Arnold was born on May 15, 1918 on a farm near Henderson, Tennessee. His father, a sharecropper, played the fiddle, while his mother played guitar. As a boy Arnold helped on the farm, which later gained him his nickname—the Tennessee Plowboy. Arnold attended Pinson High School in Pinson, Tennessee, where he played guitar for school functions and events. He quit before graduation to help with the farm work, but continued performing, often arriving on a mule with his guitar hung on his back. Arnold also worked part-time as an assistant at a mortuary.
In 1934, at age 16, Arnold debuted musically on WTJS-AM in Jackson, Tennessee and obtained a job there during 1937. He performed at local nightclubs and was a permanent performer for the station. During 1938, he was hired by WMPS-AM in Memphis, Tennessee, where he was one of its most popular performers. He soon quit for KWK-AM in St. Louis, Missouri, followed by a brief stint at WHAS-AM in Louisville, Kentucky.
He performed for WSM-AM on the Grand Ole Opry during 1943 as a solo artist. In 1944, Arnold signed a contract with RCA Victor, with manager Colonel Tom Parker, who later managed Elvis Presley. Arnold's first single was little noticed, but the next, "Each Minute Seems a Million Years", scored No. 5 on the country charts during 1945. Its success began a decade of unprecedented chart performance; Arnold's next 57 singles all scored the Top Ten, including 19 number one scoring successes.
In 1946, Arnold scored his first major success with "That's How Much I Love You". In 1948, he had five successful songs on the charts simultaneously. That year he had nine songs score the top 10; five of these scored No. 1 and scored No. 1 for 40 of the year's 52 weeks. With Parker's management, Arnold continued to dominate, with 13 of the 20 best-scoring country music songs of 1947–1948. He became the host of Mutual Radio's Purina-sponsored segment of the Opry and of Mutual’s Checkerboard Jamboree, a midday program shared with Ernest Tubb that was broadcast from a Nashville theater. Recorded radio programs increased Arnold’s popularity, as did the CBS Radio series Hometown Reunion with the Duke of Paducah. Arnold quit the Opry during 1948, and his Hometown Reunion briefly broadcasted in competition with the Opry on Saturday nights. In 1949 and 1950, he performed in the Columbia movies Feudin’ Rhythm and Hoedown.
Arnold began working for television in the early 1950s, hosting The Eddy Arnold Show. The summer program was broadcast successively by all three television networks, replacing the Perry Como and Dinah Shore programs. He also performed as a guest and a guest host on the ABC-TV show Ozark Jubilee from 1955–60. Arnold featured in the syndicated Eddy Arnold Time from 1955 to 1957. From 1960 to 1961, he hosted NBC-TV's Today on the Farm.
With the rise of rock and roll in the 1950s, Arnold's record sales declined, though he and fellow RCA Victor recording artist Jim Reeves had a greater audience with popular-sounding string-laced arrangements. Arnold annoyed many people of the country music establishment by recording with the Hugo Winterhalter Orchestra at RCA's studios in New York. The pop-oriented arrangements of "The Cattle Call" and "The Richest Man (in the World)", however, helped to expand his appeal beyond its country music base. This style, pioneered by Reeves and Arnold, became known as the "Nashville Sound". During 1953, Arnold and Tom Parker had a dispute, and Arnold dismissed him. From 1954 to 1963, Arnold's performances were managed by Joe Csida; during 1964 Csida was replaced by Jerry Purcell.
Arnold embarked on a second career that brought his music to a more diverse audience. In the summer of 1965, he had his first Number One country song in ten years, What's He Doing in My World and struck gold again six months later with the song that would become his most well-known Make the World Go Away accompanied by pianist Floyd Cramer on piano and featuring the Anita Kerr Singers. As a result, Arnold's rendition became an international success.
Bill Walker's orchestra arrangements provided the lush background for 16 continuous successes sung by Arnold in the late 1960s. Arnold performed with symphony orchestras in New York City, Las Vegas and Hollywood. He performed in Carnegie Hall for two concerts, and in the Coconut Grove in Las Vegas.[9] During 1966, Arnold was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame, the youngest performer to receive the honor. The following year Arnold was voted the first-ever awarded Country Music Association's Entertainer Of The Year. Two years later, Arnold released an autobiography named It's A Long Way From Chester County.
Having been with RCA Victor since his debut during 1944, Arnold left the company in 1973 for MGM Records, for which he recorded four albums, which included several top 40 successes. He returned to RCA in 1976.
During the 1980s, Arnold declared himself semi-retired; however, he continued recording. In 1984, the Academy of Country Music awarded Arnold its Pioneer Award. His next album, You Don't Miss A Thing wasn't released until 1991. Arnold performed road tours for several more years. By 1992, he had sold nearly 85 million records, and had a total of 145 weeks of No. 1 songs, more than any other singer.
In 1996, RCA issued an album of Arnold's main successes since 1944 as part of its 'Essential' series. Arnold, then 76 years old, retired from active singing, though he still performed occasionally. On May 16, 1999, the day after his 81st birthday, he announced his final retirement during a concert at the Hotel Orleans in Las Vegas. That same year, the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences inducted the recording of "Make The World Go Away" into the Grammy Hall of Fame. In 2000, he was awarded the National Medal of Arts. In 2005, Arnold received a lifetime achievement award from the Recording Academy, and later that year, released a final album for RCA entitled After All These Years.
Eddy Arnold died from natural causes at 5:00 a.m. Central Time on May 8, 2008 in a nursing home in Nashville, exactly one week before his 90th birthday. His wife of 66 years, Sally Gayhart Arnold, had preceded him in death by two months. They were survived by two children (Richard E. Arnold, Jr., and JoAnn Arnold Pollard), two grandchildren (K. Michelle Pollard and R. Shannon Pollard, Jr.), and four great-grandchildren (Katie E. Pollard, Sophie Pollard, Rowan Pollard and Ben Johns).
On May 31, 2008, RCA released "To Life", as a single from the album After All These Years. It debuted at No. 49 on the Hot Country Songs charts, Arnold's first entry in 25 years and the recording by the oldest person to chart in Billboard magazine. It set the record for the longest span between a first chart single and a last: 62 years and 11 months ("Each Minute Seems Like a Million Years" debuted on June 30, 1945), and extended Arnold's career chart history to seven decades.
What's He Doin' in My World
Eddy Arnold Lyrics
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What's he doin' holdin' my world?
If he's not more than just a friend
Why were you kissin' him?
And what's he doin' in my world?
What's he doin' in my world?
Did you tell him that you're my girl?
Tell him my world's made for two
What's he doin' in my world?
Oh, don't let me keep on wonderin'
Just what you're gonna do
Wondering if the one I love
Loves somebody new
What's he doin' in my world?
We don't need him here in our world
So if it's true he's just a friend
Explain those kisses you gave him
And what's he doin' in my world?
The lyrics of Eddy Arnold's song "What's He Doin' in My World" is about a man who is in love with a woman and is feeling insecure and jealous about another man who is holding his world. He questions her about her relationship with the other man, wondering why she was kissing him and why he was even in their world. He wants her to clarify whether the other man is just a friend or something more, and if she truly loves him, she should tell the other man that her world is made for two, and not him.
The lyrics reveal the singer's deep sense of insecurity and need for reassurance from his lover. He feels threatened by the other man's presence in their world and needs to validate his place in her life. The lyrics also suggest that the woman has not been completely honest about her relationship with the other man, as the singer is left wondering about the kisses they shared. It is a classic tale of love, jealousy, and insecurity that captures the struggles of many relationships.
Line by Line Meaning
What's he doin' in my world?
Why is this guy in my life? What business does he have holding a piece of my world?
What's he doin' holdin' my world?
What exactly does this guy think he's doing by holding onto something that belongs to me?
If he's not more than just a friend
If this guy is not someone you're in a romantic relationship with, what was the reason you kissed him?
Why were you kissin' him?
This is a direct question that asks for an explanation as to why she kissed this guy, considering he's not more than a friend.
And what's he doin' in my world?
This serves as a reminder that the guy has no place in the singer's world and should not be there.
Did you tell him that you're my girl?
Did she make the extent of their relationship clear to this guy - that she's already taken and committed to the singer?
If your love is really true
If her feelings for the singer are real and sincere, and she truly loves him...
Tell him my world's made for two
She should make it clear to this guy that she has already found her partner, and that their world is reserved for just the two of them.
Oh, don't let me keep on wonderin'
The singer pleads with his partner to give him clarity and stop leaving him in a state of uncertainty or confusion.
Just what you're gonna do
He wants to know what she intends to do in order to resolve the situation with this guy.
Wondering if the one I love
The singer is worried and anxious, as he begins to suspect and fear that the woman he loves might be in love with someone else.
Loves somebody new
He fears that this woman he loves might have found new love in someone else's arms.
We don't need him here in our world
The guy has no place in their world, and the singer expresses a desire for his partner to reinforce this fact and keep him away.
So if it's true he's just a friend
If it's really true that the guy is just a friend, explain the reason for those kisses she gave him earlier.
Explain those kisses you gave him
The singer demands an explanation for the kisses, because they are confusing and seem to contradict the idea that this guy is just a friend.
And what's he doin' in my world?
The singer reiterates that the guy has no business being in his world, and his partner should take steps to make sure he's out of it for good.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: BILLY JOE MOORE, CARL BELEW, EDDIE BUSH
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind