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.
Sweet Bird Of Paradise
Marty Robbins Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Love hear my call fly closer I beseach
Oh fly to me sweet bird of Paradise
Don't let me be life's empty sacrifice
Why must you be always a mystery
Oh fly to me sweet bird of Paradise
[ vibes ]
Love heard no call so I cannot pursue
Farewell to Thee sweet bird of Paradise
You've let me be fife's empty sacrifice
Now all you'd be is just a memory
Farewell to Thee sweet bird of Paradise
The lyrics of Marty Robbins's "Sweet Bird of Paradise" tell a story of unrequited love and longing for a special someone who seems beyond reach. The singer is asking for this person's love to come closer, to not leave them as an "empty sacrifice" to the trials of life. The metaphor of love as a bird gives the song an ethereal quality, as if the search for love and the pain of its absence are out of reach, no matter how much one desires them. The repeated refrain of "Fly to me sweet bird of paradise" is a plaintive cry for an answer to this longing, for the mystery of love to be solved and for the desired connection to be formed.
The lyrics are enhanced by the instrumentation of the song, which includes a haunting and dreamy use of vibraphones. The overall effect is one of wistfulness and melancholy, as if the singer is resigned to the fact that the bird of paradise will not come to them, and that they will have to say goodbye to this illusory and mystifying aspect of their life. In its poetic yet simple language, "Sweet Bird of Paradise" captures the pain and beauty of human desire, and the way we long for things that are just out of reach.
Line by Line Meaning
Love with its wings flies far beyond my reach
Love is an elusive feeling that is difficult for me to attain or hold onto.
Love hear my call fly closer I beseach
I am pleading with love to come closer to me and not be so distant.
Oh fly to me sweet bird of Paradise
I am inviting love to come to me, and I'm likening it to a beautiful bird of paradise.
Don't let me be life's empty sacrifice
I don't want to be just another victim of life's circumstances without love.
Why must you be always a mystery
I am questioning why love is often so elusive and hard to understand.
Love with its wings flies far beyond the blue
Love is not only difficult to attain for me, but it seems to be an unattainable goal in general.
Love heard no call so I cannot pursue
Love seems to be deaf to my pleas, and so I am unable to pursue it.
Farewell to Thee sweet bird of Paradise
I am saying goodbye to love, likening it to a sweet bird of paradise that is leaving me.
You've let me be life's empty sacrifice
I feel like love has abandoned me and left me as a victim of life's circumstances.
Now all you'd be is just a memory
Love is now just a fleeting memory, as it has left me behind and moved on.
Farewell to Thee sweet bird of Paradise
I am saying goodbye to love one final time, as it has flown too far away for me to ever attain it again.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: LEE SAMICK
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
A
on Johnny Fedavo
This is a fantastic, emotional song, thanks to whoever added the meaning behind the lyrics to this song. Makes it easy for some to understand a bit better!