CD1
- Whiskey and Gin 2:46
- Tell the Lady I Said Goodbye 2:41
- She Didn't Say Nothin' at All 2:16
- I'm Just a Shadow of Myself 2:28
- Give Me Time 3:11
- The Little White Cloud That Cried 2:17
- Coffee and Cigarettes (Thinking It Over) 2:38
- The Lady Drinks Champagne 3:21
- Cry 3:05
- Out in the Cold Again 2:52
- Please, Mr. Su 3:01
- Here Am I Broken Hearted 2:51
- Paths of Paradise 2:05
- Mountains in the Moonlight 2:37
- Walkin' My Baby Back Home 2:23
- All of Me 2:10
- Don't Take Your Love from Me 2:20
- Don't Blame Me 2:25
- What's the Use? 2:54
- Gee, But I'm Lonesome 2:47
- A Sinner Am I 3:03
- I'll Never Fall in Love Again 2:58
- Who's Sorry Now? 2:17
- Faith Can Move Mountains 2:42
- Don't Say Love Has Ended 2:08
- Love Me (Baby Can't You Love Me) 2:03
CD2
- Mr. Midnight 3:07
- Please Don't Talk About Me When I'm Gone 2:03
- All I Do Is Dream of You 1:44
- Nobody's Sweetheart 2:15
- I Can't Escape from You 3:34
- Somebody Stole My Gal 2:23
- Satisfied 2:48
- I'm Gonna Walk and Talk With My Lord 2:20
- With These Hands 3:13
- The Touch of God's Hand 2:45
- It's the Talk of the Town 2:55
- Ma Says, Pa Says 2:49
- A Full Time Job 2:10
- Glad Rag Doll 2:18
- Oh, What a Sad, Sad Day 2:17
- Sweet Evening Breeze 2:24
- She Didn't Say Nothin' at All 2:07
- Tell the Lady I Said Goodbye 2:42
- Whiskey and Gin 2:50
- An Orchid for the Lady 2:23
- Let's Walk That-A-Way 2:40
- Candy Lips 2:07
- The Others I Like 2:11
- Destiny 3:19
- Why Should I Be Sorry? 3:04
- As Time Goes By 3:16
- You'd Be Surprised 1:58
CD3
- Such a Night 2:16
- To Ev'ry Girl - To Ev'ry Boy (The Meaning of Love) 3:11
- Hey There 2:55
- Hernando's Hideaway 2:25
- Going, Going, Gone 2:36
- If You Believe 3:00
- Alexander's Ragtime Band 2:27
- The Only Girl I'll Ever Love 3:03
- Thine Eyes Are as the Eyes of a Dove 2:40
- Papa Loves Mambo 2:21
- Paths of Paradise 2:33
- Parade of Broken Hearts 2:09
- Ooh! Aah! Oh! (This Is Love) 1:57
- Flip Flop and Fly 2:16
- Why Does Your Daddy Have to Go? 2:35
- Taking a Chance on Love 1:54
- My Love for You 2:31
- Song of the Dreamer 2:26
- I've Got So Many Million Years (That I Can't Count Them) 2:21
- A Heart Comes in Handy 2:20
- Johnnie's Comin' Home 2:25
- Who's Sorry Now? 2:17
- Love, Love, Love 3:05
- Goodbye, au Revoir, Adios 2:35
- Because I Love You 2:25
- Walk Along With Kings 2:15
- Ain't Misbehavin' 2:36
CD4
- If I Had You 2:49
- In the Candlelight 2:52
- Look Homeward Angel 2:47
- Weaker Than Wise 2:28
- Just Walking in the Rain 2:39
- Up Above My Head (I Hear Music in the Air) 2:15
- Good Evening Friends 2:20
- How Long, How Long Blues 2:27
- You Don't Owe Me a Thing 2:25
- No Wedding Today 2:24
- Trouble in Mind 4:47
- I Want to Be Loved (But Only by You) 2:27
- I Miss You So 2:59
- Every Day I Have the Blues 2:56
- I'm Gonna Move to the Outskirts of Town 2:46
- Sent for You Yesterday 2:26
- Pretty Eyed Baby 2:20
- Shake a Hand 2:45
- I'll Never Be Free 3:07
- So Long 2:46
- Lotus Blossom 3:46
- Lotus Blossom 2:20
- In the Candlelight 3:12
- Up Above My Head (I Hear Music in the Air) 2:13
CD5
- Please Don't Talk About Me When I'm Gone 2:08
- Glad Rag Doll 2:58
- A Hundred Years from Today 2:58
- Somebody Stole My Gal 2:53
- With These Hands 3:24
- Walkin' My Baby Back Home 1:59
- As Time Goes By 2:44
- Such a Night 5:27
- The Little White Cloud That Cried 2:03
- Cry 1:55
- I'm Gonna Walk and Talk With My Lord 3:41
- Should I? 2:00
- Shake a Hand 2:49
- Ain't Misbehavin' 2:33
- As Time Goes By 3:01
- Coquette 1:49
- Just Walking in the Rain 2:26
- Yes, Tonight Josephine 3:08
- Yesterdays 3:22
- Up Above My Head (I Hear Music in the Air) 2:13
- Don't Worry 'Bout Me 3:27
- Medley: The Little White Cloud That Cried/Cry 4:22
- I'm Gonna Walk and Talk With My Lord 3:23
- If You Believe 3:19
- Alexander's Ragtime Band, Pt. 1 5:53
- Alexander's Ragtime Band (Conclusion) 2:32
Notes
May 28, 1951 - Nov 21, 1956
Johnnie Ray was an immediately recognizable vocal stylist whose histrionic sobbing and exaggerated "blue" notes won as many detractors as fans. But the sheer outrageousness of his performance style, which exhibited a dynamic physicality not seen again in a white singer until Elvis Presley came along, makes Ray a clear forerunner of rock & roll and an exciting entertainer who always seemed to be on the verge of losing control. Cry is a five-disc box set that compiles Ray's complete Columbia recordings from 1951-1956, including the major hits "Cry," "The Little White Cloud That Cried," and "Just Walking in the Rain." Those familiar with Ray's biography may be surprised at the number of gospel songs in his catalog, which display an outpouring of spiritual fervor as desperate in tenor as the dangerously unfettered sexuality of secular songs like "Such a Night." The fifth disc contains two complete live albums, the remarkable Live at the London Palladium (also available separately from Bear Family Records) and a later Las Vegas show. At the Palladium, Ray's lascivious oohs and ahhs on "Such a Night" drive the female audience members into a frenzy, and then, minutes later, he's singing "I'm Gonna Walk and Talk with My Lord." This tension between the sinful and the sacred is ever-present in Ray's music when heard in its entirety as presented on this box set, which makes for a fascinating listening experience comparable to the tortured oeuvre of Hank Williams. Unlike Williams, though, Ray also displays a strain of childlike innocence, as on "The Little White Cloud That Cried," that only adds to his inscrutably complex persona. The accompanying hardback book contains a lengthy essay by Ray biographer Johnny Whiteside and a generous selection of photos and memorabilia almost as riveting as the music itself. Bear Family subsequently released a second box set, Yes Tonight Josephine, which picks up where Cry leaves off.