Billy J. Kramer (born William Howard Ashton, on August 19, 1943, in Bootle,… Read Full Bio ↴Billy J. Kramer (born William Howard Ashton, on August 19, 1943, in Bootle, Liverpool, England) was a British Invasion / Merseybeat singer who had a number of hits in the early 1960s as Billy J. Kramer & The Dakotas (aka Billy J. Kramer with The Dakotas). Kramer is known today primarily as the singer of various Lennon-McCartney compositions that The Beatles did not use.

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.

When You Wish Upon a Star
Billy J. Kramer Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

When a star is born
They possess a gift or two
One of them is this
They have the power to make a wish come true

When you wish upon a star
Makes no difference who you are
Anything your heart desires will come to you

If your heart is in your dream
No request is too extreme
When you wish upon a star
As dreamers do
Fate is kind

She brings to those who love
The sweet fulfillment of their secret longing

Like a bolt out of the blue
Fate steps in and sees you through
When you wish upon a star
Your dreams come true

When you wish upon a star
Makes no difference who you are
Anything your heart desires will come to you

If your heart is in your dream
No request is too extreme
When you wish upon a star
As dreamers do

Fate is kind
She brings to those who love
The sweet fulfillment of their secret longing
Like a bolt out of the blue
Fate steps in and sees you through

When you wish upon a star
Your dreams come true

Overall Meaning

The song "When You Wish Upon a Star" is a classic tune from the 1940 Disney film "Pinocchio", and has since become a beloved song frequently covered by various artists. The song speaks to the hope and magic of wishing upon a star, with the lyrics establishing the belief that stars possess the power to make wishes come true. The song details the idea that when you have a dream, no matter how impossible it may seem, the universe is on your side, and fate will step in to make it happen. Fate is kind to those who love, bringing the sweet fulfillment of secret longings when least expected.

The song is written in a way that makes it feel nostalgic as it speaks to something deep inside of us that we all long for, which is the power to make our wildest dreams come true. The use of wordplay between dreams, stars, and fate creates a magical and uplifting vibe that can give goosebumps while hearing it.

Line by Line Meaning

When a star is born
At the birth of a star,

They possess a gift or two
they have inherent abilities that define their nature

One of them is this
one such ability is that

They have the power to make a wish come true
they can fulfill your wishes

When you wish upon a star
When you express your deepest desires to a star,

Makes no difference who you are
regardless of your identity

Anything your heart desires will come to you
you will get whatever you long for

If your heart is in your dream
if you are fully invested in your aspirations

No request is too extreme
no ambition is too ambitious to fulfill

As dreamers do
like the way dreamers think,

Fate is kind
luck favors the determined