Teenage Tragedy singer Ray Peterson dead at 65


Tommy Jett, Ray Peterson, and Reverend Gene Coleman
Photo courtesy of Tommy Jett.

Ray peterson best known for the teenage tragedy song Tell Laura I Love Her has died in his Smyrna, Tennesee. Ray had been suffering from cancer. Ray's Corrina, Corrina was later recorded by Steppenwolf whose lead singer, John Kay, lives within minutes away from where Ray lived. Ray had his hit The Wonder of You covered by Elvis Presley. Ray was funny in describing his career and quite fascinating in the interview that Tommy Jett and I conducted with him.

From Ray Peterson's site.
Ray Peterson has a unique voice and a great string of hits. He scored with everything from "heart wrenching" songs like "Tell Laura I Love Her" and the easygoing folk of "Corinna, Corinna" to the dramatic Roy Orbison influenced, "I Could Have Loved Her So Well."

Born in Denton, Texas, April 23, 1939, Ray contracted polio as a youngster, and was told he would never walk again. But that was not the case, and he was left with only a slight limp. In later life, he even became an accomplished golfer. While he was being treated for the polio at Warm Springs Foundation Hospital in Texas, Peterson began to sing to amuse himself and the other patients. When he was finally released, he began to work in local clubs before moving to Los Angeles, where he met longtime manager Stan Shulman.

Ray Peterson's remarkable 4-1/2 octave voice intrigued executives at RCA Records and they signed the singer in 1957. His first single was an unusual, almost gospel version of the Little Willie John 1956 hit, "Fever", which fell somewhere between the bluesy John arrangement and the later, sexier take by Peggy Lee.

"Fever" cooled in the marketplace and a new single "Let's Try Romance" and "Shirley Purly" were issued but also found little response. Despite the lack of interest in Ray's early records, he remained with RCA, finally scoring his first hit in 1959 with his seventh single, a gentle ballad by veteran Baker Knight," The Wonder Of You", which reached the Top 30 in both the U.S. and the U.K. Elvis Presley was so impressed with the song, and Ray's heartwarming rendition, he called him and asked if he could record the song too. Ray told him he didn't have to ask - he was Elvis. Elvis replied, "Yes I do - you're Ray Peterson". Elvis went on to have a Top 10 hit with it in 1970.

Ray Peterson closed out 1959 with another success when he had a small hit with a version of the classic Jesse Belvin love ballad, "Goodnight My Love". That modest success set the stage for what would become his biggest hit. was a classic teen song about young Tommy trying to raise the money to buy a ring for his beloved Laura by winning a car race. But, as bad luck would have it, the car overturned in flames. The quietly effective production and Peterson's dramatic vocal combined in a song that caught the ear of numerous teens and made it a No. 7 hit on Billboard's Hot 100. "Tell Laura I Love Her" was composed by Jeff Barry, who went on to write and produce hits like "Sugar Sugar" for The Archies and "Rock Me Gently" for Andy Kim. There was also a "Tell Laura I Love Her" album that featured the big hit, and earlier singles.

Despite the success of "Laura", the next single "Teenage Heartache" by veterans Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman didn't chart. When "My Blue Angel" also failed to hit, Peterson and his label parted company. Leaving RCA was hardly the end of Peterson's recording career. In association with publishing giant Hill and Range Music and manager Shulman, he formed New York City based Dunes Records, a name inspired by his work at Las Vegas' Dunes Hotel. His first record was produced by the relatively unknown Phil Spector, who had recently moved to New York to apprentice with proucer-writers Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller.

"Corinna, Corinna" was an old Scottish folk song that had been adapted as "Corine, Corinna" by Red Nichols and his jazz band, and later by Joe Turner, who had a Top 2 rhythm and blues record with it in 1956. Spector's production had a lightly Latin feel, as strings and a chorus swelled up behind Peterson's strong performance. Issued as Dunes 2002 in late 1960, it quickly became a Top 10 pop record. The next single, "Sweet Little Kathy", was written by Peterson and Tommy Boyce and was a minor hit in the spring of 1961. Ray did much better with "Missing You", a nice updating of the 1957 Webb Pierce country hit.

In late 1961 Ray Peterson again teamed up with Phil Spector on "I Could Have Loved You So Well", an emotional love song by Barry Mann and Gerry Goffin. Unaccountably, it only peaked at No. 57 during its eight week run on Billboard. Other singles, like "You Know Me So Well, "Is It Wrong" and "Where Are You?" didn't fare well in the marketplace. But Ray returned to the charts in the summer of 1963 with "Give Us Your Blessing", another Jeff Barry teenage heartbreaker. An equally anguished version by The Shangri Las was a Top 30 success in 1965.

As for Ray Peterson, he went back on the charts one more time, in the spring of 1964, when RCA reissued "The Wonder Of You", reaching No. 70 on the pop charts. In late 1964, Ray signed with MGM Records and cut a number of singles. In 1969 he did "Together" for Reprise and then moved to UNI for three more records. He also recorded a single for Decca in 1971, and the album "Peterson Country," that featured straight country material, produced by Joe Johnson and arranged by veteran Bill Walker. While his records weren't doing well, there was still an audience for his live shows. In 1971 based in Nashville, after years in California he told Cash Box Magazine he was amazed at the reaction he still received when he did his greatest hits live.

In his live show, Ray not only performs the songs that made him famous, he pays tribute to his idol, Roy Oribison and to Elvis Presley. Ray Peterson has been called an "Entertainer's Entertainer" and a "Singer's Singer", but most of all he is "The Golden Voice of Rock 'N' Roll".



Ray was a great guy. Tommy Jett and I interviewed him about 3 years ago on the radio show we co-hosted at GT108 when Ray was in town to appear at the Reverend Gene Coleman's Carpenters Cowboy Church. I will miss him.