Mary Frances Penick was born on December 30, 1931 in the small Appalachian town of Dry Ridge, Kentucky. As a child, her grandfather nicknamed her "Skeeter" because she was always active and buzzing around like a mosquito. She got her start in music as part of the duo, The Davis Sisters, along with childhood friend, Betty Jack Davis. Thus, Skeeter Davis was born to the rest of the world.
The Davis Sisters sang in the local Lexington, Kentucky area and appeared on local radio WLAX in 1949. From there, they earned radio and television appearances in Detroit, Cincinnati and Wheeling, WV, where they were part of the WWVA Wheeling Jamboree.
In 1952, Skeeter and Betty Jack recorded for Fortune, but won a recording contract with RCA the following year and achieved their first chart success. "I Forgot More Than You'll Ever Know" went to number one on the U.S. country chart and number eighteen on the U.S. pop chart.
Sadly, on August 23, 1953, Skeeter and Betty Jack were involved in a serious car accident in which Betty Jack died and Skeeter was critically injured. It took Skeeter more than a year to recover both physically and mentally. With great difficulty and a lot of persuasion, Skeeter returned to singing with Betty Jack's sister, Georgia Davis, to briefly resume the Davis Sisters' act. But, within a year, the duo broke up and Skeeter pursued a solo career.
She continued to record on the RCA label where she worked with Eddy Arnold and Elvis Presley. In 1955, she toured for RCA on the Caravan of the Stars. Davis teamed up with producer, Chet Atkins and scored her first solo country chart hit in 1958 with "Lost To A Geisha Girl." This was during a time when the female acts were surging forward with "response" songs to some of the biggest hits by male artists. As Kitty Wells had answered Hank Thompson's "Honky Tonk Angels," with "It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels" in 1952, Skeeter Davis put out this answer to Hank Locklin's "Geisha Girl."
A few years later, Davis recorded another answer to a Hank Locklin song and gained another huge hit. Locklin sang "Please Help Me I'm Falling" and Davis' response was, "I Can't Help You, I'm Falling Too."
In 1959, Davis achieved one of her greatest ambitions when she moved to Nashville and became a regular member of the Grand Ole Opry. In 1960, she married WSM personality, Ralph Emery, but the tumultuous marriage ended in 1964.
During the 1960's, Davis was one of RCA's most successful country artists. She harvested 26 U.S. country hits, 12 of which crossed over to the U.S. pop charts. Among these was what was to become her trademark song, the million-selling record "The End Of The World" which peaked at number two in both the U.S. country and pop charts in 1963. She also earned her only UK chart presence with "The End Of The World" which topped out at number eighteen in only thirteen weeks on the chart.
Davis has also acheived songwriting success. Her co-written song "Set Him Free" became her first country Top 10 hit in 1959. She also co-wrote "My Last Date" with Boudleaux Bryant and Floyd Cramer. Cramer, famed pianist and member of the original A-team, recorded it as an instrumental solo and had a million-selling record on it in 1960.
During the 60's and 70's, Davis toured extensively in the U.S., Canada, Europe and Far East. Her solo career started to wane in the 70's, but she still had several more hits such as "Bus Fare To Kentucky," "I'm A Lover, Not A Fighter," and "One Tin Soldier." Her duets with Bobby Bare, George Hamilton IV, and The Bee Gees gave her a few more hits, but by the mid-70's, Davis was reaching the end of her illustrious career. She ended her twenty-two year relationship with RCA in 1974 and charted her last hit for Mercury in 1976 with "I Love Us."
In 1967, Davis recorded a tribute album to Buddy Holly, which featured Waylon Jennings on the guitar. Later in 1972, she also did a tribute album to her friend, Dolly Parton. In 1985, she re-recorded an old Davis Sisters' hit, "May You Never Be Alone," with the group NRBQ. She married Joey Spampanito of NRBQ, but this marriage ultimately ended in divorce as well.
In 1973, Davis was dropped from the Grand Ole Opry's roster due to her strong criticisms of the Nashville Police Department during one of her performances. Her membership was later reinstated.
Davis has also taken to writing about her real life experiences. Her autobiography, "Bus Fare To Kentucky," was published in 1993. Davis pulls no punches in this brutally honest account of her life. She tells how she endured a family history of alcoholism, incest and murder. She also tells her side of the story regarding her four year marriage to Ralph Emery, following the heavy criticism which she received in Emery's autobiography. In 1997, she co-wrote a children's Christmas book, entitled "The Christmas Note," based on her own childhood.
Skeeter Davis passed away September 19th 2004 after a long battle with cancer.
Written by Sherry Anderson. June 2001
* Article appears courtesy of www.countrypolitan.com
All Of Me
Skeeter Davis Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Take my lips I want to lose them take my arms I'll never use them
Your goodbye left me with eyes that cry how can I go on without you
You took the part that once was my heart so why not take all of me
[ piano - strings ]
Your goodbye left me with eyes that cry how can I go on dear without you
You took the part that once was my heart so why not take all of me
The Skeeter Davis song, "All of Me", starts with the singer asking someone why they wouldn't take all of them, as they're no good without them. The person is asked to take the singer's lips and arms, as they are left with tearful eyes after the goodbye of the other person. The person is further asked to take the part of the singer's heart that they once held, as they've already taken it away. The song is essentially about being so in love with someone that the singer is willing to give them everything. Even when the other person has left and taken a piece of the singer's heart, they are still asked to take all of the singer.
The lyrics contain a lot of emotion and sincerity that come through in Skeeter Davis's voice. The use of the piano and strings adds to the melancholic feel of the song, making it even more touching. Throughout the song, Skeeter Davis begs for the other person to take all of them, and it's clear that the singer is devastated without the other person.
Line by Line Meaning
All of me why not take all of me can't you see I'm no good without you
I am offering you everything that I am, because I am incomplete without you. Please consider taking me as a whole.
Take my lips I want to lose them take my arms I'll never use them
I am willing to give up physical aspects of myself, like my lips and arms, because they are useless without you.
Your goodbye left me with eyes that cry how can I go on without you
Your departure has shattered me and I am constantly in tears. I do not see a way to continue living without you.
You took the part that once was my heart so why not take all of me
You have taken the most important and vulnerable part of me, my heart. It only makes sense to take the rest of me as well.
[ piano - strings ]
Instrumental interlude
Your goodbye left me with eyes that cry how can I go on dear without you
Once again, I am expressing that your departure has caused me to constantly cry and I cannot fathom moving on without you by my side.
You took the part that once was my heart so why not take all of me
Reiterating that my heart is gone because you took it, and it only makes sense for you to take everything else that I am.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, MARLONG MUSIC CORP., Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Gerald Marks, Seymour Simons
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Genn gen
Lyric:
All Of Me
Skeeter Davis
All of me why not take all of me can't you see I'm no good without you
Take my lips I want to lose them take my arms I'll never use them
Your goodbye left me with eyes that cry how can I go on without you
You took the part that once was my heart so why not take all of me
[ piano - strings ]
Your goodbye left me with eyes that cry how can I go on dear without you
You took the part that once was my heart so why not take all of me