Ronnie Milsap

Biography

Ronnie Lee Milsap (born Ronald Lee Millsaps; January 16, 1943) is an American country music singer and pianist. He was one of country music's most popular and influential performers of the 1970s and 1980s. Nearly completely blind from birth, he became one of the most successful and versatile country "crossover" singers of his time, appealing to both country and pop music markets with hit songs that incorporated pop, R&B, and rock and roll elements. His biggest crossover hits include "It Was Almost Like a Song×It Was Almost Like a Song1 July 1977 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracksA1What a Difference You Made in My Life3:57A2No One Will Ever Know3:22A3It Was Almost Like a Song3:36A4Selfish3:19A5Long Distance Memory3:00B1Here in Love3:10B2The Future's Not What It Used to Be4:15B3It Don't Hurt to Dream2:45B4Crystal Fallin' Rain3:46B5Lovin' Kind3:53", "Smoky Mountain Rain×Smoky Mountain RainOctober 1980 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracks1Smoky Mountain Rain3:292Crystal Fallin’ Rain3:49", "(There's) No Gettin' Over Me×(There's) No Gettin' Over Me1981 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracksA(There's) No Gettin' Over Me3:15BI Live My Whole Life At Night3:45", "I Wouldn't Have Missed It for the World", "Any Day Now", "Is It Over" and "Stranger in My House". He is credited with six Grammy Awards and 35 number-one country hits, fourth to George Strait, Conway Twitty, and Merle Haggard. He was selected for induction into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2014.

Early life (1943–1971)

Milsap was born January 16, 1943, in Robbinsville, North Carolina. A congenital disorder left him almost completely blind from birth. Abandoned by his mother as an infant, he was raised in poverty by his grandparents in the Smoky Mountains until he was sent to the North Carolina State School for the Blind and Deaf in Raleigh, North Carolina, at age five.
During his childhood, Milsap developed a passion for music, particularly the late-night radio broadcasts of country music, gospel music, and rhythm and blues. When he was 7, his instructors noticed his musical talents. Soon afterward he began formal study of classical music at Governor Morehead School and learned several instruments, eventually mastering the piano.
When he was 14, a slap from one of the school's houseparents caused him to lose what very limited vision he had in his left eye.
With the national breakthrough of Elvis Presley in 1956, Milsap became interested in rock and roll music and formed a rock band called the Apparitions with fellow high-school students. In concert, Milsap has often paid tribute to the musicians of the 1950s who inspired him including Ray Charles, Little Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Presley.
Milsap was awarded a full college scholarship and briefly attended Young Harris College in Young Harris, Georgia, with plans to become a lawyer. During this time, Milsap joined a popular local R&B band called the Dimensions that played gigs in the Atlanta area, and became a regular attraction at the rough and rowdy Royal Peacock Club. In the fall of 1964, Milsap declined a scholarship to law school and left college to pursue a full-time career in music. He met Joyce Reeves one night at a dinner party during this period, after which the two were married in 1965.
In 1963, Milsap met Atlanta disc jockey Pat Hughes, who became an early supporter of his music career. Milsap recorded his first single, "Total Disaster/It Went to Your Head", which enjoyed some local success in the Atlanta area. The single sold 15,000 copies with the help of Hughes, who played the record on his radio show. Around this same time, Milsap auditioned for a job as a keyboardist for musician J. J. Cale. In 1965, Milsap signed with New York–based Scepter Records, recording several obscure singles for the label over the next few years, and working briefly with other soul musicians like Ray Charles and Stevie Wonder.
Also in 1965, Milsap scored his first hit with the Ashford & Simpson–penned single, "Never Had It So Good", which peaked at No. 19 on the R&B chart in November of that year. It would be his only successful single during his time with Scepter. Milsap cut another Ashford & Simpson tune, "Let's Go Get Stoned", that was relegated to a B-side.
In the late 1960s, after moving to Memphis, Tennessee, Milsap worked for producer Chips Moman and became a popular weekly attraction at the Memphis nightclub T.J.'s. During this time, Moman helped Milsap land work as a session musician on numerous projects including several recordings with Elvis Presley such as "Don't Cry Daddy" in 1969 and "Kentucky Rain" in 1970. That same year, Milsap made the lower reaches of the pop charts with the single "Loving You Is a Natural Thing". He recorded and released his debut album, Ronnie Milsap, on Warner Brothers in 1971.

Breakthrough success (1973–1975)

In December 1972, Milsap relocated to Nashville after a chance meeting with country music star Charley Pride who was in the audience for a Milsap gig at the nightclub Whiskey A-Go-Go on Sunset Blvd. in Los Angeles. Pride was impressed with Milsap's singing and encouraged him to change course and focus on country music. Milsap began working with Pride's manager, Jack D. Johnson, and was signed to RCA Records in 1973. He released his first single for RCA that year, "I Hate You", which became his first country music success, peaking at No. 10 on the country chart. In 1974, Milsap toured with Pride as an opening act and had two No. 1 singles: "Pure Love×Pure LoveApril 1974 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracksA1My Love Is Deep, My Love Is Wide2:34A2Amazing Love3:18A3Pure Love2:19A4Four Walls3:06A5Streets of Gold2:15B1Love the Second Time Around3:02B2Please Don’t Tell Me How the Story Ends2:44B3All My Roads (Lead Back to You)2:32B4Behind Closed Doors2:53B5Blue Ridge Mountains Turnin’ Green3:05" (written by Eddie Rabbitt) and the Kris Kristofferson composition "Please Don't Tell Me How the Story Ends" which won Milsap his first Grammy. In 1975, he revived the Don Gibson song "(I'd Be) A Legend in My Time" and scored another No. 1 hit with "Daydreams About Night Things".

"It Was Almost Like a Song" (1976–1978)

From 1976 to 1978, Milsap became one of country music's biggest stars. He scored seven No. 1 singles in a row, including the Grammy-winning "(I'm a) Stand by My Woman Man" and "What a Difference You've Made in My Life". The most significant of this series was "It Was Almost Like a Song×It Was Almost Like a Song1 July 1977 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracksA1What a Difference You Made in My Life3:57A2No One Will Ever Know3:22A3It Was Almost Like a Song3:36A4Selfish3:19A5Long Distance Memory3:00B1Here in Love3:10B2The Future's Not What It Used to Be4:15B3It Don't Hurt to Dream2:45B4Crystal Fallin' Rain3:46B5Lovin' Kind3:53" in 1977, a piano-based ballad, which became his most successful single of the 1970s. In addition to topping the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, the song was his first entry on the Billboard Hot 100 pop music chart since "Please Don't Tell Me How the Story Ends" reached No. 95; "It Was Almost Like a Song," reached No. 16. It was also his first song to make the Adult Contemporary Chart, stopping at No. 7. While the song was Milsap's only crossover success of the 1970s, he continued to achieve hits on the country music charts for the remainder of the decade.

Crossover success (1979–1992)

Milsap's sound shifted toward string-laden pop ballads during the late 1970s which resulted in crossover success on the pop charts beginning in the early 1980s. From 1980 until 1983, he scored a series of eleven No. 1 singles. Milsap's Greatest Hits album, released in 1980, included a new single, "Smoky Mountain Rain×Smoky Mountain RainOctober 1980 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracks1Smoky Mountain Rain3:292Crystal Fallin’ Rain3:49", which became a No. 1 smash on the country charts. The single peaked in the Top 20 on the pop music chart and also became the first of two Milsap songs to score No. 1 on the Adult Contemporary chart.
Other crossover successes included the Top 5 pop single, "(There's) No Gettin' Over Me×(There's) No Gettin' Over Me1981 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracksA(There's) No Gettin' Over Me3:15BI Live My Whole Life At Night3:45", and two Top 20 songs in "I Wouldn't Have Missed It For the World" and "Any Day Now", the latter which lasted five weeks at No. 1 on Billboard's Adult Contemporary chart. He also had some success with "He Got You". All four songs reached No. 1 on the country music charts.
Although the series of No. 1 hits ended in 1983, the last song of the series, "Stranger in My House", was still successful on all three charts, peaking at No. 5 on the country music chart, No. 23 on the pop music chart, and No. 8 on the Adult Contemporary chart. Just a few months later, "Don't You Know How Much I Love You" was released, becoming Milsap's last significant entry on the pop music chart, stopping at No. 58. However it, along with others, still became major successes on the Adult Contemporary chart. These successful singles include "Show Her", "Still Losing You", and finally, the Grammy-winning song "Lost in the Fifties Tonight×Lost in the Fifties Tonight1 February 1986 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracks1Lost in the Fifties Tonight (in the Still of the Night)4:192In Love4:343Old Fashioned Girl Like You3:214I Heard It Through the Grapevine4:255Don’t Take It Tonight5:086How Do I Turn You On4:467Happy, Happy Birthday Baby3:418Nashville Moon3:199I Only Remember the Good Times3:5910Money (That’s What I Want)5:20" (his last pop crossover success) in 1985.
Between 1985 and 1987, Milsap enjoyed a series of uninterrupted No. 1 country singles, enjoying great success at this time with "She Keeps the Home Fires Burning", "In Love", "Snap Your Fingers", "Where Do the Nights Go", and the Grammy-winning duet with Kenny Rogers, "Make No Mistake, She's Mine". In 1987, Milsap contributed the theme song to the short-lived NBC television series J.J. Starbuck.
In 1989, Milsap had his last No. 1 song with "A Woman in Love", although he still remained successful on the charts. Other Top 10 singles between 1989 and 1991 include "Houston Solution", "Stranger Things Have Happened×Stranger Things Have Happened28 February 1989 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracks1Stranger Things Have Happened3:132Don’t You Ever Get Tired (of Hurting Me)3:053A Woman in Love3:164You Snap Your Fingers (and I’m Back in Your Hands)3:265Starting Today2:406Roll the Dice5:037I Feel Like I’m Cheating on You3:518I Never Expected to See You3:189Houston Solution3:2810Southern Roots3:40", "Turn That Radio On", a remake of the 1950s hit "Since I Don't Have You" (his last adult contemporary hit) and "Are You Loving Me Like I'm loving You". With the help of writer Tom Carter, Milsap wrote and released his autobiography, titled Almost like a Song, in 1990.
In 1992, he had a major success with "All Is Fair in Love and War". The song featured rock guitarist Mark Knopfler on lead guitar and peaked at No. 11; his last top-40 country hit, "True Believer×True Believer7 June 1993 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 11 tracks1Desire4:422I’m Playing for You4:183Somebody’s Gonna Get That Girl3:544Better Off With the Blues4:005Hoss Allen Segué0:436True Believer4:537These Foolish Things (Remind Me of You)3:528A Million Years ’til Then4:299Desperate Man4:0910Civil War4:0911Please Jesus (Send My Baby Home to Me)4:25," peaked in 1993 at No. 30. By that time, however, Milsap's chart success began to decline.

Since 1993: Life today

Milsap has remained one of country music's most beloved performers despite a decline in radio airplay after the mid-1990s. In 1993, he released True Believer on Liberty Records and even as his contemporaries were no longer played on country radio, scored a Top 40 hit on the country chart with the title track. In 2000, he resurfaced with 40 No. 1 Hits, a two-disc retrospective which hit the Country Top 20 and earned gold certification. That same year, his life and career were profiled in an episode of Biography, reflecting on his musical legacy and crossover success.
In 2004, Milsap recorded Just for a Thrill, a collection of pop and jazz standards. The album marked a stylistic departure and earned a Grammy nomination. He returned to RCA Records in 2006 and a mainstream country sound with My Life. His two-disc gospel set Then Sings My Soul (2009) reached the Southern gospel charts, and Country Again (2011) reflected a more traditional country style.
In 2014, Rolling Stone included "Smoky Mountain Rain×Smoky Mountain RainOctober 1980 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracks1Smoky Mountain Rain3:292Crystal Fallin’ Rain3:49" among its 100 greatest country songs. That year, Milsap released Summer #17, an album of nostalgic pop and R&B covers.
He was among 30 artists featured on "Forever Country" in 2016, a mash-up honoring the 50th CMA Awards. In 2019, he returned to the charts with Ronnie Milsap: The Duets, featuring collaborations with Dolly Parton, Willie Nelson, George Strait, and others. A duet version of "Smoky Mountain Rain" with Parton reached the Adult Contemporary top 30.
On April 8, 2020, Craft Recordings announced that they've acquired the majority of Milsap’s catalog rights and masters from RCA, spanning from 1977 to 2006, which ultimately cultivated on the new Craft material compilation, The Best Of Ronnie Milsap×The Best of Ronnie Milsap28 June 2019 · Album · CompilationSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 25 tracks1Smoky Mountain Rain3:432I Wouldn’t Have Missed It for the World3:383(There’s) No Gettin’ Over Me3:204Stranger in My House4:135Lost in the Fifties Tonight4:186Any Day Now3:427A Woman in Love3:168It Was Almost Like a Song3:409Make No Mistake, She’s Mine3:5710What a Difference You’ve Made in My Life4:0111Happy, Happy Birthday Baby3:4012Nobody Likes Sad Songs4:0413Turn That Radio On3:4114Show Her4:0015Snap Your Fingers3:0416Why Don’t You Spend the Night4:1317He Got You3:3218Still Losing You5:1919Stranger Things Have Happened3:1220How Do I Turn You On4:4521Inside4:0322Don’t You Know How Much I Love You3:3623Where Do the Nights Go4:3324In Love4:3425Don’t You Ever Get Tired (of Hurting Me)3:05. By 2020, Milsap had installed a new home studio and continued to record. His album A Better Word for Love×A Better Word for Love30 April 2021 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracks1Big Bertha3:042Wild Honey3:363A Better Word for Love3:274Almost Mine3:355Fool2:546This Side of Heaven3:507Civil War - Live4:138Fireworks3:379Now3:5310Too Bad for My Own Good3:09 followed in 2021. In 2022, he contributed “Oh, Lady Be Good!” to Michael Feinstein’s Gershwin Country, a tribute to George and Ira Gershwin and launched a podcast, Music and Milsap. That same year, he inducted Ray Charles into the Country Music Hall of Fame and was later inducted into the Memphis Music Hall of Fame.
Milsap’s final concert, for which he was joined by longtime collaborators and other country stars, took place October 3, 2023, at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville. The event marked the end of his touring career, several months after he celebrated his 80th birthday on stage at the Grand Ole Opry. Though retired from the road, he continues to record.

Amateur radio operator

Milsap is an Advanced-class amateur radio operator. His call sign is WB4KCG.

Personal life

In 1965, Milsap married Joyce Reeves. They had one son, Ronald "Todd" Milsap, who was found dead on his houseboat at the age of 49 on February 23, 2019, from an apparent medical condition. Todd's son, who had not heard from his father for the previous two days, found the body. Joyce, who had been battling leukemia since 2014, died on September 6, 2021, at the age of 81.

Industry awards and honors

Academy of Country Music

1982 Top Male Vocalist
1985 Song of the Year – "Lost in the Fifties Tonight×Lost in the Fifties Tonight1 February 1986 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracks1Lost in the Fifties Tonight (in the Still of the Night)4:192In Love4:343Old Fashioned Girl Like You3:214I Heard It Through the Grapevine4:255Don’t Take It Tonight5:086How Do I Turn You On4:467Happy, Happy Birthday Baby3:418Nashville Moon3:199I Only Remember the Good Times3:5910Money (That’s What I Want)5:20"
1988 Instrumentalist of the Year, Keyboards
2002 Pioneer Award
Billboard

1980 No. 1 Country Song of the Year – "My Heart"
1985 No. 1 Country Song of the Year – "Lost in the Fifties Tonight"
Country Music Association

1974 Male Vocalist of the Year
1975 Album of the Year – A Legend in My Time×A Legend in My Time1975 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracksA1Busiest Memory in Town2:49A2Too Late to Worry, Too Blue to Cry3:05A3(I’d Be) A Legend in My Time2:53A4The Biggest Lie2:27A5Country Cookin’3:54B1She Came Here for the Change2:56B2I’ll Leave This World Loving You2:43B3I’m Still Not Over You2:50B4I Honestly Love You3:23B5Clap Your Hands2:54
1976 Male Vocalist of the Year
1977 Album of the Year – Ronnie Milsap Live×Ronnie Milsap Live1976 · Album · LiveSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 13 tracksA1Introduction—Ralph EmeryA2Pure LoveA3Medley: I Hate You / That Girl Who Waits on TablesA4Welcome—Talk by Ronnie MilsapA5Medley: (I’m a) Stand by My Woman Man / What Goes On When the Sun Goes Down / Daydreams About Night ThingsA6Kaw‐LigaB1Country Cookin’B2I Can Almost See Houston From HereB3(After Sweet Memories) Play Born to Lose AgainB4Music Style Medley: Daydreams About Night Things / Cattle CallB5Let My Love Be Your PillowB6(I’d Be) A Legend in My TimeB7Honky Tonk Women
1977 Entertainer of the Year
1977 Male Vocalist of the Year
1978 Album of the Year – It Was Almost Like a Song×It Was Almost Like a Song1 July 1977 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracksA1What a Difference You Made in My Life3:57A2No One Will Ever Know3:22A3It Was Almost Like a Song3:36A4Selfish3:19A5Long Distance Memory3:00B1Here in Love3:10B2The Future's Not What It Used to Be4:15B3It Don't Hurt to Dream2:45B4Crystal Fallin' Rain3:46B5Lovin' Kind3:53
1986 Album of the Year – Lost in the Fifties Tonight
Country Music Hall of Fame 2014 Inductee
Grammy Awards

1975 Best Male Country Vocal Performance – "Please Don't Tell Me How The Story Ends"
1977 Best Male Country Vocal Performance – "(I'm a) Stand by My Woman Man"
1982 Best Male Country Vocal Performance – "(There's) No Gettin' Over Me×(There's) No Gettin' Over Me1981 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracksA(There's) No Gettin' Over Me3:15BI Live My Whole Life At Night3:45"
1986 Best Male Country Vocal Performance – "Lost in the Fifties Tonight"
1987 Best Male Country Vocal Performance – "Lost in the Fifties Tonight"
1988 Best Country Collaboration with Vocals – "Make No Mistake, She's Mine" (w/ Kenny Rogers)
Music City News Country

1975 Most Promising Male Artist
Miscellaneous achievements

40 No. 1 hits, 35 of which reached the top spot on the Billboard chart; the remaining 5 topped other trade charts, including Cashbox
Over 35 million albums sold
Inducted into the Grand Ole Opry in 1976
Inducted into the North Carolina Music Hall of Fame in 2002
Awarded the Career Achievement Award by Country Radio Seminar in 2006
Awarded the 2007 Rocketown Legend Award
Other honors
On December 2, 2020, six miles of U.S. 129 in Graham County, North Carolina, from Yellow Creek near Robbinsville to the Swain County line, was designated Ronnie Milsap Highway.