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.
Until the Real Thing Comes Along
Kay Starr Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'd be a beggar or a knave for you! (what is a knave anyway?)
If that isn't love it'll have to do
Until the real thing comes along.
I'd gladly move the earth for you, (yeah I'm strong baby, plenty strong)
To prove my love and it's worth to you;
If that isn't love it'll have to do
With all the words, dear, at my command,
I just can't make you understand;
I'll always love you darling, come what may,
My heart is yours, what more can I say? (what do you want me to do, rob a bank?)
(well listen, I tell ya)
I'd sigh for you, yeah, cry for you,
I'd tear the stars down from the sky for you!
If that isn't love, well skip it, it'll have to do,
Until the real thing comes along.
I'd sigh for you, die for you,
I'd tear the stars down from the sky for you!
If that isn't love, it'll have to do,
Until the real thing comes along.
9yeah, that's the real thing, so help me!)
The lyrics to Kay Starr's "Until the Real Thing Comes Along" express radical devotion and self-sacrifice in the name of love. The singer in the song is willing to do anything and everything for their beloved, from working tirelessly to begging and becoming a knave (which is a dishonest or unscrupulous man). They would move the earth to prove their love’s worth and would go to great lengths to show their undying love. The singer acknowledges that this level of dedication might not be enough to secure their beloved's affection forever and admits to waiting until "the real thing comes along."
The song also portrays an unrequited love that is difficult to express verbally. The singer notes that they have difficulty conveying their love with mere words, even though they possess "all the words" at their command. They ultimately resign themselves to expressing their love through actions, by sighing, crying, and tearing stars from the sky for their beloved.
Overall, the song emphasizes the strength of love and the lengths to which someone might go to prove their affection. However, it also highlights the challenges of communication and the potential for unrequited feelings.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh I'd work for you, I'd slave for you,
I'd be a beggar or a knave for you! (what is a knave anyway?)
I would do anything for you, even work tirelessly, become subservient and even resort to dishonest means just to win your heart. (By the way, a knave is a tricky, deceitful person.)
If that isn't love it'll have to do
Until the real thing comes along.
Even if this level of devotion isn't exactly what love is defined as, it will have to suffice until genuine love comes to fruition.
I'd gladly move the earth for you, (yeah I'm strong baby, plenty strong)
To prove my love and it's worth to you;
If that isn't love it'll have to do
Until the real thing comes along.
I am willing to move mountains just to show you how much I care and how valuable this love is to me. Even if my gestures don't quite seem to be enough, it's what I have to offer until authentic love arrives.
With all the words, dear, at my command,
I just can't make you understand;
I'll always love you darling, come what may,
My heart is yours, what more can I say? (what do you want me to do, rob a bank?)
No matter how eloquently I express myself, I can't seem to make you grasp the depth of my devotion. Regardless, I will always love you no matter the circumstances and my heart belongs to you. (Should I resort to criminal activity just to prove my adoration?)
(well listen, I tell ya)
I'd sigh for you, yeah, cry for you,
I'd tear the stars down from the sky for you!
If that isn't love, well skip it, it'll have to do,
Until the real thing comes along.
I would go so far as to mourn for you, shed tears for you, and even bring down the heavens for you. If that level of devotion doesn't equate to love, then let's disregard it and wait for genuine love to come.
I'd sigh for you, die for you,
I'd tear the stars down from the sky for you!
If that isn't love, it'll have to do,
Until the real thing comes along.
(9yeah, that's the real thing, so help me!)
I am willing to go to great lengths including surrendering my life for you, and will stop at nothing to prove my love. If that's not true love, it's still the best I have until I find the genuine article. (And trust me, I know it when I see it!)
Lyrics © CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Alberta Nichols, L.E. Freeman, Mann Holiner, Sammy Cahn, Saul Chaplin
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Irene Mccann
I couldn’t remember who used to sing this song, so I’ve been going through all the singers who sang it, I dont recall who sang it but so far I’ll stick to Kays version.
Eddie Styles
Some that have sung this song are June Christy, Jane Russell, Patti Page, Carmen McRae, June Hutton, Keely Smith, Big Maybelle, Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, Jeri Southern, Ruth Price, Maryann McCall, and Betty Roche.
Irene Mccann
@Eddie Styles thanks Eddie.