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.
Ain’t Misbehavin’
Kay Starr Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
All by myself
No one to walk with
But I'm happy on the shelf
Ain't misbehavin'
I'm savin' my love for you
I know for certain
I'm through with flirtin'
It's just you I'm thinkin' of
Ain't misbehavin'
I'm savin' my love for you
Like Jack Horner
In the corner
Don't go nowhere
What do I care?
Your kisses are worth waitin' for
Believe me
I don't stay out late
Don't care to go
I'm home about eight
Just me and my radio
Ain't misbehavin'
I'm savin' my love for you
Like Jack Horner
In the corner
Don't go nowhere
What do I care?
Your kisses are worth waitin' for
Believe me
I don't stay out late
Don't care to go
I'm home about eight
Just me and my radio
Ain't misbehavin'
I'm savin' my love for you
The song Ain't Misbehavin' was written in 1929 by Fats Waller, Harry Brooks, and Andy Razaf. Kay Starr's version of the song has become one of the most famous renditions of the tune. The song is about a person who is alone but content with the thought of saving their love for someone special. The lyrics describe a person who does not have anyone to talk or walk with, but they are happy being alone and enjoying their own company. The singer has decided that they are through with flirting and that they have found the "one." They are saving their love for this special person and are content to wait patiently for their kisses.
The song uses the image of Jack Horner in the corner, who was a character from a nursery rhyme, to describe the feeling of waiting patiently for something worthwhile. The lyric "don't go nowhere, what do I care?" emphasizes the contentment felt by the singer while waiting.
Ain't Misbehavin' has become a jazz standard and has been recorded by many artists over the years, including Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald, and Billie Holiday. The song has also been featured in numerous movies, TV shows, and commercials. Additionally, the song has won several awards such as the Tony Award for best musical show album, and the Grammy Hall of Fame Award.
Line by Line Meaning
No one to talk with
I have no one to talk to
All by myself
I am alone
No one to walk with
I have no one to walk with
But I'm happy on the shelf
Despite being alone, I am content with my current situation
Ain't misbehavin'
I am behaving properly
I'm savin' my love for you
I am keeping my love for you only
I know for certain
I am certain
The one I love
I am in love with someone
I'm through with flirtin'
I am done with flirting with others
It's just you I'm thinkin' of
You are the only one on my mind
Like Jack Horner
Similar to Jack Horner
In the corner
In the corner of the room
Don't go nowhere
I don't go anywhere
What do I care?
I don't care
Your kisses are worth waitin' for
I am willing to wait for your kisses
Believe me
Trust me
I don't stay out late
I don't stay out late at night
Don't care to go
I don't care to go out
I'm home about eight
I am usually home around eight
Just me and my radio
I am alone with my radio
Ain't misbehavin'
I am behaving properly
I'm savin' my love for you
I am keeping my love for you only
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, BMG RIGHTS MANAGEMENT US, LLC
Written by: ANDY RAZAF, FATS WALLER, HARRY BROOKS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind