This Top 10 Ricky Van Shelton songs list looks back at the career of a country singer who broke in the 1980s and 1990s along with that entire wave of all the other modern day country singers. Yet there was nothing really modern about Ricky Van Shelton as he was just old school all the way. It’s one of the reasons Ricky Van Shelton developed such a loyal fan base of fans who just like the old style country music more than the newer stuff. Standing front in center of his talent is that voice. A voice that channels the vibrato of a Roy Orbison with the soul country spirit of a Jim Reeves or Conway Twitty. The man can sing and it’s that voice that fuels the heartbeat of all these great Ricky Van Shelton songs.
# 10 – Living Proof
Starting out this top 10 Ricky Van Shelton songs list we present the beautiful single entitled “Living Proof.” We thought this was just a perfect way to open this list as it really showcases the incredible voice of Ricky Van Shelton. At times, he reminds us of Roy Orbison in the way he utilizes his tenor. The song “Living Proof” was released on the album entitled Loving Proof. It was the fourth single released from the album. The album was released in 1988. The song was a hit on the US Billboard Hot Country Songs Charts peaking at number one. In Canada, the song also hit number one the Canadian Country Music Charts. The song was composed by Johnny MacRae and Steve Clark.
# 9 – From a Jack to a King
Continuing with our top 10 Ricky Van Shelton songs list we take a listen to the grand song entitled “From a Jack to a King.” Ricky Van Shelton is a modern day country singer but his style has always been old school. Many times that old school sound was reflected in the songs he chose to record. This was one of them.
The song “From a Jack to a King.” was originally released in 1957. The Ricky Van Shelton version was released on the album entitled Loving Proof. The album was released in 1988. It was the fourth single released from the album. The song was a hit on the US Billboard Hot Country Songs Charts peaking at number one. The song also was a hit on the Canadian Country Music Charts also peaking at number one. The song was composed by Ned Miller.
# 8 – Wild Man
In the number eight spot on our top 10 Ricky Van Shelton list we present the hot rocking song entitled “Wild Man.” The song was released on the album entitled Greatest Hits Plus. The album was released in 1992. It was the first single released from the album. The song was a hit on the US Billboard Hot Country Songs Charts peaking at number five. On the Canadian Country Music Charts the song hit number four. The song was composed by Rick Giles and Susan Longacre.
# 7 – Somebody Lied
In the number seven position on our top 10 Ricky Van Shelton songs list is the heartbreaking ballad entitled “Somebody Lied.” Just listen to him sing this one. Ricky Van Shelton has one of the best voices in country music.The song was released on the album entitled Wild-Eyed Dream. The album was released in 1987. The song “Somebody Lied,” would become Ricky Van Shelton’s first number one single of his career. The song hit number one on the US Billboard Hot Country Songs Charts. The song also was a hit on the Canadian Country Music Charts peaking at number five. The song was composed by Joe Chambers and Larry Jenkins.
# 6 – Wear My Ring Around Your Neck
Landing in the number six spot on our top 10 Ricky Van Shelton songs list we present the song “Wear My Ring Around Your Neck.” The classic Elvis Presley song was first released by the King back in 1958. Bruce Springsteen often performed the song in concert. The Ricky Van Shelton version was released on the soundtrack album entitled Honeymoon in Vegas. The album was released in 1992.
# 5 – I’ve Cried My Last Tear for You
At the halfway point on our top 10 Ricky Van Shelton songs list is the swinging song entitled “I’ve Cried My Last Tear for You.” This one has a real old school feel to it. The song “I’ve Cried My Last Tear for You” was issued on the album entitled Ricky Van Shelton III. The album was released in 1990. It was the second single released from the album. The song “I’ve Cried My Last Tear for You,” was a hit on the US Billboard Hot Country Songs Charts peaking at number one. It reached the same spot on the Canadian Country Music Charts also rising all the way to number one. “I’ve Cried My Last Tear for You” was composed by Tony King and Chris Waters.
# 4 – I’ll Leave This World Loving You
At the number four spot on our top 10 Ricky Van Shelton songs list we present the song entitled “I’ll Leave This World Loving You.” It was originally written back in 1980. The song “I’ll Leave This World Loving You” was released on the album entitled Loving Proof. The album was released in 1988. It was the first single released from the album. “I’ll Leave This World Loving You” was a hit on the US Billboard Hot Country Songs Charts peaking at number one. The song also was a hit on the Canadian Country Music Charts rising all the way to number one. “I’ll Leave This World Loving You” was composed by Wayne Kemp and Mack Vickery.
# 3 – I Am a Simple Man
Moving along on our top 10 Ricky Van Shelton songs list we present the upbeat song entitled “I Am a Simple Man.” The song was released on the album entitled Backroads. The album was released in 1991. “I Am a Simple Man,” was the first single released from the album. The song “I Am a Simple Man,” was a hit on the US Billboard Hot Country Songs Charts peaking at number one. “I Am a Simple Man” also was a hit on the Canadian Country Music Charts reaching number one. The song “I Am a Simple Man” was composed by Walt Aldridge.
# 2 – Life Turned Her That Way
Just of the top spot on our top 10 Ricky Van Shelton songs list is a classic country song that has been covered by many artists over the years. The song entitled “Life Turned Her That Way” was written in 1965 by Harlan Howard. The song was first released by Little Jimmy Dickens. It has been covered numerous times over the years with some big time artists such as Willie Nelson and Conway Twitty recording spectacular versions of the song. The version recorded by Ricky Van Shelton stands with the best of them.
# 1 – Keep It Between The Lines
Like we said before many times, we don’t always pick the most popular song or the most successful song to place at number one on our songs lists. We pick our favorite songs to put out in the number one spots. So here it is folks. This one is a stunner. We wrap up our top 10 Ricky Van Shelton songs list with the song entitled “Keep It Between the Lines” The song was released on the album entitled Backroads. The album was released in 1991. The song actually did hit number one making it the tenth number one song of Ricky Van Shelton’s career. Yeah baby, that’s what I’m talking about. The song “Keep It Between the Lines” was composed by Russell Smith and Kathy Louvin.
Top 10 Ricky Van Shelton Songs article published on Classic RockHistory.com© 2021
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