Born in Pasadena, California, Carnes pursued a songwriting career from an early age. She was a member of the New Christy Minstrels from 1966 to 1970. Kenny Rogers was also a member, and during this time Carnes met and married Dave Ellingson, with whom she would write most of her songs. For a short while in the early 1970s, she and Ellingson formed the folk duo Kim and Dave. Their track "Nobody Knows"" features on the Vanishing Point soundtrack, alongside another Carnes-Ellison track, "Sing Out for Jesus", performed by Big Mama Thornton.
Carnes began releasing solo music in the early 1970s. Her self-titled album in 1975 contained her first hit, You're a Part of Me" – later re-recorded as a duet with Gene Cotton. Carnes recorded her third album, Sailin', with producer Jerry Wexler. One track, "Love Comes From Unexpected Places", won best song at the 1977 American Song Festival and gained some additional notice after it was recorded by Barbra Streisand on her 1977 album, Superman.
In 1980, Carnes and Ellingson were invited to write a concept album for Kenny Rogers. Gideon follows the story of a fictional cowboy, with each track focusing on a moment in his life. Rogers asked Carnes to record "Don't Fall in Love with a Dreamer" as a duet, and it became a major hit on the country and pop charts. Her cover version of the Smokey Robinson & The Miracles song "More Love" became her first solo hit single in 1980 when it reached the U.S. Top 10.
In 1981 she recorded the Jackie DeShannon and Donna Weiss song "Bette Davis Eyes". As the first single released from the album Mistaken Identity, it spent 9 weeks at number one on the US singles charts and became a worldwide hit. The single went on to become the #1 bestseller for the year and won Grammy Awards for Song of the Year and Record of the Year. It is second only to Olivia Newton-John's "Physical" (released later in 1981 and late enough to be the number one single of 1982), which spent 10 weeks at number one, as the biggest hit of the entire decade of the 1980s. In 1986, she recorded "Room Enough For Two," theme to CBS sitcom "My Sister Sam" starring Pam Dawber and the late Rebecca Schaeffer.
It is ironic that Carnes' best known and most popular song "Bette Davis Eyes" written in 1974 was originally rejected by Carnes. It was only after a new instrumental arrangement was done by Bill Cuomo that Carnes agreed to record it and it became a huge hit. Bette Davis admitted to being a fan of the song and approached Carnes and the songwriters to thank them. Davis wrote to Carnes after the song was released and stated that she was very pleased with the song as it made her seem very up to date with her grandson. She had Carnes sing the song live for her at a tribute held just before her death.
Carnes continued to record and released several albums into the 1990s. These releases failed to reach the level of success of "Bette Davis Eyes", but by this time she was a highly respected songwriter, and collaborated with such artists as Barbra Streisand. Carnes has written three number one country songs: “The Heart Won’t Lie”, a hit duet for Reba McEntire and Vince Gill, “Don’t Fall In Love With A Dreamer”, a huge hit duet she performed with Kenny Rogers, and “Make No Mistake She’s Mine”, a duet performed by Kenny Rogers and Ronnie Milsap. The latter song was originally "Make No Mistake, He's Mine," a No. 51 Pop hit in 1984 for Carnes and Streisand featured on Streisand's album Emotion. Also in 1984, Carnes sang on the No. 1 Adult Contemporary hit "What About Me?" with Rogers and James Ingram.
Co-writing with others, Carnes has had songs covered by such country stars as Deana Carter, Kevin Sharp, Sawyer Brown, Suzy Bogguss, Pam Tillis and Tanya Tucker. She wrote "You Don't Love Me Anymore," a hit song on Tim McGraw's album A Place In The Sun.
In 2004, she re-appeared with a self-released album Chasin' Wild Trains.
In August 2005, her 1981 single “Draw Of The Cards” hit #1 on the internet radio request site FreezeFrameRadio.com.
She currently resides in Nashville, Tennessee.
Discography
* Rest on Me (1972)
* Kim Carnes (1975)
* Sailin' (1976)
* St Vincent's Court (1979)
* Romance Dance (1980) US #57
* Mistaken Identity (1981) US #1
* Voyeur (1982) US #49
* Cafe Racers (1983) US #97
* Barking at Airplanes (1985) US #48
* Light House (1986) US #116
* View from the House (1988)
* Checking Out The Ghosts (1991)
* Gypsy Honeymoon: Best of Kim Carnes (1993)
* Chasin' Wild Trains' (2004)
Hurricane
Kim Carnes Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I see it is moving our way
I can't reach you
The wind hurts my eyes
And we've got to hide
We have got to run
Away from the hurricane
From the island
We have got to run
Away from the hurricane
Hold out your hand
I cannot see you
Warning there's a storm approaching
You, like a bolt of lightning
We were strangers on a train
Thinking that we'd never meet again
We have got to run
Away from the hurricane
We have go to run
From the island
We have got to run
Away from the hurricane
Hold out your hand
I cannot see you
Screaming, is a silent whisper
Find me, I won't let you go now
I can't reach you
The wind hurts my eyes
And we've got to hide
We have got to run
Away from the hurricane
We have go to run
From the island
We have got to run
Away from the hurricane
Hold out your hand
I cannot see you
The lyrics to Kim Carnes’s song “Hurricane” tell of an impending storm approaching, and the urgency to escape its path. The opening line, “warning there’s a storm approaching,” sets the scene for an impending disaster. The singer sees the storm moving towards them and tries to reach out to someone, but the wind hurts their eyes and they can’t see. The urgency to escape the hurricane is repeated with the refrain “we have got to run,” emphasizing the danger the hurricane poses.
The second verse describes two people who met on a train and thought they would never meet again. The hurricane has brought them together again, and they must escape its destructive power. The line “screaming, is a silent whisper” speaks to the intensity of the moment, while “find me, I won't let you go now” demonstrates the desperation not to lose one another. The song closes with the singer once again saying that they cannot see the person they are with, and the necessity to run away from the hurricane.
Overall, “Hurricane” is a song about the danger and urgency of escaping an impending natural disaster. Carnes uses powerful imagery and repetition to emphasize the danger and the need to escape.
Line by Line Meaning
Warning there's a storm approaching
The singer alerts that there is a hazardous hurricane coming forward.
I see it is moving our way
The singer witnessed how the hurricane is coming closer to them.
I can't reach you
The singer is not able to talk to the other person who is in a distant place.
The wind hurts my eyes
Uncontrollable winds are affecting the singer's vision.
And we've got to hide
It is necessary to take cover for safety purposes.
We have got to run
Leaving the place and moving away from the hurricane is the only option.
Away from the hurricane
Stressing the importance of running from the path of the hurricane.
We have go to run
This line repeats the urgency to run from the hurricane.
From the island
The place they are in is an island that might be severely hit by the hurricane.
Hold out your hand
The singer is asking for help from the other person to run away together from the hurricane.
I cannot see you
The singer is not able to see the other person through the storm's violent winds.
Screaming, is a silent whisper
Despite the loud winds, their screams can be only heard silently.
Find me, I won't let you go now
The other person is looking for the singer, and they promise to never let go again.
Lyrics © BMG RIGHTS MANAGEMENT US, LLC, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: MINDY SMITH
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
France Rivard
on Bette Davis Eyes
tres tres bon..souvenirs des années 80 et plusieurs autres..on en a pour tous les gouts..Yesss