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.
The Hucklebuck
Kay Starr Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
When the lights are down low
Grab your baby, then go
Do the hucklebuck
Do the hucklebuck
If you don't know how to do it
Boy, you're out of luck
Then you hunch your back
Start a little movement in your sacroilliac
Wiggle like a snake, waddle like a duck
That's the way you do it when you do the Hucklebuck
Ev'rybody's looking for a-somethin' new
It could be cars, it could be clothes
Or just a stylish shoe
But if you like your dancin'
Better take my tip
Get set, warn the band and let 'er rip
You go a little to the left
A little to the right
Get hold of your partner
Tell him, "No need to fight"
Push your partner round
And then you hunch your back
Start your movement in your sacroilliac
Wiggle like a snake and then you waddle like a duck
And that's the way you gotta do it when you do the Hucklebuck
There you go
You got it now
It's the Hucklebuck!
Kay Starr's "The Hucklebuck" is a playful and upbeat song that invites listeners to dance along with the singer who is instructing them on how to do the "Hucklebuck." The song's lyrics advise the listener to grab their partner and do the Hucklebuck by first pushing them out and then hunching their back, this movement is then followed by a wiggling like a snake and waddling like a duck. The song captures the excitement of a new dance craze and encourages listeners, particularly those who may not know how to do it, to give it a try. The Hucklebuck itself may have been a popular dance of its time, and this song served as both an instruction manual and an invitation to partake in the fun.
Line by Line Meaning
Here's a dance you should know
I'm introducing a popular dance called the Hucklebuck
When the lights are down low
This is the perfect dance for a dimly lit room
Grab your baby, then go
Find your partner and hit the dance floor together
Do the hucklebuck
Perform the popular dance known as the Hucklebuck
Do the hucklebuck
Reinforcing that the name of the dance is the Hucklebuck
If you don't know how to do it
If you're unfamiliar with the steps
Boy, you're out of luck
You'll miss out on all the fun
Push your partner out
Move away from your partner
Then you hunch your back
Arch your back slightly
Start a little movement in your sacroilliac
Move your hips in a circular motion
Wiggle like a snake, waddle like a duck
Move in a serpentine manner and then in a waddle-like motion
That's the way you do it when you do the Hucklebuck
This is the correct way to perform the Hucklebuck dance
Ev'rybody's looking for a-somethin' new
People are always searching for something unique
It could be cars, it could be clothes
This could refer to any new trend
Or just a stylish shoe
Even something as small as a shoe can create a new fashion trend
But if you like your dancin'
If you enjoy dancing
Better take my tip
You should heed my advice
Get set, warn the band and let 'er rip
Get ready to dance, tell the band to play, and go all out
You go a little to the left
Move slightly to the left
A little to the right
Move slightly to the right
Get hold of your partner
Reestablish contact with your partner
Tell him, "No need to fight"
Assure your partner that they don't need to struggle
Push your partner round
Move your partner in a circular motion
And then you hunch your back
Arch your back in the same way as before
Start your movement in your sacroilliac
Begin moving your hips again
Wiggle like a snake and then you waddle like a duck
Repeat the same motion as before with the hip movements
And that's the way you gotta do it when you do the Hucklebuck
This is the correct way to perform the Hucklebuck dance
There you go
Congratulations
You got it now
You've learned the dance
It's the Hucklebuck!
This is the Hucklebuck dance, have fun!
Lyrics © 123 MUSIC ASSOCIATES, CARLIN AMERICA INC, Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: ROY ALFRED, ANDY GIBSON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@CarlDuke
Can I offer absolute 100% proof that it was Connie Francis singing on the actual program, no. But several sources I have checked agree that it is and it definitely sounds like her. The Honeymooners version sounds nothing like this. So it being Kay Starr singing on the show is not plausible.
Some say that it was a special uptempo version that Starr recorded just for the program, but that makes no sense. I have heard many records by Kay Starr and that does not sound like any song I have ever heard her sing. Kay was born in Oklahoma and grew up in the South and had a little country twang in her voice. A song could be recorded at a faster tempo, but you can not really change a singer's vocal qualities. Plus the voice there sounds like that of a younger singer. At the time Kay was 34, while Connie was 18.
Then there is also this, Connie was a young struggling singer at the time and about 2 years away from her first hit, the 1923 Harry Ruby/Bert Kalmar standard from 1923 called Who's Sorry Now? In this situation she was more than willing to do an uncredited version for a small pay day and perhaps a little notice within the profession
Eddie Fisher's first paid recording was on a song called You Can't Be True Dear by The Marlin Sisters. Fisher does a solo during the song, but received no label credit and received just a $50 flat fee for his participation.
There is also this from a good source. Connie Francis never released this or any other version of the song. She did appear on "Stage Show" (The Gleason-produced companion show to "The Honeymooners") in 1955-1956, and was asked to record this version especially for this episode.
Maybe someday Connie will be asked this in an interview and settle this forever. IMDb lists the singer as Kay Starr, and while good they are not infallible. I am a member there and over time have corrected several mistakes they have made and seen my corrections be applied.
The singer on the program is without doubt not Kay Starr and almost certainly no one who went on to an important career other than Connie. The only possibility besides it being Connie would have been a young then unknown studio singer, who sounded exactly like Connie Francis, but who then disappeared without ever breaking through.
@revolvertonyd
I Did A Little research Into This & There Is No Available Recording Of The One Used On The Show! It was A Special Recording Made Just For The Show & Never Released! This Is The Closest One I Could Find!
@trainsntile
WOW- Wonder what ever happened to that record? Probably dropped & broken, then swept up & put in the trash :-(( (Like a few of my old 78s)
@emburtte
You get an E, for effort.
And a T, for nice try.😊
@tizgrowinghands
Wow. Thanks for this info. I too was looking for that version. And, I agree with your analogy. I appreciate the effort you put into your research! Job well done sir!
@berealsupportive2744
Yeah guys I believe it's Connie Francis right before she got huge a year later. I think it was the only copy. I hate MGM. I know Connie's voice very well. Kay doesn't have the same power. I believe it's Connie and so do many others. I really want this song bad. It wouldn't hurt as much is Jackie and Art didn't mess up the whole scene. Jackie screaming at the funniest part and Art repeatedly very annoyingly stopping it then restarting it! It's a waste of an amazing recording ='(
@edt6044
Your absolutely sure its Connie.. on the honeymooners
@OriginalRocketJock
"Put it on, Norton -- let's go!!"
@ttoehz8981
Do it! Do it! I can't wait! I can't wait!
@themotownboy1
I like the version/take on the Honeymooners episode better.
@tizgrowinghands
#Factz