Haley was blinded in his left eye as a child due to a botched operation. According to biographer John Swenson, Haley later adopted his distinctive spit-curl hairstyle to distract attention from his blind eye. The spit-curl caught on as a 50's style signature, although Haley and others had worn the hairstyle much earlier.
In 1946, Haley joined his first professional group, a Pennsylvania-based western swing band called The Down Homers run by Kenny Roberts. It has often been reported in musical reference works that Haley's first professional recordings were made with the Down Homers on a pair of singles released in 1946 by Vogue Records. This was later debunked by Roberts and others, stating Haley had already left the group by the time the singles were made. In the early 2000s, however, a set of 1946 radio recordings by the Down Homers were discovered and Haley is definitely present as he is identified by name and sings a solo number "She Taught Me to Yodel"; these recordings were commercially released for the first time in 2006.
After gaining experience with the Down Homers, Haley set out on his own, forming several groups such as the Range Drifters and the Four Aces of Western Swing. With the Four Aces, he made a number of regionally successful country music singles in the late 1940s for Cowboy Records while working as a touring musician and later a radio DJ at WPWA. (Many of Haley's early recordings from this period would not be released until after his death.) After disbanding the Four Aces and briefly trying a solo career using the names Jack Haley and Johnny Clifton (as chronicled in the biography Sound and Glory), Haley formed a new group called The Saddlemen in either 1949 or 1950 (sources vary as to the exact year); this new group recorded for several labels, including one single for Atlantic Records, Haley's first exposure to a major national record company. In 1951, Haley was signed to Dave Miller's Philadelphia-based Holiday Records and began to change musical styles, recording cover versions of "Rocket "88"" (previously recorded by Jackie Brenston and His Delta Cats), and in, 1952, "Rock the Joint", previously recorded by several bands including Jimmy Preston and His Prestonians. (By the time of "Rock the Joint", Haley had graduated from Holiday Records to Miller's larger Essex label.) The relative success of these recordings (both sold in the 75,000-100,000 copy range in the Pennsylvania-New England region) convinced Haley that his new and as-yet officially unnamed hybrid of country and rhythm and blues could be a commercial success.and some of his family lives in oklahoma and there is a road named after his family.
Jenny Jenny
Bill Haley Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Jenny, Jenny, Jenny, won't you come along with me
You know that I love you, we could live so happily
Jenny, Jenny, Jenny, spinnin' like a spinnin' top
Jenny, Jenny, Jenny, spinnin' like you ain't gonna stop
The greatest little momma you oughta see her reel and rock
Jenny, Jenny, Jenny, won't you come along with me
You know that I love you, we could live so happily
Jenny, Jenny, Jenny, girl I need you by my side
Jenny, Jenny, Jenny, you know I need you by my side
You know I need you pretty baby, your ways I gotta really abide now
The lyrics to Bill Haley's "Jenny Jenny" are a plea to a woman named Jenny to come along with the singer, for he loves her and believes they could live happily together. In the second stanza, the lyrics describe Jenny as "spinnin' like a spinnin' top" and "the greatest little momma," implying that she's a good dancer and possibly suggesting she's physically attractive. However, based on the message of the first and last stanzas, it seems that the singer's desire for Jenny is more heartfelt than purely physical. He needs her by his side and must "abide" by her ways, implying a certain level of compromise and devotion.
Overall, the lyrics to "Jenny Jenny" paint a picture of a besotted man asking a woman to take a chance on love and follow him. The repetitive use of Jenny's name and the quick tempo of the song add to its catchiness and make it a good example of the rock and roll genre.
Line by Line Meaning
Jenny, Jenny, Jenny, won't you come along with me
Bill Haley wants Jenny to come along with him
You know that I love you, we could live so happily
Bill Haley loves Jenny and thinks they could have a happy life together
Jenny, Jenny, Jenny, spinnin' like a spinnin' top
Jenny is dancing energetically like a spinning top
Jenny, Jenny, Jenny, spinnin' like you ain't gonna stop
Jenny is dancing non-stop and doesn't seem to be slowing down
The greatest little momma you oughta see her reel and rock
Jenny is an amazing dancer and knows how to have a good time
Jenny, Jenny, Jenny, girl I need you by my side
Bill Haley wants Jenny to be with him and doesn't want to be without her
You know I need you pretty baby, your ways I gotta really abide now
Bill Haley needs Jenny in his life and will do whatever it takes to keep her happy
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Entoris Johnson, Richard Penniman
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind