Early career
The performing name Kramer was chosen at random from a telephone directory. It was John Lennon's suggestion that the "J" be added to the name to further distinguish him by adding a 'tougher edge'. Billy soon came to the attention of Brian Epstein, ever on the look-out for new talent to add to his expanding roster of local artists. Kramer turned professional but his then backing band, The Coasters, were less keen, so Epstein sought out the services of a Manchester based band, The Dakotas, a well-respected combo then backing Pete MacLaine.
Even then, The Dakotas would not join Kramer without a recording deal of their own. Once in place, the deal was set and both acts signed to Parlophone under George Martin. Collectively, they were named Billy J. Kramer with The Dakotas to keep their own identities within the act. Once the Beatles broke through, the way was paved for a tide of "Merseybeat" and Kramer was offered the chance to cover a song first released by the Beatles on their own debut album, Please Please Me. The track had been allegedly turned down by Shane Fenton (later Alvin Stardust) who was looking for a career reviving hit.
Success
With record producer George Martin, the song "Do You Want to Know a Secret?" was a number two UK Singles Chart hit in 1963, and was backed by another tune otherwise unreleased by The Beatles, "I'll Be on My Way". After this impressive breakthrough another Lennon/McCartney pairing "Bad to Me" c/w "I Call Your Name" reached number one. "I'll Keep You Satisfied" ended the year with a respectable number four placing.
Billy was given a series of songs specially written for him by John Lennon and Paul McCartney which launched him into stardom and a proper place in the history of Rock and Roll. I'll Keep You Satisfied, From A Window, I Call Your Name and Bad to Me all became international million sellers for Billy, and won him appearances on the TV shows Shindig!, Hullabaloo and The Ed Sullivan Show.
The Dakotas , meanwhile, enjoyed Top 20 success in 1963 on their own with Mike Maxfield's composition "The Cruel Sea", an instrumental retitled "The Cruel Surf" in the U.S., which was subsequently covered by The Ventures. This was followed by a George Martin creation, "Magic Carpet", evoking a dreamy atmosphere with a subtle echo laden piano, playing the melody alongside Maxfield's guitar. But it missed out altogether and it was a year before their next release. All four tracks appeared on a highly-collectable EP later that year.
The three big hits penned by Lennon and McCartney meant that Kramer was always seemingly in the Beatles' shadow, unless he did tried something different. Despite being advised against it, he insisted on recording the Stateside chart hit "Little Children" - the lyrics were allegedly about getting his girlfriend's brothers and sisters out of the way so they could make love. It became his second chart topper and biggest hit. It was Kramer's only major hit outside of the UK. In the U.S., this was followed up with "Bad to Me" which reached number nine. Despite this success Kramer went backwards with his second and last UK single of 1964; another Lennon/McCartney cast-off "From A Window", which only just became a Top Ten hit.
After the peak
The year 1965 saw the end for the Merseybeat boom, and the next Kramer single was "It's Gotta Last Forever", which harked back to a ballad approach. In a year where mod-related music from the likes of The Who prevailed, the single missed completely. Kramer's cover of "Trains and Boats and Planes" saw off Anita Harris' cover version only to find itself in direct competition with its composer, Burt Bacharach's effort, which won the day. Kramer's effort still reached a respectable number 12, but was the group's swansong, as all future cuts missed the chart.
The Dakotas ranks were then strengthened by the inclusion of Mick Green, the ex-guitarist with the London band the Pirates who backed Johnny Kidd. This line-up cut a few tracks which were at odds with the balladeer's usual fare. These included a take on "When You Walk in the Room" and "Sneakin' Around". The Dakotas final outing whilst with Kramer was the blues driven "Oyeh!" - but this also flopped.
The final showing
After releasing "We're Doing Fine", it too missed the charts leaving singer and group to part company. Kramer had a brief solo career which took him eventually to live in America.
The Dakotas re-formed in the late 1980s and recruited vocalist Eddie Mooney and session musician Toni Baker. They still tour and record. Other latter-day members are drummer Pete Hilton and guitarist Alan Clare.
In 2005, Kramer recorded the song "Cow Planet" for Sandra Boynton's children's album, Dog Train. A long-time fan of Kramer's, Boynton had sought him out for her project: in 1964, at age 11, she had bought Little Children as the first album she ever owned.
Trains And Boats And Planes
Billy J. Kramer Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
They mean a trip to Paris or Rome
To someone else but not for me
The trains and boats and planes
Took you away, away from me
We were so in love, and high above
We had a star to wish upon. Wish
The trains and boats and planes
Took you away, away from me
You are from another part of the world
You had to go back a while and then
You said you soon would return again
I'm waiting here like I promised to
I'm waiting here but where are you
Trains and boats and planes took you a way
But every time I see them I pray
And if my prayers can cross the sea
The trains and the boats and planes
Will bring you back, back home to me
The song Trains And Boats And Planes by Billy J. Kramer is about the feeling of being left behind by someone who is important to you, who has gone away on trains, boats and planes to exotic destinations like Paris and Rome. The lyrics are filled with bittersweet longing and sadness, as the singer reminisces about the time he spent in love with the person who has left him behind. He remembers looking up at the stars with them, dreaming of a life together, and how those dreams never materialized. Instead, the trains, boats and planes took them away from each other.
The singer is waiting at home, hoping for the return of his beloved despite the distance between them. He prays every time he sees a train, boat or plane, hoping that they will bring his love back to him. The song portrays the sense of helplessness and longing that comes with being in love with someone who is far away, and the emotional toll it takes on a person. Despite this, the singer remains steadfast in his love, waiting in hope for the day when his prayers will be answered and his loved one will return to him.
Line by Line Meaning
Trains and boats and planes are passing by
The hustle and bustle of travel options surrounds me
They mean a trip to Paris or Rome
To others, those modes of transportation lead to adventure and excitement in far-off destinations
To someone else but not for me
But for me, those same options only serve as a reminder of what I've lost
The trains and boats and planes
These vehicles that carry people away from home
Took you away, away from me
Have taken my loved one away, leaving me alone
We were so in love, and high above
We were once deeply in love and felt like we were on top of the world
We had a star to wish upon. Wish
We shared a symbol of hope, a star to wish upon
And dreams come true, but not for me
But our dreams of being together didn't come true for me
You are from another part of the world
My loved one is from a different place than me
You had to go back a while and then
They had to return back home after being away for some time
You said you soon would return again
They promised to come back soon
I'm waiting here like I promised to
I'm keeping my promise of waiting for their return
I'm waiting here but where are you
But I'm still waiting and wondering where they are
Trains and boats and planes took you away
The modes of transportation they took to get home are the same ones that took them away from me originally
But every time I see them I pray
Whenever I see those transportation options, I pray for their safe return to me
And if my prayers can cross the sea
If my prayers could reach across the ocean
The trains and the boats and planes
These same vehicles that caused our separation
Will bring you back, back home to me
Could be the means of bringing my love back to me
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: BURT BACHARACH, HAL DAVID, BURT F. BACHARACH
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@di496
You never fail to bring us music lovers great songs sunryse111 always takes me back to my happy childhood when worries were very very few so thanks so much.
@sunryse111
They were much happier times, weren't they! Well, I'll be signing off here toward the end of this week ... leaving for three weeks of touring the French wine regions (uploads will continue automatically every 3 days). Back mid-July. Be safe and be happy! Victor.
@di496
Have a wonderful 3 weeks Victor.
@sunryse111
I'll try ... very hard! 😁
@daveshultz3718
Very well said Diane!
@philipnorris6542
Things are still great now, Diane.
@philbrown4341
One of my favourites since a very young age.Now 71 and still love it.
@Stemax1960
My God! I didn't realise that was a sad song until I saw the lyrics. A beautiful well written song.
@sunryse111
Yes - written by Hal David and Burt Bacharach. Terrific!
@dutchie9266
This song has been one of my favorite all times. It brings back many memories... Many years passed by and those were Good & Bad times. Many singers sung this song over the years but I love the version sung by Burt Bacharach.. 💯❤