About Dick Price
Dick Price was a cult figure in Austin’s underground songwriting scene, celebrated for his witty, offbeat, and often subversive songs — bright, catchy melodies laced with sly, unsettling undertones.
More than 200 of his best self-recordings have been remastered and reorganized across 22 albums, EPs, and singles, revealing the full scope of a songwriter who spent decades quietly building an eccentric, utterly original body of work outside the mainstream.
Rejecting the pursuit of fame, Price built a devoted following by mailing cassettes of his music to friends and running a “Dial-a-Tune” phone service from his home, where he played an original song every day for nearly two decades. His songs — ranging from the comically absurd to the boldly provocative — blend humor with sharp social commentary, wrapped in deceptively sweet, upbeat tunes that sometimes feel like a carnival ride gone awry.
Born in 1951 and raised in Waco, Price earned a degree in psychology from the University of Texas at Austin. He began writing songs at age 27 after moving to New York City, where he formed the Dick Price Combo. Price later returned to Austin, where his music found a loyal, almost conspiratorial fanbase, buoyed by airplay on the Dr. Demento radio show, experimental stage productions spun from his music, and exposure on public-access TV.
Though he wrote more than 600 songs, Price remained a private, unassuming artist, content to let the music speak for itself rather than court attention. His writing gravitates toward eccentric characters and cinematic scenarios, pairing wit with a subtle sense of disquiet, and an undercurrent of genuine warmth.
With a career that spanned four decades, Price’s unique blend of humor, storytelling, and melodic charm continues to captivate those lucky enough to discover his rich and unusual songs — a true hidden gem in American songwriting. He passed away in 2019 at age 67.
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