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 Cry by Night
Kay Starr Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And I cry by night
I pretend to each friend
That my world is alright
They know you're gone
And they see
How I feel deep inside
So they're blind
To the hurt I can hide
Yes I laugh by day
When people are near
Because what else
What else am I to do
But I cry by night
All alone with my tears
For the what and the need of you
Till you're back In my arms
Nothing's good, nothing's right
I may laugh by day
But I'll cry, oh I'll cry by night
I may laugh by day
But I'll cry, oh I'll cry by night
The song "I Cry by Night" is a heart-wrenching ballad about trying to put on a brave face during the day, but breaking down in tears at night when the pain of losing a loved one becomes too much to bear. Kay Starr's powerful vocals convey the depth of emotions she is feeling and the lyrics describe how she tries to hide her pain from others, who may be unaware of the intense grief she is experiencing.
The first verse establishes the dichotomy between her outward appearance during the day and her hidden feelings at night. She puts on a mask to appear happy and normal to her friends, but they can see through her façade and recognize that she is struggling. The second verse reinforces this concept, with the added layer of feeling powerless to change the situation - she feels the need to act cheerful when others are around, but when she is alone with her thoughts, the overwhelming sadness takes over.
The chorus brings it all together, emphasizing that while she may try to hide her pain during the day, it all comes out in the form of tears at night. The repetition of "I may laugh by day, but I'll cry, oh I'll cry by night" drives home the emotional turmoil she is experiencing.
Overall, "I Cry by Night" is a beautifully written and performed song that speaks to the universal experience of grief and the struggle to portray a positive outlook when everything feels like it's falling apart.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh, I laugh by day
During the day I put on a facade of humor and happiness
And I cry by night
But when I'm alone at night my true emotions surface and I feel a deep sadness
I pretend to each friend
I'll put on a brave face in front of others, pretending everything's okay
That my world is alright
I don't want to burden others with my emotions or bring attention to my sadness
They know you're gone
My friends are aware that you are no longer with me
And they see
They can sense the pain I carry
How I feel deep inside
They know that I am hurting despite my attempts to hide it
But they're kind
My friends are compassionate and understanding
So they're blind
But they choose to overlook my sadness as a way to spare me additional pain
To the hurt I can hide
I am able to cover up my emotions from those around me
Yes I laugh by day
I can force myself to smile and act like everything's okay during the day
When people are near
When there are others around to observe my behavior
Because what else
It's the only option I have to avoid being seen as weak or vulnerable
What else am I to do
I feel like I have to put on a brave face for everyone else, even though it hurts me
But I cry by night
When I'm alone at night, my true emotions surface and I break down
All alone with my tears
No one is around to see me break down and cry
For what and the need of you
I cry because I miss you and need you in my life
Till you're back in my arms
My sadness will continue until I have you back with me
Nothing's good, nothing's right
Without you, life feels empty and meaningless
I may laugh by day
I'll continue to put on a brave face during the day
But I'll cry, oh I'll cry by night
But at night when I'm alone my sadness will surface and I will cry
Contributed by Victoria S. Suggest a correction in the comments below.