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.
HELLO DARLIN`
Bobby Bare Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You're just as lovely as you used to be
How's your new love are you happy hope you're doing fine
Just to know this means so much to me
What's that darlin' how'm I doing guess I'm doing all right
Except I can't sleep and I cry all night till dawn
What I'm trying to say is I love you and I miss you
And I'm sorry that I did you wrong
Look up darlin' let me kiss you just for old time sake
Let me hold you in my arms one more time
Thank you darlin' may God bless you and may each step you take
Bring you closer to the things you seek to find
Goodbye darlin' I gotta go now gotta try to find a way
To lose these mem'ries of a love so warm and true
And if you should ever find it in your heart to forgive me
Come back darlin' I'll be waiting for you
The lyrics to Bobby Bare's song "Hello Darlin'" are about a man meeting his former love after a long time. He greets her kindly, acknowledging that she is just as beautiful as he remembers her to be. He then asks about her new love and wishes her well. However, he confesses that he cannot stop thinking about her and how much he loves and misses her. He apologizes for any wrong that he may have done, hoping for forgiveness. To relive old memories, he asks to kiss her one last time before saying goodbye and hoping that she finds what she is seeking in life.
Line by Line Meaning
Hello darlin' nice to see you it's been a long time
It's wonderful to meet you again, my dear, after such a long time.
You're just as lovely as you used to be
You remain as charming as you were in my memories.
How's your new love are you happy hope you're doing fine
I sincerely hope that you are well and that your new relationship is making you happy.
Just to know this means so much to me
Just hearing about your happiness brings me joy.
What's that darlin' how'm I doing guess I'm doing all right
What do you think? I might seem alright on the surface, but I'm struggling emotionally.
Except I can't sleep and I cry all night till dawn
In truth, I'm going through a lot of heartache and pain, spending sleepless nights crying.
What I'm trying to say is I love you and I miss you
The heart of the matter is, I still have feelings for you and my heart longs to be reunited with you.
And I'm sorry that I did you wrong
I regret and apologize for any pain I may have caused you in the past.
Look up darlin' let me kiss you just for old time sake
Allow me to plant a kiss on your lips just like old times, my love.
Let me hold you in my arms one more time
Allow me to embrace you in my arms one last time before we part ways again.
Thank you darlin' may God bless you and may each step you take
Thank you for this brief reunion, may God bless and guide every step you take in your journey.
Bring you closer to the things you seek to find
May each step bring you closer to the things you desire and seek to find.
Goodbye darlin' I gotta go now gotta try to find a way
Farewell, my love, I must leave now and try to find a way to move on from these memories.
To lose these mem'ries of a love so warm and true
To forget and erase the memories of a love that was once so warm and true.
And if you should ever find it in your heart to forgive me
In the event that you find it in your heart to forgive me for my mistakes,
Come back darlin' I'll be waiting for you
Please come back to me, my love, I'll be waiting for you with open arms.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Conway Twitty
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind