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 Rock And Roll Waltz
Kay Starr Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Slipped out of my shoes at the door
Then from the front room, I heard a jump tune
I looked in and here's what I saw
There in the night was a wonderful scene
Mom was dancing with dad to my record machine
And while they danced, only one thing was wrong
A-one, two, and then rock
A-one, two, and then roll
They did the rock and roll waltz
A-rock, two, three, a-roll, two, three
It looked so cute to me
I love the rock and roll waltz
A-one, two, and then rock
A-one, two, and then roll
A-one, two, and then jump
It's good for your soul
It's old but it's new
Let's do the rock and roll waltz
There in the night was a wonderful scene
Mom was dancing with dad to my record machine
And while they danced, only one thing was wrong
They were trying to waltz to a rock and roll song!
A-one, two, and then rock
A-one, two, and then roll
A-one, two, and then jump
It's good for your soul
It's old but it's new
Let's do the rock and roll waltz
Let's do the rock and roll waltz
In Kay Starr's "The Rock and Roll Waltz," the singer comes home one night to find her parents dancing to her record machine in the living room. The only problem is that they are attempting to waltz to a rock and roll song. Despite this mismatched pairing, the singer finds the scene "wonderful" and "cute."
The song celebrates the collision of two very different musical styles: the stately, dignified waltz and the wild, exuberant rock and roll. It implies that these seemingly incompatible genres can be brought together with joyous, delightful results. The song's repetitive, catchy chorus encourages listeners to "do the rock and roll waltz," suggesting that this hybrid dance can become a new cultural phenomenon.
Line by Line Meaning
One night I was late, came home from a date
I came home late one night after being out with someone
Slipped out of my shoes at the door
Took off my shoes inside the house
Then from the front room, I heard a jump tune
I heard lively music coming from the front room
I looked in and here's what I saw
I peeked in and saw something surprising
There in the night was a wonderful scene
What I saw was a beautiful sight
Mom was dancing with dad to my record machine
My parents were dancing to my record player
And while they danced, only one thing was wrong
Everything was great except for one issue
They were trying to waltz to a rock and roll song
They were attempting to dance a waltz to a fast rock song
A-one, two, and then rock
Do a waltz step, then move to a rock beat
A-one, two, and then roll
Do a waltz step, then move to a roll beat
They did the rock and roll waltz
They combined rock and roll music with a waltz dance rhythm
A-rock, two, three, a-roll, two, three
Mixing rock and roll music with a waltz rhythm of count 1,2,3
It looked so cute to me
It was adorable to watch
I love the rock and roll waltz
I enjoy this mixed musical and dance style
A-one, two, and then jump
Do a waltz step, then move to a jumping beat
It's good for your soul
This type of music and dance makes you feel good
It's old but it's new
This combination of genres is a new twist on something old
Let's do the rock and roll waltz
Let's try this fun mixed dance and music style
Lyrics © EMI MUSIC PUBLISHING,
Written by: SHORTY ALLEN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@jeanrock8551
Who is STILL listening to Kay Starr in 2024?!❤ Reminds me of my Dad, love you and miss you so much every day Daddy ❤
@jamesryhal143
I'm an 81 year old man and I first heard this when I was 12 and near my 13th birthday. I ❤
@hollywoodbot2318
Tears in my eyes as I remember my grandad and Nan dancing to this. Unfortunately my grandad has passed away when I was hospital so I never got to say goodbye but I’m grateful to him for leaving this memory❤❤❤
@BigCarSmallSuv
On crip?
@hollywoodbot2318
@@BigCarSmallSuv ?
@5telaine
❤❤
@thomastimlin1724
Same happened to my mother, her dad passed away just before she had my brother. she couldn't even go to the funeral. but your in good company with a lot of people, they know what you went through without ever meeting you.
@SuperLaiah
#RIP Kay Starr
She was of the most underrated, yet talented singers of all time and Kay will be deeply missed😇😇😭😭❤❤
@ferencmorvai5720
How could anybody forget Kate Starr? She was great when you listen to music like this everybody knows you’re old.😅❤❤❤
@Heisenbrick
She has such a powerful voice! Love her and Patsy Cline.