Kelly was born in Lawton, Oklahoma on October 2, 1968, Willis was the youngest of three children. While her father was a U.S. Army colonel, Willis’ mother had a strong interest in music and sang and acted in amateur musicals. Willis began singing when she was nine as a way to comfort herself after her parents divorced.
==Career==
Willis joined her first band in high school. Her boyfriend, drummer Mas Palermo, introduced Willis to his rockabilly band. The band took her on as the lead vocalist and soon rechristened the band Kelly Willis & the Fireballs. After Willis’ high school graduation, the band decided to move to Austin, Texas, to participate in the vibrant Austin music scene. After a few months in Austin, however, the band broke up. Willis and Palermo, married in 1989, formed a new band called Radio Ranch. In Austin, Willis attracted the notice of several influential Texas singer-songwriters including Nanci Griffith and Lyle Lovett. Griffith introduced MCA producer Tony Brown to Willis. Brown was very impressed with Willis’ vocal abilities and signed her to the MCA label in 1989.
MCA embarked on a big marketing campaign to tout Willis after she recorded her first album on the label, the 1990 album ''Well Travelled Love''. MCA ensured that Willis was interviewed by several national magazines including unusual venues like ''Vogue'' and ''Mademoiselle''. Her voice appeared in the 1991 Ridley Scott-produced movie ''Thelma and Louise'', singing "Little Honey." Willis also had a small part in Tim Robbins’ 1992 film ''Bob Roberts''. Despite of all the publicity and positive reviews from most reviewers, ''Well Travelled Love'' and Willis’ subsequent albums for MCA (''Bang Bang'' in 1991 and ''Kelly Willis'' in 1993) sold modestly and received very little radio play. During this time, Willis felt uncomfortable with the way she was marketed by MCA. In 1994, MCA released Willis from her contract.
Willis continued to pursue her music career after leaving MCA. In 1996, she recorded an EP for A&M Records entitled ''Fading Fast''. However, her relationship with A&M was short-lived; after working with two major labels, Willis decided to record her next album on her own. Her efforts resulted in the 1999 album ''What I Deserve'', which Willis sold to Rykodisc after finishing the album. ''What I Deserve'' received quite a bit of press after the album’s release. It was commonly seen as Willis’ response to her history with MCA, and was uniformly praised by critics, becoming a hit for Willis.
In 2003, Willis and Bruce Robison, her husband and fellow country musician, released the record ''Happy Holidays'', a cover album of Christmas songs.
In Fall 2007, Willis released ''Translated From Love''. It was recorded at Robison's studio, Premium Recording Services, in Austin, TX. and produced by Chuck Prophet, formerly of the band Green On Red. The album is co-written by Willis, Prophet and notable songwriter Jules Shear, and includes a cover version of Iggy Pop's "Success."
In early 2008, Willis announced she would take an indefinite hiatus from live performances due to family obligations. Said Willis in a website announcement, "Being a traveling musician with four kids may not make an extremely compelling reality TV show but it is kicking my butt. I plan to continue making records. And I may do the occasional holiday show/song swap/benefit here and there.... Happy trails...until we meet again." Her winter/spring 2008 scheduled dates continued as planned until the final show May 2, 2008.
Willis has recently begun to tour outside of Texas again; first she headlined the Northern Rockies Folk Festival in Hailey, Idaho on August 7, 2010. Next up, she is scheduled to perform at the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass festival in San Francisco on October 2, 2010.
==Personal life==
She is married to country singer-songwriter Bruce Robison.
Official website: http://www.kellywillis.me
Facebook fan site: http://www.facebook.com/KellyWillisRobison
Twitter: http://twitter.com/KellyWRobison
Loving You
Kelly Willis Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Starts to rain that I don't even notice
Everybody wants what they can have
And everybody wants a little more
I wish I had a little more
†Cause I've been losin' little pieces of you
Like everything I have is comin' unglued
Searchin' for the times went by
Take me down to the river
Show me things I can remember
I'm in love with a man
He loves me back, quite sure
I wouldn't change him if I could
But I've been losin' little pieces of you
Everything I have is comin' unglued
Knockin' it around in my mind
Searchin' for the times went by
I've been losin' little pieces of you
Everything I have is comin' unglued
Turn around one day and you were gone
Swear to you I'm still holdin' on
Kelly Willis's song "Loving You" describes a feeling of loss and the struggle to hold onto pieces of a relationship that seem to be slipping away. The opening lines of the song set the tone for the emotional journey that the lyrics take the listener on. The days pass by slowly, almost as if time is standing still, and the rain falls in the background without even being noticed. These feelings of detachment are echoed in the chorus as the singer describes the loss of pieces of her loved one.
Despite the sadness in the song, there is also a sense of hope and longing as the singer calls out for the memories of their love to be reignited. She wants to be taken down to the river and shown the things that she can remember, hoping that these memories will help keep her relationship together. The final lines of the song capture the desperate desire to hold onto the love that once was, even though there are signs that it may be slipping away.
Overall, "Loving You" is a deeply emotional song that captures the complexity of human relationships and the struggle to hold on to what we love, even when it seems to be falling apart.
Line by Line Meaning
The days pass by in slow motion
Time seems very slow, almost stuck in one place.
Starts to rain that I don't even notice
Something is happening that might bother others, but you are too consumed with your thoughts to care.
Everybody wants what they can have
People are always wanting something that they know they can acquire.
And everybody wants a little more
People never seem to be fully satisfied with what they have.
I wish I had a little more
The artist desires something that they do not currently have.
'Cause I've been losin' little pieces of you
The singer is slowly losing parts of someone they love.
Like everything I have is comin' unglued
Everything in the singer's life seems to be breaking apart.
Knockin' it around in my mind
The artist is thinking about something continuously.
Searchin' for the times went by
The artist is trying to remember better times in the past.
Take me down to the river
The artist wants to go to a peaceful place.
Show me things I can remember
The singer wants to be reminded of something happy from the past.
I'm in love with a man
The artist is in a romantic relationship with a man.
He loves me back, quite sure
The singer is certain that the other person in their relationship loves them.
I wouldn't change him if I could
The singer is content with their relationship and partner.
Turn around one day and you were gone
The person the singer loves is suddenly no longer present in their life.
Swear to you I'm still holdin' on
The artist is still trying to hold on to their love for the other person despite their absence.
Contributed by Vivian P. Suggest a correction in the comments below.