,Live | 1998 | |
| 2009 | Rockin' Little Angel: The Sun Years, PlusSearch SpotifySearch YouTube MusicTracklist · 34 tracks · 1:19:391So Young2:26 2Right Behind You Baby2:25 3Why Why Why2:20 4You Made a Hit2:22 5Rockin' Bandit2:10 6Sail Away2:27 7That's All Right1:59 8Rockin' Little Angel2:13 9Put Your Arms Around Me Honey2:17 10Maria Elena2:47 11One Wonderful Love2:17 12It Makes Me Feel Good2:23 13Blonde Hair, Blue Eyes2:10 14You Don't Want Me2:31 15Travlin' Salesman3:05 16I Won't Miss You (Til You Go)2:07 17Candy Doll2:27 18Hey Boss Man2:00 19I Want to Be Free2:03 20Forever Yours3:03 21Little Girl2:31 22Two Pennies and a String2:37 23Breakup1:53 24Shake Around2:36 25Willing and Ready2:09 26Life Is the Flower2:02 27Breakup1:50 28I'll Try2:33 29Sail Away2:34 30Rebound1:43 31Baby Just Because2:29 32Little Miss Blue2:15 33Speak Low2:11 34I'll Be Coming Home2:44 | Compilation | 2009 | |
| 2023 | Sun Records Originals: Right Behind You BabySearch SpotifySearch YouTube MusicTracklist · 20 tracks · 47:261Right Behind you Baby (Remastered 2022)2:25 2So Young2:26 3Rockin' Bandit2:07 4Break Up1:52 5Sail Away2:25 6Why, Why, Why - Alternate2:23 7Forever Yours3:05 8Candy Doll2:25 9Life is a Flower2:03 10Hey, Boss Man1:58 11I'll Try2:35 12I Won't Miss You (Till You Go)2:05 13I Want To Be Free2:13 14Shake Around2:49 15Little Girl2:04 16You Made a Hit2:20 17Two Pennies and a String2:39 18Willing and Ready2:10 19Travelin' Salesman3:04 20Why, Why, Why2:18 | Compilation | 3 March 2023 | |
| — | Best of the Rock & Roll YearsSearch SpotifySearch YouTube MusicTracklist · 34 tracks · 1:17:161Rockin' Bandit2:09 2So Young2:24 3Right Behind You Baby2:25 4Little Miss Blue2:11 5Why Why Why2:20 6You Made a Hit2:22 7Sail Away2:27 8That's All Right1:59 9Rockin' Little Angel2:13 10Blond Hair, Blue Eyes2:09 11Put Your Arms Around Me2:16 12Travlin' Salesman3:04 13Candy Doll2:27 14One Wonderful Love2:16 15Hey Boss Man1:59 16It Makes Me Feel Good2:22 17Little Girl2:30 18Breakup1:53 19Shake Around2:36 20Willing and Ready2:09 21I'll Be Coming Home2:44 22Life Is the Flower2:02 23I'll Try2:33 24Rebound1:41 25After This Night Is Through2:22 26Turn on the Moonlight2:27 27Robin the Cradle2:09 28Rockin' Robin2:23 29I Guess I Better Move Along1:58 30Nice Guy2:26 31Johnny Lee Hummer2:09 32Let Yourself Go2:17 33Did We Have a Party1:52 34I Want to Be Free2:02 | Compilation | — |
Stats & PK
Percentile within all 23,672 published artists.Put Ray Smith head-to-head →
| Metric | Value | Percentile |
|---|---|---|
| Wikipedia language versions | 8 | 49.7th |
| Spotify monthly listeners | — | no data |
| Release groups in DB | 14 | 84.5th |
| Studio albums | 4 | 82.8th |
| Awards recorded | 0 | 0th |
| Timeline events | 7 | 82.6th |
| Recording span (years) | 21 | 47.7th |
| Genres | 2 | 74th |
Awards & honours
Where this record comes from
aliases/urls—musicbrainz · CC0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://musicbrainz.org/artist/c92f9cee-4f76-44b5-b1ac-c43bf50ecaffdiscography—musicbrainz · CC0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://musicbrainz.org/artist/c92f9cee-4f76-44b5-b1ac-c43bf50ecaffcore—wikidata · CC0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q990929genre—wikidata · CC0 · retrieved 11 October 2026
https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q990929seed-list—wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ray_Smith_%28rockabilly_singer%29biography—wikipedia-en · CC BY-SA 4.0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ray_Smith_%28rockabilly_singer%29
Why this artist is in the database
- List of country music performers
Tier rule: curated genre/region list
Image: no portrait (not displayed: the licence credit is missing)
Wikidata: Q990929 · MusicBrainz: c92f9cee-4f76-44b5-b1ac-c43bf50ecaff
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