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.
Two Brothers
Kay Starr Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Two brothers on their way
Two brothers on their way
One wore blue, and one wore grey
One wore blue and one wore grey
As they marched along the way
A fife and drum began to play
One was gentle, one was kind
One was gentle, one was kind
One came home, one stayed behind
A cannonball don't pay no mind
A cannonball don't pay no mind
Though you're gentle or you're kind
It don't think of the folks behind
All on a beautiful morning
Two girls waiting by the railroad track
Two girls waiting by the railroad track
For their darlings to come back
One wore blue, and one wore black
One wore blue, and one wore black
Waiting by the railroad track
For their darlings to come back
All on a beautiful morning
One wore blue, and one wore black
Waiting by the railroad track
For their darlings to come back
All on a beautiful morning
All on a beautiful morning
The lyrics of Kay Starr's song "Two Brothers" tell the story of two brothers who went to fight a war, one for the Union (wearing blue) and one for the Confederacy (wearing grey). As they marched along, a fife and drum began to play, signaling the beginning of the battle. One brother was gentle and kind and returned home, while the other brother stayed behind and was killed by a cannonball. The chorus repeats the phrase "All on a beautiful morning," which contrasts ironically with the tragic events described in the song.
The lyrics also mention two girls waiting by the railroad track for their beloveds to come back. One of the girls is wearing blue and the other is wearing black, perhaps symbolizing the divided loyalties of the Civil War. The repetition of their waiting by the railroad track highlights the uncertainty and anxiety experienced by those who were left behind during wartime.
Overall, the lyrics of "Two Brothers" convey the senselessness and tragedy of war, as well as the enduring pain felt by those who are left behind. The use of contrasting colors and the repetition of phrases create a haunting and powerful effect, reminding listeners of the human cost of conflict.
Line by Line Meaning
Two brothers on their way
Two siblings heading towards their fight
One wore blue, and one wore grey
One fought for Union, one for Confederacy
As they marched along the way
While they were on their journey
A fife and drum began to play
A musical performance, likely by soldiers
One was gentle, one was kind
They had different personalities
One came home, one stayed behind
One survived, one did not
A cannonball don't pay no mind
A cannonball is mindless and indiscriminate
Though you're gentle or you're kind
Regardless of your personality
It don't think of the folks behind
It doesn't care who it hits
Two girls waiting by the railroad track
Two women eagerly waiting
For their darlings to come back
Hoping their loved ones return safely
One wore blue, and one wore black
One lost someone from the Union, one from the Confederacy
All on a beautiful morning
Despite the tragedy, it was still a lovely day
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: GORDON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Jennifer S. Green
What a beautiful, yet tragic song.
A very intense rarity of a share!
*Almost sounds like it has a celtic-folk-latin fusion flare to it... very cool!
The Betty Strong Encounter
A cover version of this song plays during the American Adventure show at EPCOT Center. It also played at Disneyland during the 80s and 90s. I've never heard it anywhere else, so it's great to hear the original recorded version for the first time.
Patrick McKillip
Disneyland and Epcot version by Colombian singer Alicia Almo.
yvonne redgrove
About the American Civil War.