The world lost a country music legend when Charley Pride died in December 2020, but his distinctive baritone voice will live on with the release of a brand-new album next month.
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Eight years ago, several reels were discovered buried in a room in the singer's production facility in Dallas, Texas. But it wasn't until after Pride's death that the contents of these reels were confirmed.
A Lost Charley Pride Album Was Discovered
Back in the 1980s, Pride had been working on an album paying tribute to singer-songwriter Brook Benton.
Benton shared plenty of Pride's traits as an artist. Both were versatile singers, with Benton being prolific in the pop and R&B world and never wanting to be pigeonholed.
Benton is perhaps best known for the 1959 hit "It's Just a Matter of Time" and several duets with Dinah Washington. He had a comeback in the early '70s with the crossover hit "Rainy Night in Georgia".
Between recording contracts, Pride had the opportunity not only to pay tribute to Benton but also to explore the worlds of pop music and rhythm and blues.
The Country Music Hall of Fame inductee worked with producer and engineer Bob Pickering on the project. He also enlisted a string session and a league of top-notch musicians to play on the record. This includes Chuck Rainey (Steely Dan, Aretha Franklin, Quincy Jones), drummer/percussionist Gene Glover (Ricardo Arjona), jazz pianist Fred Crane (Al Belletto, Johnnie Mercer, Al Hirt, Doc Severinsen), guitarist Jerry Matheny (LeAnn Rimes), and Billy Briggs Jr. (Bob Wills) on sax.
When Does This New Record Come Out?
The newly discovered tapes include Pride's recordings of the Benton hits "It's Just a Matter of Time", "Endlessly", "So Close", "So Many Ways", and "Kiddio". They were carefully transferred to multi-track digital audio files in 2021. The album, which will be titled Endlessly: A Tribute to Brook Benton, will come out on Sep. 19 on Music City Records. The release date is significant, as it would be Benton's 94th birthday.
The first single from the album is titled "Thank You Pretty Baby". It will be released on Friday, Aug. 29, on all digital music platforms.
