He was born in Glasgow, Kentucky, where his father was a barber who loved music and inspired Billy to teach himself to play the mandolin at age 3, while suffering a case of the measles. He went on to learn a number of other instruments.
In 1941, Vaughn joined the United States National Guard for what had been planned as a one-year assignment, but when World War II broke out, he was sent abroad till the war ended in 1945. He decided to make music a career when he was discharged from the army at the end of the war, and attended Western Kentucky State College, now known as Western Kentucky University, majoring in music composition. He had apparently learned barbering from his father, because he did some while studying at Western Kentucky to support himself financially, when he was not able to get jobs playing the piano at local night clubs and lounges. While he was a student there, three other students, Jimmy Sacca, Donald McGuire and Seymour Spiegelman, who had formed a vocal trio, The Hilltoppers, recruited Vaughn to play the piano with them. He soon added his voice to theirs, converting the trio to a quartet. As a member of the group, he also wrote their first hit song, Trying, which charted in 1952.
In 1954 he left the group to join Dot Records in Gallatin, Tennessee as music director. He subsequently formed his own orchestra, which had a big hit in that same year with Melody of Love. He went on to have many more hits over the next decade and a half, and based purely on chart successes, was the most successful orchestra leader of all time.
Take Me Home Country Roads
Billy Vaughn Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Blue Ridge Mountains
Shenandoah River.
Life is old there,
Older than the trees,
Younger than the mountains
Growing like a breeze.
To the place where I belong:
West Virginia, mountain mom,
Take me home, country roads.
All my memories gathered 'round her,
Miner's lady, stranger to blue water.
Dark and dusty, painted on the sky,
Misty taste of moonshine,
Teardrop in my eye.
Country roads, take me home
To the place I belong:
West Virginia, mountain momma,
Take me home, country roads.
I hear her voice, in the morning hour she calls me,
Radio reminds me of my home far away
And driving down the road I get a feeling
I should have been home yesterday, yesterday
Country roads, take me home
To the place where I belong:
West Virginia, mountain momma,
Take me home, country roads.
The lyrics of the song “Take Me Home, Country Roads” by Billy Vaughn is about the singer's longing to return to West Virginia, particularly to the Blue Ridge Mountains and the Shenandoah River. The first stanza of the song talks about the beauty of West Virginia, calling it "almost heaven." The singer describes the oldness of life there, being older than the trees but younger than the mountains- a poetic way of saying life has a certain stillness to it.
The chorus repeats the phrase, "Country roads, take me home" in a cathartic plea for the singer's homeplace. He describes West Virginia as his mountain momma, the place where he belongs. The second verse of the song further describes his memories that have gathered 'round her, he remembers the miner's lady and how she was a stranger to blue water. The imagery here is particularly focused on a darker and dustier life, painted on the sky with a misty taste of moonshine and a teardrop in his eye.
The third verse of the song takes on a more nostalgic tone as the singer says he hears her voice calling him in the morning hour. The radio reminds him of his home far away, and he is driving down the road with a feeling that he should have been home yesterday.
Line by Line Meaning
Almost heaven, West Virginia,
West Virginia is close to being heaven
Blue Ridge Mountains,
The mountains in West Virginia are blue in color
Shenandoah River.
The Shenandoah River runs through West Virginia
Life is old there,
People have lived there for a long time
Older than the trees,
The people have lived there longer than the trees have been alive
Younger than the mountains
The people are younger than the mountains
Growing like a breeze.
The people are growing and developing quickly
Country roads, take me home
I want to go home on the country roads
To the place where I belong:
To the place where I feel I fit in
West Virginia, mountain mom,
West Virginia is like a mother to me
Take me home, country roads.
I want to go home on the country roads
All my memories gathered 'round her,
All of my memories are centered around West Virginia
Miner's lady, stranger to blue water.
The people in West Virginia are miners who are unfamiliar with bodies of blue water
Dark and dusty, painted on the sky,
The sky looks dark and dusty from the mining in West Virginia
Misty taste of moonshine,
The alcohol in West Virginia tastes like mist
Teardrop in my eye.
I am emotional thinking about West Virginia
I hear her voice, in the morning hour she calls me,
I feel like West Virginia is calling out to me in the morning
Radio reminds me of my home far away
Hearing the radio reminds me of my far away home in West Virginia
And driving down the road I get a feeling
When I drive on the road, I feel something
I should have been home yesterday, yesterday
I should have gone back home to West Virginia yesterday
Country roads, take me home
I want to go home on the country roads
To the place where I belong:
To the place where I feel I fit in
West Virginia, mountain momma,
West Virginia is like a loving mother to me
Take me home, country roads.
I want to go home on the country roads
Lyrics © Roba Music Verlag GMBH, BMG Rights Management
Written by: Bill Danoff, John Denver, Taffy Nivert Danoff
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind