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.
I Cried for You
Kay Starr Lyrics
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Over things you said to me; I couldn't even sleep
You forgot your promises, every single vow
All you did was laugh at me, but things are different now
I cried for you; now it's your turn to cry over me
Every road has a turning
That's one thing you're learning
Now I found two eyes just a little bit bluer
I found a heart just a little bit truer
I cried for you; now it's your turn to cry over me
How can I forget the hours that I worried through
Wondering the live long day just what next thing to do?
In those days you never thought anything of me
But the slave that was all yours and now at last is free
I cried for you; now it's your turn to cry over me
Every road has a turning
That's one thing you're learning
I cried for you; what a fool I used to be
Now I found two eyes just a little bit bluer
I found a heart just a little bit truer
I cried for you; now it's your turn to cry over me
The song “I Cried for You” by Kay Starr is a heartfelt piece about a lover who did not appreciate her at a certain point in their relationship. She sings about how she used to weep and lose sleep over the things her lover said to her, and how he broke all his promises and laughed at her pain. However, as the song progresses, we learn that she has found someone new, someone with “two eyes just a little bit bluer” and “a heart just a little bit truer”. Despite his initial disregard for her feelings, she states that “now it’s your turn to cry over me” as she has moved on and found happiness elsewhere.
The lyrics of the song reflect the pain and heartbreak one feels when someone they love mistreats them. However, the song is also empowering in the sense that the singer has found inner strength and a newfound love that makes her forget the hurtful past. The melody and Kay Starr’s soulful rendition of the song add to the poignancy of the lyrics.
Line by Line Meaning
I remember other days how I used to weep
I recall in the past when I cried profusely
Over things you said to me; I couldn't even sleep
Your words caused me to stay awake and worry for hours on end
You forgot your promises, every single vow
You failed to keep your word and broke all of your promises
All you did was laugh at me, but things are different now
You used to find joy in my pain, but now the tables have turned
I cried for you; now it's your turn to cry over me
I wept for you in the past and now it's your time to experience the same emotions towards me
Every road has a turning
Every path in life leads to a change or shift
That's one thing you're learning
You're now experiencing the lesson that everything in life is transient
I cried for you; what a fool I used to be
In the past, I was foolish to have felt such strong emotions for you
Now I found two eyes just a little bit bluer
I have met someone else with more alluring and captivating eyes than yours
I found a heart just a little bit truer
This new person I've found has a heart that is more genuine and honest than yours ever was
How can I forget the hours that I worried through
I can't forget the countless hours I spent in distress over our relationship
Wondering the live long day just what next thing to do?
I pondered for hours on what my next course of action should be
In those days you never thought anything of me
You never considered my emotions or feelings during our time together
But the slave that was all yours and now at last is free
I was once under your control, but now I am free from your grasp
Now it's your turn to cry over me
The tables have turned, and you will now experience the emotions I once felt towards you
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Gus Arnheim, Arthur Freed, Abe Lyman
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind