In the fifties after many failed attempts to sell his songs, he finally was signed up with Capitol Records and recorded a few rock and roll songs without much chart success. Just before he was drafted into the Army, he wrote a song called 'The All American Boy' and did a demo for his friend, Bill Parsons, to learn and record it. Instead of using the version Bill Parsons did later, the record company, Fraternity Records, decided to use the original demo done by Bobby Bare. The record reached number 2 on the Billboard Top 100, but it was wrongly credited to Bill Parsons.
His real big break came when RCA boss and guitarist Chet Atkins signed him to the RCA label. The first song he released on this label, 'Shame On Me', sold nearly a million copies and pushed Bobby Bare to fame overnight. His second RCA release, 'Detroit City' won him a Grammy for the best song of the year. Then a surge of hits followed, including '500 Miles Away From Home', 'Four Strong Winds' and others. He has also recorded two very successful albums with Skeeter Davis and has also dueted with Lacy J. Dalton and Rosanne Cash and additionally had a major hit as part of a trio with Norma Jean (singer) and Liz Anderson in 1967 titled 'The Game of Triangles'.
He moved to Mercury label in 1970 and had two big hits from early Kris Kristofferson compositions, 'Come Sundown' and 'Please Don't Tell Me How The Story Ends' before returning to RCA label where he produced his own records. Later Bare moved to CBS label and in 1979, he helped establish Rosanne Cash's career by singing with her on "No Memories Hangin' Round". Bare's singles for Columbia Records included 'The Jogger', 'Tequila Sheila', 'Gotta Get Rid Of This Band', 'When Hippies Get Older' and 'Numbers'. He later recorded for EMI with little success.
Bobby Bare is a versatile singer, and in the 70s started to release novelty songs recorded live with selected audiences. One of such songs, 'Marie Laveau' about a witch, reached the number one position on the country chart. This song was written by his friend, a very talented song writer, poet, author and cartoonist Shel Silverstein. He also penned many other songs for Bobby Bare including a Grammy nominated hit called 'Daddy What If' which he recorded with his five year old son, Bobby Bare Jr, who later became a star on his own. Bobby Bare later recorded a very successful album with his family and penned mainly by Shel called 'Singing in The Kitchen'. It was nominated for best group category in Grammy Awards but was declined by Bobby himself.
He later took chances recording strange, controversial material as 'Dropkick Me Jesus (Through The Goalposts Of Life)' (a 1976 Grammy nominee) and the expletive-driven 'Redneck Hippie Romance' with much success.
Bobby Bare is also the first to come up with a concept album called 'Bird Named Yesterday' which was very successful. His most successful concept album is 'Lullaby Legends and Lies'.
Bobby Bare was also given an opportunity to star in the movies. He did a Western with Troy Donahue called A Distant Trumpet, and a few episodes of a TV series called No Time for Sergeants. He turned his back on Hollywood to pursue his career in Country Music.
In 1998 he formed the band Old Dogs together with his friends Jerry Reed, Mel Tillis and Waylon Jennings.
In addition to the above, Bobby Bare is credited for introducing Waylon Jennings to RCA. He is also one of the first to record from many well known song writers such as Jack Clement, Harlan Howard, Billy Joe Shaver, Mickey Newberry, Tom T. Hall, Kris Kristofferson, and many others. He later had a TV series called 'Bobby Bare & Friends, A Song Writer Showcase'. Recently, he has recorded a new album after over 20 years called 'The Moon Was Blue' produced by his son. His son, Bobby Bare, Jr., is also a musician.
Brian Hennessey
Bobby Bare Lyrics
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When he saw her eyes grow wide and wild and dark
And she whispered through her toothless gums and clutched him by the arm
She said, "Boy, I fear I see the devil′s mark"
Brian Hennessey just laughed and pealed the ten-spot from his roll
'Cause he′d never ever known the taste of fear
But he wondered why the summer nights should suddenly turn cold
"You can run, you can hide, Brian Hennessey", she cried
"But you can't escape the fate that′s in your hand
And say, how does it feel to have dealt your final deal
Go on lay down, Brian, you′re a dying man"
Brian Hennessey walked through the doors of the Dining Dog Saloon
Where he stopped to have his nightly glass of gin
And the one-eyed scar-faced stranger a dealing blackjack in the gloom
Winked his ghastly grey glass eye and dealt him in
Brian watched in fascination as the stranger's fingers flew
Why he′d never seen such cheatin' done before
And his hand closed round a handle of his snub-nose 32
When the gypsy′s warning come to him once more
"Oh, you can run, you can hide, Brian Hennessey," she cried
"But you can't escape the fate that′s in your hand
And say how does it feel to have dealt your final deal?
Go on lay down, Brian, you're a dying man"
Brian Hennessey just folded up his cards and walked away
Holding back the rage that burned his soul
And he stopped to have some coffee at the Mockingbird Cafe
But that slender blue-eyed waitress was his goal
And a few words from his silver tongue soon turned her fluffy head
She said, "My husband's out of town, you need not fear"
But as he pressed her to the softness of her fluffy-feathered bed
On her pillows he saw written bright and clear
Oh, you can run, you can hide, daring letters clear and wide
Said you can′t escape the fate that′s in your hand
And say how does it feel to have dealt your final deal
Go on lay down, Brian, you're a dying man
Brian Hennessey, he stumbled down the stairs into the street
And from that day on he changed his wicked life
And he never drunk or gambled and he never dealt no dough
And he never touched another fellow′s wife
And years later he met the gypsy when his days were almost done
He said, "Ha, ha, I beat your curse, don't you know"
But when she saw the frightened, trembling, withered wretch that he′d become
She said, "Brian, you died 20 years ago"
"Because you ran and you hid, that's exactly what you did
But you didn′t escape the fate that's in your hand
And say how did it feel to have dealt your final deal?
Go on lay down, Brian, you're a dying man"
The lyrics of Bobby Bare's song "Brian Hennessey" tell the story of a man who is warned by a gypsy that he is marked by the devil and cannot outrun his fate. Brian Hennessey, a gambler and drinker, scoffs at the gypsy's warning and proceeds with his life, until the gypsy's words come back to him in a saloon as he contemplates using violence to deal with a cheating blackjack dealer. He is warned again by the gypsy, who tells him he cannot escape his fate, but Brian decides to walk away instead of resorting to violence. He then proceeds to seduce a married woman and is confronted with the words of the gypsy yet again as he discovers the words "you're a dying man" written on her pillow.
The song shows the power of fate and destiny in our lives and how our actions can ultimately lead us to our predetermined end. Brian Hennessey's transformation and eventual realization that his destiny could not be outrun is a cautionary tale of how we must face our fate rather than run from it.
Line by Line Meaning
Brian Hennessey sat back and let the gypsy read his palm
Brian Hennessey relaxed and allowed the gypsy to read his palm
When he saw her eyes grow wide and wild and dark And she whispered through her toothless gums and clutched him by the arm She said, "Boy, I fear I see the devil′s mark"
The gypsy looked at Brian's palm and said fearfully that she sees the devil's mark
Brian Hennessey just laughed and pealed the ten-spot from his roll 'Cause he′d never ever known the taste of fear But he wondered why the summer nights should suddenly turn cold As the gypsy's words come ringing in his ear
Brian laughed and paid the gypsy because he was not afraid but he could not understand why the nights suddenly turn cold after listening to her.
"You can run, you can hide, Brian Hennessey", she cried "But you can't escape the fate that′s in your hand And say, how does it feel to have dealt your final deal Go on lay down, Brian, you′re a dying man"
The gypsy warned Brian that he cannot escape his destiny, no matter how much he may run or hide, he will have to lay down and face it some day
Brian Hennessey walked through the doors of the Dining Dog Saloon Where he stopped to have his nightly glass of gin And the one-eyed scar-faced stranger a dealing blackjack in the gloom Winked his ghastly grey glass eye and dealt him in
Brian stopped at the Dining Dog Saloon for his usual drink and joined a game of blackjack dealt by a one-eyed, scar-faced stranger
Brian watched in fascination as the stranger's fingers flew Why he′d never seen such cheatin' done before And his hand closed round a handle of his snub-nose 32 When the gypsy′s warning come to him once more
Brian was intrigued by the stranger's cheating technique and reached for his gun when the gypsy's warning came back to him
"Oh, you can run, you can hide, Brian Hennessey," she cried "But you can't escape the fate that′s in your hand And say how does it feel to have dealt your final deal? Go on lay down, Brian, you're a dying man"
The gypsy reiterated her warning that Brian cannot escape his fate and will have to face it one day
Brian Hennessey just folded up his cards and walked away Holding back the rage that burned his soul And he stopped to have some coffee at the Mockingbird Cafe But that slender blue-eyed waitress was his goal
Brian calmed down and left the game, stopping at a cafe where he became interested in a waitress
And a few words from his silver tongue soon turned her fluffy head She said, "My husband's out of town, you need not fear" But as he pressed her to the softness of her fluffy-feathered bed On her pillows he saw written bright and clear
Brian's charm convinced the waitress to sleep with him, despite her having a husband who was out of town. However, he noticed a message on her pillows warning him about his fate
Oh, you can run, you can hide, daring letters clear and wide Said you can′t escape the fate that′s in your hand And say how does it feel to have dealt your final deal Go on lay down, Brian, you're a dying man
The message on the pillow repeated the gypsy's warning that Brian cannot escape his fate
Brian Hennessey, he stumbled down the stairs into the street And from that day on he changed his wicked life And he never drunk or gambled and he never dealt no dough And he never touched another fellow′s wife
Brian realized the warning was true and stopped his wicked ways, avoiding gambling, drinking and sinning with other men's wives
And years later he met the gypsy when his days were almost done He said, "Ha, ha, I beat your curse, don't you know" But when she saw the frightened, trembling, withered wretch that he′d become She said, "Brian, you died 20 years ago"
Years later, Brian met the gypsy again but he was an old, frightened and trembling man. The gypsy told him that he had died twenty years ago
"Because you ran and you hid, that's exactly what you did But you didn′t escape the fate that's in your hand And say how did it feel to have dealt your final deal? Go on lay down, Brian, you're a dying man"
The gypsy explained that Brian had hidden but he had cannot run from his fate, he had to lay down and face it one day
Writer(s): Shel Silverstein
Contributed by Alyssa H. Suggest a correction in the comments below.