1. Martha Davis … Read Full Bio ↴There are two female vocalists named Martha Davis.
1. Martha Davis (December 14, 1917 – April 6, 1960) was an African-American singer and pianist whose musical comedy act, "Martha Davis & Spouse", was popular in the late 1940s and 1950s.
Davis was born in Wichita, Kansas, and raised in Chicago, Illinois. By the mid-1930s, she had met and been influenced by Fats Waller, and performed regularly as a singer and pianist in Chicago clubs. In 1939, she met, and later married, bass player Calvin Ponder (October 17, 1917 - December 26, 1970), who went on to play in Earl Hines' band.
In 1948, Davis and Ponder moved to California, and Davis developed her recording career on Jewel Records in Hollywood with a trio including Ponder, Ralph Williams (guitar) and Lee Young (drums). Their cover of Dick Haymes' pop hit "Little White Lies" reached # 11 on the Billboard R&B chart, followed by a duet with Louis Jordan, "Daddy-O", from the movie A Song Is Born, which reached the R&B top ten later that year.
Davis and Ponder also began performing together on stage, developing a musical and comedy routine as "Martha Davis & Spouse" which played on their physical characteristics (she was large, he was smaller). The act became hugely popular, touring and having a residency at the Blue Angel in New York. They appeared together in movies including Smart Politics (with Gene Krupa), and in the mid-1950s, variety films Rhythm & Blues Revue, Rock 'n' Roll Revue and Basin Street Revue. Several of their performances were filmed by Snader Telescriptions for video jukeboxes, and they also broadcast on network TV, particularly Garry Moore's CBS show.
In 1957, after a break of several years, they resumed recording for the ABC Paramount label, with whom they cut two LPs. Davis died from cancer in New York in 1960, aged only 42, and Ponder died ten years later, aged only 53.
2. Martha Davis is best known as the lead singer of The Motels, a new wave pop band that scored hits in the 80s with songs such as "Only the Lonely" and "Suddenly Last Summer."
Davis released her first solo album entitled Policy in November of 1987, and had a hit with "Don't Tell Me the Time" (#8 in Australia), but in the U.S. the song only went as far as #80. Soon afterwards, Davis asked to be released from her contract with Capitol.
After leaving Capitol Records, Davis focused on different music styles, and recorded songs for several movie soundtracks.
In 2005 Davis released her second solo project entitled So the Story Goes. She is still touring and recording as "Martha Davis and the Motels."
Tell It To The Moon
Martha Davis Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Scream it to the stars in the sky
Seeing you always reminds me
Got a secret that I keep
Got a keep it inside me
I watch from a distance
Loving you silently
So I tell it to the moon
Scream it to the stars in the sky
Share it with the wind
Try to keep it in
But it's so hard sometimes
So I yell it to the night
I don't know what else I can do
I can't tell it to you
So I tell it to the moon
Tell it to the moon
Late at night when no one can hear me
I reveal the way I feel pretending you're near me
You've got somebody
There's nothing I can do
Can't tell you I love you
So I ...
Tell it to the moon
Scream it to the stars in the sky
Share it with the wind
Try to keep it in
But it's so hard sometimes
So I yell it to the night
I don't know what else I can do
I can't tell it to you
So I tell it to the moon
Tell it to the moon
Some night
I'll come right out and tell you
Some night
I'll say the words I love you
Some night
But tonight
I'll tell it to the moon
The song Tell It To The Moon by Martha Davis is a sad and poignant expression of unrequited love. The song tells the story of a woman who is in love with someone who is already taken. The singer is unable to express her love to the person directly but instead shares it with the moon, stars, wind and the night. She longs to reveal her feelings to the person but instead keeps them locked away inside her heart.
The lyrics of the song are a powerful expression of the pain and sadness that comes with unrequited love. The singer is so stricken with love that she finds it difficult to keep it inside, and so she tells the moon and the stars. Her love is so intense that it cannot be contained, and so she screams it to the sky where no one can hear her. She watches the person she loves from a distance, unable to express her feelings, and shares her love with the night. Despite her intense longing, the singer knows that she cannot tell the person how she feels, and so she confides in the moon and stars.
The song is a beautiful and moving tribute to the power of love and the pain that often comes with it. The singer's inability to express her feelings is a universal experience that many people can relate to. The lyrics are simple, but they express complex emotions in a way that is both poignant and meaningful.
Line by Line Meaning
I tell it to the moon
I express my feelings to the sky
Scream it to the stars in the sky
I shout my thoughts to the universe
Seeing you always reminds me
Every time I see you, I recollect things
Got a secret that I keep
I have an undisclosed information
Got a keep it inside me
I have to hide it within me
I watch from a distance
I observe you from afar
Loving you silently
I feel affection for you without expressing it
You never hear me
You never listen to me
Share it with the wind
I reveal it to nature
Try to keep it in
I attempt to restrain my emotions
But it's so hard sometimes
However, it's difficult occasionally
So I yell it to the night
Therefore, I shout it to the darkness
I don't know what else I can do
I'm unsure of what more I can attempt
I can't tell it to you
I cannot express it to you
So I tell it to the moon
Hence, I communicate it to the moon
Late at night when no one can hear me
Mostly at night, when nobody can hear me
I reveal the way I feel pretending you're near me
I confess my feelings as if you were close to me
You've got somebody
You are with someone else
There's nothing I can do
I can take no action
Can't tell you I love you
I'm unable to say that I love you
Some night
At any point in time
I'll come right out and tell you
I'll speak out directly and inform you
But tonight
However, this night
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Realsongs
Written by: DIANE EVE WARREN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Aramanth
She has such beautiful eyes! 💗💖♥💜
Martha is a true talent and star of the 80s. She tends to get eclipsed
by Pat Benetar (who I love too) but Martha has an elegance and eloquence.
FunConcertMama
Pat Benatar is great in her own right, but Martha is truly UNIQUE AND SPECIAL.
Benoit Vanhees
The number of thumbs up is so ridiculously low... This is such a strong song, with a real gem of a guitar solo.
Warren Nicholson Y. Fernando
One of the best singers of the 80's!
Jeff Richards
I've had an never ending crush on Martha, very beautiful and what a voice!
kevin kelley
I was born in '72 , and I am a huge Motels fan. I never heard any of Martha's solo work back in the 1980's. This was a time long before the Internet, and many of us were at the mercy of the local radio stations. This probably played on the local station on the top 40, but I just missed it. I love Martha.
Noel Bowerman
I still have one her early Tapes ,I brought it back in the day.
Roy Batty
Exact same thing for me as well
Justin Brandis
Loved this song back then... still love it now!!
Gabriel Rearte
top song. amazing in every level.