Eva Cassidy was the third of four children born to Hugh and Barbara Cassidy. From an early age, she displayed artistic and musical talent. When she was nine years old, her father taught her to play the guitar, and she began to play and sing at family gatherings.
While a student at Bowie High School, she did sing with a local band, called Stonehenge, and received considerable praise.
At the age of eighteen, Cassidy began her professional career, singing and playing guitar in a Washington, D.C., area band, called Easy Street. This band performed in a variety of styles, at weddings, corporate parties, and pubs.
During the summer of 1983, Cassidy sang and played guitar, six days per week, at Wild World, in Maryland. Her brother Dan was also a member of this working band.
Throughout the 1980s, Cassidy worked with a number of other bands, including the soul and Motown-oriented band The Honeybees, and the techno-pop band Characters Without Names, later called Method Actor.
During this period, Cassidy also worked as a propagator at a plant nursery and as a furniture painter in Annapolis, Maryland. In 1986, she met (bassist and recording engineer) Chris Biondo, who encouraged her and helped her find work as a backup singer for various acts. In 1990, Biondo and Cassidy hired the so-called "Eva Cassidy Band", composed of Chris Biondo, Lenny Williams, Keith Grimes and Raice McLeod, and she began to perform frequently in the Washington area.
In 1992, Biondo played a tape of Cassidy's voice for Chuck Brown. Best known as the "Godfather of Go-go", Brown is also a jazz and blues vocalist. This led to the first commercial recording of Cassidy, the duet album with Chuck Brown, The Other Side; which featured performances of classic songs such as "Fever", Billie Holiday's "God Bless the Child" and Cassidy's signature tune "Over the Rainbow". The album was released and distributed by Liaison Records, the label that also released Brown's Go-go albums. The duet CD attracted the attention of various record companies, but the offers all required Cassidy to pigeonhole herself within a single style (e.g., pop or jazz), something she adamantly refused to do.[citation needed]
In 1993 Eva Cassidy was first honored by the Washington area music community when she was awarded two Wammie awards for "Female Vocalist Roots/Traditional R&B" and "Vocalist Jazz/Traditional." The next year she was chosen to perform for the awards ceremony.
In January 1996, Cassidy recorded the album Live at Blues Alley, about which The Washington Post later commented that "she could sing anything and make it sound like the only music that mattered". [1] Cassidy was unhappy with her singing on the album, because she had a bad cold on the night of the recording; she began recording a studio album which was eventually released as Eva by Heart posthumously in 1997.
During a promotional event for the Live at Blues Alley CD in July 1996, Cassidy noticed an ache in her hips, which she attributed to stiffness from painting murals. The pain persisted, and, a few weeks later, Cassidy was diagnosed with melanoma. By the time of her diagnosis, the cancer had spread throughout her body. Cassidy's health rapidly deteriorated, and her final performance was in September 1996. At the performance, she had used a walker to reach the stage, sang "What a Wonderful World" in front of an audience of friends, and was subsequently admitted to Johns Hopkins Hospital.[citation needed]
Eva Cassidy died on November 2, 1996, at the age of 33. She was posthumously inducted into the Hall of Fame of the Washington Area Music Association.
Penny to My Name
Eva Cassidy Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Daddy left this gas & convenience store just before he died
And I was only nineteen when I had my third baby
And sometimes I think maybe I should've left here long ago
Travellers are stopping by, check their oil and their p.s.i.
Gas up and away to fly, moving down the line
But this beat-up truck & worn out shoes always give me the blues
I never seen the city lights
How they must shine so bright
Not like this country night
The sky's black as coal
And this gas-station mountain home
Not a thing to call my own
How I wish I was alone
With a penny to my name
Strangers say this mountain here is beautiful beyond compare
But it's just a dumb old mountain; I see it every day
If I could see sunset skies over fields of green or ocean-tides,
City skyline in the night, I'll be dancing till the dawn
I never seen the city lights
How they must shine so bright
Not like this country night
The sky's black as coal
And this gas-station mountain home
Not a thing to call my own
How I wish I was alone
With a penny to my name
Bill and I got married following our first born
Daddy left this gas & convenience store just before he died
Maybe Bill & I someday will find a chance to get away
Until then it's here I'll stay wishing on a star
I never seen the city lights
How they must shine so bright
Not like this country night
The sky's black as coal
And this gas-station mountain home
Not a thing to call my own
How I wish I was alone
With a penny to my name
The lyrics of "Penny to My Name" narrate the story of a woman who got married at a young age and led a life of poverty in a desolate gas and convenience store in the countryside. She reflects on the hardships she endured raising her children and being stuck in a dead-end job, longing for a life in the city where she imagines bright lights and freedom. Her husband, Bill, is an alcoholic and often drinks at night. Her only solace is the view of the mountain, but even that has become mundane to her.
The song's lyrics are melancholic and paint a vivid picture of the woman's monotonous life in contrast to the world outside her small town. Although she talks about her situation, the song also deals with universal themes of hope, loss, and longing for something better. It’s a universal story of someone feeling that her life is far from the one she had imagined or hoped for.
Line by Line Meaning
Bill and I got married following our first born
Bill and I got married after having our first child together.
Daddy left this gas & convenience store just before he died
My father passed away shortly after selling this gas and convenience store.
And I was only nineteen when I had my third baby
I had my third child at a young age of nineteen.
And sometimes I think maybe I should've left here long ago
I sometimes wonder if I should have left this place a long time ago.
Travellers are stopping by, check their oil and their p.s.i.
Travelers often stop by to get their car's oil and pressure checked.
Gas up and away to fly, moving down the line
They fill up their tanks with gas and continue their journey.
But this beat-up truck & worn out shoes always give me the blues
My worn-out shoes and beat-up truck make me feel depressed.
Billy sucking down the booze nearly every night
My partner Bill drinks heavily almost every night.
I never seen the city lights
I have never witnessed the dazzling lights of the city.
How they must shine so bright
I imagine the city lights must be radiant and captivating.
Not like this country night
This country night is not as vibrant as the city lights.
The sky's black as coal
The sky is pitch-black, just like coal.
And this gas-station mountain home
This house located in the mountain area adjacent to the gas station.
Not a thing to call my own
I don't own anything here; everything is shared or belonging to someone else.
How I wish I was alone
I really wish I could be by myself sometimes.
With a penny to my name
Having just a penny to my name would be enough to bring a change in my life.
Strangers say this mountain here is beautiful beyond compare
People who don't live here often comment on how beautiful this mountain is.
But it's just a dumb old mountain; I see it every day
For me, it's just a regular mountain that I see daily.
If I could see sunset skies over fields of green or ocean-tides
If I could see beautiful sunsets over green fields or ocean-tides, it would be amazing.
City skyline in the night, I'll be dancing till the dawn
If I ever saw a spectacular city skyline at night, I would dance until the morning.
Maybe Bill & I someday will find a chance to get away
Perhaps, Bill and I will get an opportunity to relocate someday.
Until then it's here I'll stay wishing on a star
Until then, I will stay here, hoping and wishing for a better future.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Laurylie Polito
Bill and I got married following our first born
Daddy left this gas & convenience store just before he died
And I was only nineteen when I had my third baby
And sometimes I think maybe I should've left here long ago
Travellers are stopping by, check their oil and their p.s.i.
Gas up and away to fly, moving down the line
But this beat-up truck & worn out shoes always give me the blues
Billy sucking down the booze nearly every night
[Chorus]
I never seen the city lights
How they must shine so bright
Not like this country night
The sky's black as coal
And this gas-station mountain home
Not a thing to call my own
How I wish I was alone
With a penny to my name
Strangers say this mountain here is beautiful beyond compare
But it's just a dumb old mountain; I see it every day
If I could see sunset skies over fields of green or ocean-tides,
City skyline in the night, I'll be dancing till the dawn
[Chorus]
Bill and I got married following our first born
Daddy left this gas & convenience store just before he died
Maybe Bill & I someday will find a chance to get away
Until then it's here I'll stay wishing on a star
[Chorus]
Salt Rock Shakers
"PENNY TO MY NAME" by Eva Cassidy was written by Roger Henderson from the Washington D.C. area. He was about to throw this song away when Chris Biondo got him to let Eva Cassidy record it in 1988. It quickly became Henderson's favorite song after hearing Eva sing it. She recorded the lead vocals and the background vocals; Henderson recorded two guitar tracks; Biondo played the bass and Dan Cassidy recorded the fiddle a few days later. This is the second project Eva worked on for Biondo's studio. It was put on Henderson's album (Replugged) with Eva's singing instead of Roger's. To me, this song has "#1 Folk song" written all over it.
Jim Fryer
Thanks for shedding light on the creation of this song.
Danny Casillas
Love is personified in the purest form through song and with such an elegant voice. We love and miss you Eva Cassidy, everyday. From your fans, all of the world that have followed you all these years, those feelings are forever.
James Murphy-Walsh
Love this song her voice is so angelic and pure . Literally the purest voice from any singer ever Eva was an angel !
Richard Perkins
She still is. In Heaven making beautiful music.
Steven Garfinkel
I am, but should not be, surprised at how good she is at country music. Nightbird and Anniversary Song are hints at this. Her unassuming and humble personality also fits country music.
I am hoping over the years more videos or recording will turn up so we can expand her play list. There are notes she hits that just make you emotionally respond to whatever it is she is singing.
Matthias Hess
There's nothing she can't do.
Erik Eide
She excelled at folk music, which is really similar to country, so this isn't surprising to me at all. Even though this has a little more twang than usual, I still consider this folk.
Ed Stockton
I have never met a song that didn't desperately wish it could have been recorded by Eva Cassidy.
coladuo
Eva Cassidy is the best girl in the world. She is kind and beautiful. 😊💕💕💕