Artist Biography - Charlie Rich

Charlie Rich


	Home Biographies On The Fringe Artist Profile Archives News Flash Message Board Reader's Poll Fan Pics Photo Album Merchandise Artist Websites Related Sites Website Resources Contact Us Get the latest Countrypolitan news! Join our mailing list today! Click Here				Charlie Rich was an amazingly talented musician. The best. He was the master of so many genres it’s difficult for fans to get an accurate take on the man behind the music. Therefore, since this is a site about country music, we'll focus on that aspect of his career. The Silver Fox was a country music superstar. One who practically owned the country charts in the mid-70s. And won millions upon millions of fans the world over. Not to mention a scad of gold records, platinum albums, and recording industry awards. Not bad for someone who started out an Arkansas country boy during the brunt of the depression. But then again, that’s how Charlie Rich’s good friend Johnny Cash started out as well. Aside from his service years, Charlie lived in rural Arkansas until settling in Memphis during his days at Sun Records. It was at Sun that Charlie first met the man who would make him a star and become a country music legend in his own right, producer Billy Sherrill. The owner of Sun Records, Sam Phillips, had decided to branch out from Memphis by purchasing Billy’s Seventh Avenue studio in Nashville, he then hired Billy to engineer sessions for him. Beginning in 1961, Billy provided the engineering duties on a number of Charlie’s most memorable songs, including "Who Will The Next Fool Be", "Sittin’ And Thinkin’," and "Finally Found Out." After 2 more years at Sun’s Nashville and Memphis studios, Charlie bounced around a few studios—from RCA to Mercury to Hi (where he recorded a greatest hits of Hank Williams package) —before landing back in Nashville at the Epic division of CBS/Columbia in December 1967. Once again Charlie would find himself under the direction of Sherrill. Under Sherrill’s guidance, Charlie released three beautiful country albums over the course of the next 5 years — "Set Me Free," "The Fabulous Charlie Rich", "Boss Man". Each album supplied healthy doses of prime country that were well received by the critics but provided only modest success. The story goes that Charlie was in danger of being dropped by Epic after "Boss Man" failed to measure up to the boss men’s expectations. Up to that point, Sherrill’s conviction that Charlie would eventually hit paydirt had gone a long way in keeping him at Epic. In fact, the decision had been made to try a new approach by bringing in Chips Moman to replace Billy Sherrill as producer. Word got back to Sherrill that he’d better get Charlie in the studio double-quick if he wanted a last chance to record a hit. To say that Charlie gave him a hit would be an understatement of "epic" proportions. "Behind Closed Doors" was the breakthrough song both had been hoping for their entire lives. It was the beginning of a solid gold run that would net Charlie every conceivable country music award during the next several years. Charlie delivered one smash country hit after another, dozens of them actually—classics like "Most Beautiful Girl In The World," "A Very Special Love Song," "Every Time You Touch Me I Get High" and beautiful, unheralded songs like "Peace on You" and "Sunday Kind of Woman" that deserve to be heard time and again by music fans everywhere. It may have taken Charlie a while to get there, but Charlie climbed to the very top of the country charts and stayed there for a considerable time. Long enough that Charlie will best be remembered as an honest-to-goodness country music superstar. Not bad for an Arkansas country boy. *From Charlie Rich's Official Website.*

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