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 Never Knew
Kay Starr Lyrics
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My arms go cold aching for you
No one can take your place
(Darlin', in my embrace)
I'll never be free
And when my lips burn with desire
No other kiss puts out the fire
(No one can satisfy)
This longing in me
(I'll never be free from your smile so tender)
(The sweet surrender in your eyes)
How can I be free when I still remember
How you could thrill me with a sigh
Just like a chain bound to my heart
Your love remains when we're apart
Each kiss, I gave to you
(Made me a slave to you)
I'll never be free
Just like a chain bound to my heart
Your love remains when we're apart
Each kiss, I gave to you
(Made me a slave to you)
And so I'll never be free
I'll never be free
The lyrics of Kay Starr's "I'll Never Be Free" express a sense of deep yearning for a lost love. The singer is describing how she feels when she holds someone new or kisses someone else, her arms grow cold and her lips still burn with desire for her past lover. She sings, "no one can take your place" and "no one can satisfy this longing in me." She acknowledges that she remembers the sensation of her past lover and how he could "thrill me with a sigh."
The lyrics convey a sense of being trapped in the past, "Just like a chain bound to my heart, Your love remains when we're apart, Each kiss, I gave to you, Made me a slave to you." The past lover's love is a chain that the singer is unable to break free from, and she feels like a slave to it. The lyrics end on a desolate note - "And so I'll never be free, I'll never be free." The lyrics highlight how love can be a powerful force, and how it can continue to haunt someone, long after the relationship has ended.
**Interesting Facts about Kay Starr's "I'll Never Be Free"**
* The song was written by Bennie Benjamin and George David Weiss and was first recorded by Dinah Washington in 1942.
* Kay Starr's version of the song was recorded in 1950 and became a hit, peaking at #2 on the Billboard Rhythm & Blues chart and #3 on the Billboard pop chart.
* The song has been covered by several artists, including Aretha Franklin, Van Morrison, and Willie Nelson.
* The song was featured in the 2006 movie "The Devil Wears Prada" during a scene in which the character Andy (played by Anne Hathaway) is feeling homesick.
* The song was also featured in the 1999 movie "Liberty Heights."
* Kay Starr was born in Oklahoma in 1922 and began performing as a child. She had several hits in the 1950s and was known for her distinctive voice and energetic style.
* In addition to her music career, Kay Starr also did voice-over work for commercials and appeared on TV shows like "The Ed Sullivan Show."
* She was inducted into the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame in 2001.
* The song has also been recorded in a duet version with artists including Bonnie Raitt and K.D. Lang.
* The chords for the song are C, Am, F, G7, and for the refrain, C, Am, F, G7, C.
Line by Line Meaning
Each time I hold somebody new
Whenever I embrace someone else
My arms go cold aching for you
I feel a chilling emptiness yearning for you
No one can take your place
No one can replace you
(Darlin', in my embrace)
(My love, in my arms)
I'll never be free
I'll never be liberated from the thoughts of you
And when my lips burn with desire
When I hunger for intimacy
No other kiss puts out the fire
No other smooch satisfies my passion
Though I may try and try
Even if I try my hardest
(No one can satisfy)
(No one can please me)
This longing in me
This yearning within me
(I'll never be free from your smile so tender)
(I'll always be captive to your gentle grin)
(The sweet surrender in your eyes)
(The tender submission in your gaze)
How can I be free when I still remember
How is it possible to release myself from you when I still remember
How you could thrill me with a sigh
How you could excite me with a faint breath
Just like a chain bound to my heart
Similar to a shackle attached to my heart
Your love remains when we're apart
Your love persists when we're not together
Each kiss, I gave to you
Every kiss I bestowed upon you
(Made me a slave to you)
(Enslaved me to you)
And so I'll never be free
Therefore, I'll never be liberated
I'll never be free
I'll never be free
Lyrics © Kanjian Music, BMG Rights Management, CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC, O/B/O DistroKid, Royalty Network, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Bennie Benjamin, George David Weiss
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind