"Jackie Keith Whitley" (b. July 1, 1954 in Ashland, Kentucky d. May 9, 1989… Read Full Bio ↴"Jackie Keith Whitley" (b. July 1, 1954 in Ashland, Kentucky d. May 9, 1989) was an American country music singer.

Early life

Whitley learned to play a guitar at a very young age, and became involved with a regional television show when he was eight years old. He and his friend, Ricky Skaggs, formed a bluegrass band, which landed both of them their first break in 1970, when they joined Ralph Stanley's Clinch Mountain Boys. Whitley was singing lead for the band by 1974 at the age of 20.

In 1978, he joined J. D. Crowe and the New South as lead vocalist and guitarist. Critics were by then praising his vocals, and these reviews eventually caught the attention of RCA Records, who would sign him to a contract in 1984.

Solo years

Whitley's first solo album, ''A Hard Act to Follow,'' was released in 1984. However, the songs off of the album didn't get much airplay. Critics regarded the album as too erratic; while Whitley was working hard to achieve his own style, the songs he produced were inconsistent, and because of this, the follow up album would be more with pop sounds and a new producer as well who had been in the music buisness for sometime and had several hit records under his belt with other artists Blake Mevis.

L.A. to Miami, released in 1986. This album would give him his first Top 20 country hit single, "Miami, My Amy." The song was followed by three more hit songs, "Ten Feet Away," "Homecoming '63," and "Hard Livin." The album also had included "On The Other Hand" and "Nobody In His Right Mind Would've Left Her." Both George Strait and Randy Travis waited to see if Whitley would release these two songs as singles; when he didn't, Strait grabbed "Nobody in his Right Mind Would've Left Her", and Travis did the same with "On the Other Hand." Both Strait and Travis scored big on both songs, landing both at number one on the country charts.

During his tour to promote ''L.A. to Miami'', he met and started dating Lorrie Morgan, a fellow country singer. The pair were married in November, 1986, and they had their only son, Jesse Keith Whitley, in 1987. Keith also adopted Lorrie's daughter Morgan from her first marriage.

During the new recording sessions in 1987, Whitley started feeling that the songs he was doing were not up to the way he wanted them,nal studio album, ''I Wonder Do You Think of Me''. The album was released three months after his death, on August 1, 1989. The album produced two more #1 hits, with the title track and "It Ain't Nothin'." "I'm Over You" also saw the top ten in the spring of 1990, reaching No. 3.

In 1990, a collection of Keith's greatest hits was released. It has gone on to sell more than three million copies over the years for RCA.

On the greatest hits collection was a demo record that Whitley made in 1987, called "Tell Lorrie I Love Her," and also a new song to which Lorrie Morgan added her vocals to and created a duet called "Til A Tear Becomes A Rose". The song rose to No. 13 and won them 1991's CMA award for Best Vocal Collaboration.

RCA also released a compilation of old performance clips (from his days in the Clinch Mountain Boys and the New South), interviews, and some previously unreleased material under the title "Kentucky Bluebird", a moniker that became Whitley's nickname. The CD has become a huge collector's item among fans over the years due to it being out of print.and is currently in production.

Almost twenty years after Keith's passing fans and fellow singers still wonder what would have happened if Keith had lived, some say Garth Brooks would have taken a back seat to Keith in the 1990's , Tim McGraw and many singers today still are influenced by the man who just wanted to be remembered.

In 2007, long time fan Kindall Wann will be launching an all Keith Whitley radio station on the internet site Live365.com, the station will contain every known public release of Keith's and also the live concerts, demos, and more that fans have has among them for years.

In the summer of 2007, Austin City Limits will be releasing like in past years, several DVDs of their concerts over the years, and Keith's "FULL" concert is one that will be released. The concert filmed is an hour long, but the television version is only 30 minutes long.

Keith's music video's and many rare performances have recently been showing up on the website YouTube.com, one of the performances is from Hee Haw in 1985, Keith singing "Miami, My Amy".

Some Old Side Road
Keith Whitley Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Porch light every night, hoping that he comes around

A high road, low road, some old side road, really don't matter to me
If it gets me back to you
Hitchhike, motor bike, any ol' way you like, crawling on my knees
If it gets me back to you

Somewhere out there the world's on his shoulder
Each night the same stuff the world's getting colder
Dreams die slow as a boy becomes a man
High road, low road, any road he can

A high road, low road, some old side road, really don't matter to me
If it gets me back to you
Jet plane, fast train, bus in a hard rain, any ol' way you please
If it gets me back to you

Hitchhike, motor bike, any ol' way you like, crawling on my knees
If it gets me

Oh, a high road low road, some old side road, really don't matter to me
If it gets me back to you
Jet plane, fast train, bus in a hard rain, any ol' way you please
If it get me back to you

A high road low road, some old side road

A high road low road, some old side road
A high road low road, some old side road

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Keith Whitley's song "Some Old Side Road" speak to the importance of getting back to someone you love, no matter the cost or means of transportation. The first verse highlights the lengths the singer will go to be with their loved one, including taking a high road, low road, or some old side road, as long as it leads back to them. The second verse speaks to the larger context of a young man leaving home to explore the world, while a girl waits for him back home. The chorus repeats the sentiment that any way of getting back to the loved one, including hitchhiking or crawling on their knees, is worth it to the singer.

The theme of the song is one of determination and perseverance in love. The singer is willing to go to great lengths and overcome obstacles to be with the object of their affection, emphasizing the importance and strength of the bond between the two. The use of different modes of transportation also represents the various ways people can take to reach their goals in life.

Line by Line Meaning

A high road, low road, some old side road, really don't matter to me
The path I take doesn't matter, as long as I get back to you

If it gets me back to you
My ultimate goal is to be with you

Jet plane, fast train, bus in a hard rain, any ol' way you please
I'll travel any way necessary to be with you

Young man, big shot, gotta see what's out there
A young man with ambition wants to explore the world

Leave town, hung around, what the hell does he care
He doesn't care about the place he's leaving behind

Corner park, broken heart, girl in her home town
A girl is left heartbroken in her hometown, waiting for his return

Porch light every night, hoping that he comes around
She waits every night, hoping he will return

Somewhere out there the world's on his shoulder
He's carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders

Each night the same stuff the world's getting colder
Every night, he's feeling more and more isolated

Dreams die slow as a boy becomes a man
As he grows up, he realizes his dreams might not come true

High road, low road, any road he can
He'll take any path to find his way back to her

Hitchhike, motor bike, any ol' way you like, crawling on my knees
He'll go to extreme measures to be with her

If it gets me
As long as it gets me back to you

Oh, a high road low road, some old side road, really don't matter to me
The path I take doesn't matter, as long as I get back to you

If it gets me back to you
My ultimate goal is to be with you

Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Roger D. Ferris

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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A high road, low road, some old side road, really don't matter to me
If it gets me back to you
Jet plane, fast train, bus in a hard rain, any ol' way you please
If it gets me back to you
Young man, big shot, gotta see what's out there
Leave town, hung around, what the hell does he care
Corner park, broken heart, girl in her home town
Porch light every night, hoping that he comes around
A high road, low road, some old side road, really don't matter to me
If it gets me back to you
Hitchhike, motor bike, any ol' way you like, crawling on my knees
If it gets me back to you
Somewhere out there the world's on his shoulder
Each night the same stuff the world's getting colder
Dreams die slow as a boy becomes a man
High road, low road, any road he can
A high road, low road, some old side road, really don't matter to me
If it gets me back to you
Jet plane, fast train, bus in a hard rain, any ol' way you please
If it gets me back to you
Hitchhike, motor bike, any ol' way you like, crawling on my knees
If it gets me
Oh, a high road low road, some old side road, really don't matter to me
If it gets me back to you
Jet plane, fast train, bus in a hard rain, any ol' way you please
If it get me back to you
A high road low road, some old side road
A high road low road, some old side road
A high road low road, some old side road