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.
Sweet Lorraine
Kay Starr Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Can't believe it yet, but it's true,
I'll give you just one guess,
My sweet Lorraine said "yes"
Waiting for the time, soon to be,
When the bells will chime merrily,
(I'm so happy,) when it's raining I don't miss the sun,
Just think that I'm the lucky one
Who will lend her down the aisle
Each night I pray
That nobody steals her heart away,
Just can't wait until that happy day,
When I marry sweet Lorraine
Everything is set, skies are blue,
Can't believe it yet, but it's true,
I'll give you just one guess,
My sweet Lorraine said "yes"
Waiting for the time, soon to be,
When the bells will chime merrily,
(I'm so happy,) when it's raining I don't miss the sun,
For it's in my sweeties smile,
Just think that I'm the lucky one
Who will lend her down the aisle
Each night I pray
That nobody steals her heart away,
Just can't wait until that happy day,
When I marry sweet Lorraine
The lyrics of Kay Starr's Sweet Lorraine tells the story of a man who is so in love with a woman named Lorraine that he can't imagine life without her. The mood of the song is joyful and celebratory as he revels in the fact that he has won her heart and soon will marry her. The lyrics are straightforward but the joy and anticipation of the wedding day is clearly evident in every word. The man cannot wait for the day that he finally gets to marry Lorraine, and he is grateful that she said "yes" to his proposal.
The line "when it's raining I don't miss the sun, for it's in my sweetie's smile" highlights the depth of his love for Lorraine, and the fact that nothing can take away his happiness as long as he has her love. He is also aware of the possibility that another man may try to steal her away from him, so he prays each night that nobody comes along to steal her heart. Ultimately, the song is a celebration of love and the joyful anticipation of being together forever.
Line by Line Meaning
Everything is set, skies are blue,
Everything is perfect, the weather is pleasant.
Can't believe it yet, but it's true,
Though it is hard to accept, everything is happening as it ought to.
I'll give you just one guess,
I'll offer you one clue.
My sweet Lorraine said "yes"
My beloved Lorraine has agreed to be with me.
Waiting for the time, soon to be,
Looking forward to the future, which is close at hand.
When the bells will chime merrily,
When the happy bells will ring merrily.
(I'm so happy,) when it's raining I don't miss the sun,
I am so happy being with Lorraine that I don't mind the weather.
For it's in my sweeties smile,
It is my sweetheart's smile that makes everything better.
Just think that I'm the lucky one
I consider myself fortunate.
Who will lend her down the aisle
I will be the one leading Lorraine to the altar.
Each night I pray
I pray every night.
That nobody steals her heart away,
I hope that no one comes between us.
Just can't wait until that happy day,
I am excited about the joyous occasion ahead.
When I marry sweet Lorraine
When I wed my darling Lorraine.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: CLIFF BURWELL, CLIFFORD BURWELL, MITCHELL PARISH
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Antonio Campagnefilho
parabens seus videos sao lindos mesmo todos eles
Antonio Campagnefilho
parabens lindos videos
Barry I. Grauman
Reissued on several "bargain LP's" in the 1950's- some with "echo reverb" and "reprocessed stereo" added. In one version I heard, there was a "skip" at 1:50-1:52!