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.
Lonesome Road
Kay Starr Lyrics
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Before you travel on.
Look down, look down that lonesome road
Before you travel on.
Look up, look up and greet your maker,
For Gabriel blows his horn.
Travelin' down that lonesome road,
Look down, look down that lonesome road
Before you travel on.
Weary totin', it's such a load,
Whike I'm travelin' down, travelin' down that lonesome old road,
Look down, look down that lonesome road
Before you travel on.
The lyrics to Kay Starr's song Lonesome Road are a warning to travelers to focus on their destination before beginning their journey. The repeated refrain of "look down, look down that lonesome road before you travel on" emphasizes the importance of paying attention to the path ahead, and not becoming distracted by the challenges and hardships of the journey. The lines "weary, totin' such a load, travelin' down that lonesome road" express the difficulty of the journey itself. The use of the word "totin'" emphasizes the physical strain of carrying a burden, while "lonesome road" emphasizes the emotional isolation and loneliness that can come with it.
The second stanza of the song encourages the traveler to "look up and greet your maker, for Gabriel blows his horn." This line brings a spiritual element to the song, suggesting that travelers should remember their ultimate destination and remain mindful of their purpose. The chorus repeats with the same message of warning and encouragement, with the added assurance that weary travelers are not alone on their journey.
Line by Line Meaning
Look down, look down that lonesome road
Take a deep, reflective look at the road ahead, which may be lonely and full of hardship.
Before you travel on.
Before you continue on your journey, assess the difficulties that await you.
Look up, look up and greet your maker,
Acknowledge and pay respect to the entity that created you, as signaled by the sound of Gabriel's trumpet.
For Gabriel blows his horn.
Gabriel, the archangel of God, has come to summon souls to their Judgment Day.
Weary, totin' such a load,
Tired and weighed down by the burdens of life.
Travelin' down that lonesome road,
Journeying through the hardships and isolation of life.
Look down, look down that lonesome road
Again, it is vital to take a careful look at the path ahead to avoid further hardship.
Before you travel on.
Before continuing, consider all of the challenges and difficulties that lie ahead.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, NATHANIEL SHILKRET MUSIC CO.
Written by: Gene Austin, Nathaniel Shilkret
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind