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.
When I Lost You
Kay Starr Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I lost the heavens so blue,
I lost the beautiful rainbow,
I lost the morning dew.
I lost the angel who gave me
summer the whole winter through,
I lost the gladness that turned into sadness
The song "When I Lost You" by Kay Starr is a heart-wrenching ballad that details the pain and sorrow felt by the singer after losing someone special. The first verse of the song expresses a sense of loss and darkness that has come over the singer's life since they lost this special person. The imagery of losing the sunshine, roses, heavens, rainbow, and morning dew signifies the loss of all the beautiful and positive things in life that once brought the singer joy.
The second verse reveals that the person the singer lost was an angel who brought them happiness and light even during the darkest times. The singer laments how the gladness they once felt has now turned into sadness since losing this person. The song presents a powerful message about loss and the impact it can have on one's life. It highlights the immense pain and grief that can come from losing someone special and the way it can transform a person's life for the worse.
Overall, "When I Lost You" is a poignant and emotional song that effectively conveys the feelings of loss and heartbreak with its moving lyrics and powerful vocals. It is a timeless classic that continues to resonate with listeners to this day.
Line by Line Meaning
I lost the sunshine and roses,
I lost the feeling of happiness and contentment that I got from the small joys in life, such as the sunshine and roses.
I lost the heavens so blue,
I lost the sense of wonder and amazement that I got from looking at the blue skies and clouds.
I lost the beautiful rainbow,
I lost the hope and promise of a better tomorrow that I saw in the beauty of a rainbow.
I lost the morning dew.
I lost the freshness and renewal that I felt in the morning dew.
I lost the angel who gave me
summer the whole winter through,
I lost the person who brought warmth, joy, and light to my life, even during the difficult and dark times.
I lost the gladness that turned into sadness
When I lost you.
I lost the happiness and contentment that I felt in life, which turned into sadness and grief when I lost the person who brought it to me.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Songtrust Ave
Written by: ROBERT BERKELEY DAVIS, RICHARD FREDERICK STANNARD, JULIAN GALLAGHER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind