Born in Glendale, Arizona, Robbins taught himself guitar while serving in the United States Navy during World War II, and subsequently drew fame performing in clubs in and around his hometown. In 1956, he released his first No. 1 country song, "Singing the Blues" and one year later, released two more No. 1 hits, "A White Sport Coat" and "The Story of My Life". In 1959, Robbins released his signature song, "El Paso", for which he won the Grammy Award for Best Country & Western Recording. Later releases that drew critical acclaim include "Don't Worry", "Big Iron" and "Honkytonk Man", the last for which the 1982 Clint Eastwood film is named, and in which Robbins made his final appearance before death.
Over the course of his career, Robbins recorded more than 500 songs and 60 albums, and won two Grammy Awards, was elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame and Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame, and was named the 1960s Artist of the Decade by the Academy of Country Music. Robbins was a commercial success in both the country and pop genres, and his songs were covered by many other famous artists, including Johnny Cash, the Grateful Dead and Elvis Presley. His music continues to have an influence in pop culture today, having recently appeared in several contemporary pop culture features, including the video game Fallout: New Vegas, and the series finale of AMC's Breaking Bad.
Robbins was born in Glendale, a suburb of Phoenix in Maricopa County, Arizona. His mother was mostly of Paiute Indian heritage. Robbins grew up in a difficult family situation. His father took odd jobs to support the family of 10 children; however, his hard drinking led to divorce in 1937. Among his warmer memories of his childhood, Robbins recalled having listened to stories of the American West told by his maternal grandfather, Texas Bob Heckle, who was a local medicine man. At 17, Robbins left his troubled home to serve in the United States Navy as an LCT coxswain during World War II. He was stationed in the Solomon Islands in the Pacific Ocean. To pass the time during the war, he learned to play the guitar, started writing songs, and came to love Hawaiian music.
Robbins' discography consists of 52 studio albums, 13 compilation albums, and 100 singles. In his career, Robbins charted 17 Number One singles on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts, as well as 82 Top 40 singles.
Robbins' highest charting album is 1959's Gunfighter Ballads and Trail Songs. It charted to #6 on the all-genre Billboard 200, and was also certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. The album's first single, "El Paso", became a hit on both the country and pop charts, charting to Number One on the Hot Country Songs as well as the Billboard Hot 100. While that would be his only pop Number One, in 1957, "A White Sport Coat" charted to #2, and in 1961, "Don't Worry" charted to #3.
His final Top 10 single was "Honkytonk Man" from the 1982 eponymous film in which Robbins had a role. He died shortly before its release. Since his death, four posthumous studio albums have been released, but they made no impact on the charts.
Robbins married Marizona "Mari" Baldwin on September 27, 1948. They had two children, Ronny and Janet, and were married 34 years until his death.
Singing The Blues
Marty Robbins Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
'Cause I never thought that I'd ever lose
Your love dear, why'd you do me this way
Well, I never felt more like cryin' all night
'Cause everything's wrong, there ain't nothin' right
With-out you, you got me singin' the blues.
Now the moon and stars no longer shine
There's nothin' left for me to do
But cry-why-why over you
Well, I never felt more like runnin' away
But how can I go when I couldn't stay
With-out you, you got me singin' the blues.
Well the moon and stars no longer shine
And the dream is gone that I thought was mine
There's nothin' left for me to do
But cry-why-why over you
Well, I never felt more like runnin' away
But how can I go when I couldn't stay
Without you, you got me singin' the blues.
Without you, you got me singin' the blues
The lyrics to Marty Robbins's "Singing the Blues" capture the raw emotion of heartbreak and loss. The verse "Well, I never felt more like singin' the blues, 'Cause I never thought that I'd ever lose, Your love dear, why'd you do me this way" sets the tone for the rest of the song. The singer is devastated by the unexpected loss of his love and can't understand why it happened. He goes on to describe how his world has been turned upside down and how he can't escape the pain of his broken heart. The lines "Now the moon and stars no longer shine, The dream is gone I thought was mine, There's nothin' left for me to do, But cry-why-why over you" paint a picture of a bleak and lonely existence without his lover.
The chorus, "Without you, you got me singin' the blues," is both a lament of lost love and a declaration of the singer's emotional state. The blues is a genre of music that is often associated with sadness and despair, and here the singer is saying that he's so unhappy without his lover that he can't help but sing the blues. The final verse "Well, I never felt more like runnin' away, But how can I go when I couldn't stay, Without you, you got me singin' the blues" is a plea for his lover to come back, and an acknowledgement that he can't bear the thought of being without her. The repetition of the line "Without you, you got me singin' the blues" at the end of each verse and the chorus drives home the message that the singer is consumed by his heartache.
Overall, "Singing the Blues" is a powerful and poignant song that captures the essence of heartbreak and loss. Its simple yet evocative lyrics and catchy melody have made it a classic of the country and blues genres.
Line by Line Meaning
Well, I never felt more like singin' the blues
I am feeling very down and sad right now
'Cause I never thought that I'd ever lose
I never imagined losing your love
Your love dear, why'd you do me this way
I'm feeling heartbroken and betrayed by you
Well, I never felt more like cryin' all night
I feel like crying non-stop because of the pain and sadness I'm experiencing
'Cause everything's wrong, there ain't nothin' right
Everything in my life seems to be going wrong and nothing feels right
Without you, you got me singin' the blues.
Your absence is the cause of my current sadness and depression
Now the moon and stars no longer shine
Even the beauty of nature no longer brings me joy
The dream is gone I thought was mine
The future I had envisioned for us is now shattered
There's nothin' left for me to do
I feel helpless and don't know what to do next
But cry-why-why over you
All I can do is cry and ask why this happened to me
Well, I never felt more like runnin' away
I feel like escaping from this pain and running away from everything
But how can I go when I couldn't stay
However, I can't leave because I can't bear the thought of being without you
Without you, you got me singin' the blues.
Your absence is the reason for my sadness and sorrow
Well the moon and stars no longer shine
Even the beauty of nature brings no joy to me anymore
And the dream is gone that I thought was mine
The future that we had dreamed of together is no longer possible
Without you, you got me singin' the blues.
All this sadness and pain is because of your absence from my life
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Melvin Endsley
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Chance Lisk
Well I never felt more like singing the blues
Cause I never thought that I'd ever lose
Your love dear why'd you do me this way
Well I never felt more like crying all night
Cause everything's wrong and nothing ain't right
Without you you got me singing the blues
The moon and stars no longer shine
The dream is gone I thought was mine
There's nothing left for me to do but cry over you
Well I never felt more like running away
But why should I go cause I couldn't stay
Without you you got me singing the blues
Well I never felt more like running away...
X O
Well, I never felt more like singin' the blues
'Cause I never thought that I'd ever lose
Your love dear, why'd you do me this way
Well, I never felt more like cryin' all night
'Cause everything's wrong, there ain't nothin' right
With-out you, you got me singin' the blues.
Now the moon and stars no longer shine
The dream is gone I thought was mine
There's nothin' left for me to do
But cry-why-why over you
Well, I never felt more like runnin' away
But how can I go when I couldn't stay
With-out you, you got me singin' the blues.
Well the moon and stars no longer shine
And the dream is gone that I thought was mine
There's nothin' left for me to do
But cry-why-why over you
Well, I never felt more like runnin' away
But how can I go when I couldn't stay
Without you, you got me singin' the blues.
Without you, you got me singin' the blues
sauquoit13456
On this day in 1957 {January 11th} two versions of "Singing The Blues" were at positions #1 and #2 on the United Kingdom's Official Top 30 Singles chart, at #1 was Tommy Steele's covered version, while at #2 was Guy Mitchell's covered version, which the preceding week was at #1 on the chart...
At the time Marty Robbins' original version of "Singing The Blues" was in it's eleventh of thirteen weeks at #1 on Billboard's Country/Western Best-Sellers in Stores chart...
And the rest of the C/W Best-Sellers in Stores 'Top 10' on January 11th, 1957:
At #2. "There You Go" by Johnny Cash
#3. "Young Love" by Sonny James
#4. "I Walk The Line" by Johnny Cash
#5. "Crazy Arms" by Ray Price
#6. "I've Got A New Heartache" by Ray Price
#7. "Love Me Tender" by Elvis Presley
#8. "I'm Tired" by Webb Pierce
#9. "Searching (For Someone Like You)" by Kitty Wells
#10. "Repenting" by Kitty Wells
R.I.P. Guy Mitchell {1927 – 1999}, Marty Robbins {1925 – 1982}, and Tommy Steele celebrated his 83rd birthday last month on December 17th, 2019...
Captaind41
What a voice!!!!! He is definitely one of the all-time greats.
latachia888
I remember when I was in the 1st grade. The teacher asked us each to sing a song for the class....This is the one I sang. I'd never even heard of Mary Had A Little Lamb.I only knew songs from radio& TV.....I still love this song.
Jody Wilke
A great song, by an extraordinarily talented man. RIP, Marty.😔💒
Grady Vasil
how have I never heard this before?! The 50's had amazing music. I could listen to this forever!
tone wheel
"Singing The Blues" was written by Melvin Endsly in 1956, and Marty Robbins was the first to record it. Although he did it well, my personal favorite was Guy Mitchell`s version, which was the best known recording, also recorded in August of that year. It spent ten weeks at number 1 on the U.S. Billboard chart from December 8, 1956, to February 2, 1957.
MrPistachio
Fun facts with T W
julie kroeger
Love Marty's early songs. I was a young girl then.
James Silver
@tone wheel check paul mccartney mtv unplugged - great version
tone wheel
@James Silver Thanks for that James. Will do.
Diane Green
Love it. There won't be another like Marty Robbins. Wish he was still with us!