Kay Starr was successful in every field of music she tried, jazz, country and pop. But her roots were in jazz, Billie Holiday, considered by many the greatest jazz singer of all time, called Starr "the only white woman who could sing the blues."
She is best remembered for introducing two songs that became #1 hits in the 1950s, "Wheel of Fortune" and "The Rock And Roll Waltz".
Kay Starr was born on a reservation in Dougherty, Oklahoma. Her father, Harry, was a full-blooded Iroquois Indian; her mother, Annie, was of mixed Irish and American Indian heritage. When her father got a job installing water sprinkler systems, the family moved to Dallas, Texas.
While her father worked for the Automatic Sprinkler Company, her mother raised chickens, and Kay used to sing to the chickens in the coop. As a result of the fact that her aunt, Nora, was impressed by her singing, she began to sing at the age of seven on a Dallas radio station, WRR, first in a talent competition where she finished third one week and won every week thereafter, then with her own weekly fifteen minute show. She sang pop and "hillbilly" songs with a piano accompaniment. By the age of ten, she was making $3 a night, a lot of money in the Depression days.
As a result of her father's changing jobs, her family moved to Memphis, Tennessee, and she continued performing on the radio, singing "Western swing music," still mostly a mix of country and pop. It was while she was on the Memphis radio station WMPS that, as a result of misspellings in her fan mail, she and her parents decided to give her the name "Kay Starr". At the age of fifteen, she was chosen to sing with the Joe Venuti orchestra. Venuti had a contract to play in the Peabody Hotel in Memphis which called for his band to feature a girl singer, which he did not have; Venuti's road manager heard her on the radio, and suggested her to Venuti. Because she was still in junior high school, her parents insisted that Venuti take her home no later than midnight.
Although she had brief stints in 1939 with Bob Crosby and Glenn Miller (who hired her in July of that year when his regular singer, Marion Hutton, was sick), she spent most of her next few years with Venuti, until he dissolved his band in 1942. It was, however, with Miller that she cut her first record: "Baby Me"/"Love with a Capital You." It was not a great success, in part because the band played in a key more appropriate for Marion Hutton, which was less suited for Kay's vocal range.
Riders in the Sky
Kay Starr Lyrics
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Upon a ridge he resred as he went along his way,
When all at once a mighty herd of red-eyed cows he saw,
A-ploughin' through the ragged skies and up a cloudy draw.
Yippy-I-Ay, yippy-I-oh!
A ghost herd in the sky!
Their horns were black and shiny and their hot breath he could feel.
O bolt of fear went through him as they thundered through the sky,
For he saw the riders comin' hard , and he heard their mournful cry!
Yippy-I-Ay, yippy-I-oh!
Ghost riders in the sky!
Their faces gaunt, their eyes were blurred and shirts all soaked with sweat,
They're ridin' hard to catch that herd, but they ain't caught them yet!
'Cause they've got to ride for ever on that range up in the sky,
On horses snortin' fire, as they ride on hear them cry;
Yippy-I-Ay, yippy-I-oh!
Ghost riders in the sky!
As the riders loped on by him, he heard one call his name,
"If you wanna save your soul from hell a-ridin' on this range,
Then cowboy, change your ways today or with us you will ride,
A-tryin' to catch the devil, sir, acroos these endless skies!".
Yippy-I-Ay, yippy-I-oh!
Ghost riders in the sky!
Yippy-I-Ay, yippy-I-oh!
The song, "Riders In The Sky" by Kay Starr, tells the story of an old cowpoke who witnesses a spectral herd of cows and their riders galloping across the sky. The cowpoke is struck with fear and awe at the sight, as the riders appear to be chasing the herd endlessly through the clouds. The lyrics describe the appearance of the spectral riders who are gaunt and their eyes are blurred, all while their shirts are soaked with sweat as they tirelessly ride on horses snorting fire.
The lyrics go on to describe how one of the riders calls out the cowpoke's name, urging him to change his ways, lest he too ends up chasing the devil across the endless skies, as part of this spectral herd. The song's lyrics blend elements of the western genre with a touch of supernaturalism, making it a unique contribution to the genre of cowboy music. Interestingly, the song is often credited as the first cowboy music piece to break into the pop charts, where it remained for over 26 weeks.
Line by Line Meaning
An old cowpoke went ridin' out one dark and windy day,
Once upon a time, an aged cowboy went out on a dark and windy day for a ride.
Upon a ridge he rested as he went along his way,
As he was riding, he paused on a hilltop to rest and reflect.
When all at once a mighty herd of red-eyed cows he saw,
Suddenly, he noticed a huge herd of cattle with red eyes.
A-ploughin' through the ragged skies and up a cloudy draw.
These cows were flying through the sky and ascending a cloudy path.
Their brands were still on fire and their hooves were made of steel,
The cattle's brands were fiery and their hooves were made of steel.
Their horns were black and shiny and their hot breath he could feel.
Their horns were shiny and black, and he could feel their hot breath.
A bolt of fear went through him as they thundered through the sky,
The cowboy was frightened when he saw the cattle thundering through the sky.
For he saw the riders comin' hard, and he heard their mournful cry!
He also noticed the ghost riders coming on horseback, making a mournful sound.
Their faces gaunt, their eyes were blurred and shirts all soaked with sweat,
The riders' faces looked thin and tired, their eyes were blurry, and their shirts were drenched in sweat.
They're ridin' hard to catch that herd, but they ain't caught them yet!
The ghost riders are riding fast to capture the cattle but have not succeeded so far.
'Cause they've got to ride forever on that range up in the sky,
The ghost riders are doomed to ride forever on this sky range.
On horses snortin' fire, as they ride on hear them cry;
They are riding horses that breathe fire and can be heard crying.
As the riders loped on by him, he heard one call his name,
While the ghost riders passed him, one of them called his name.
"If you wanna save your soul from hell a-ridin' on this range,
The rider warned the cowboy to save his soul from hell by not riding on this range.
Then cowboy, change your ways today or with us you will ride,
The cowboy must change his ways or be doomed to ride with ghost riders.
A-tryin' to catch the devil, sir, across these endless skies!"
Otherwise, he'll be trying to catch the devil in the endless skies forever.
Yippy-I-Ay, yippy-I-oh!
A joyful cowboy exclamation.
Ghost riders in the sky!
The ghost cowboy riders in the sky.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: Stanley Jones
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind