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
Am I That Easy to Forget
Skeeter Davis Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
But that won't stop my love in you
I just can't let you walk away
Forget the love I have for you.
Guess I could find somebody too
But I don't want no one but you
How could you leave without regret
Before you leave me sure you find
You want her love much more than mine
Then I'll just say we've never met
If I'm that easy to forget.
Before you leave me sure you find
You want her love much more than mine
Then I'll just say we've never met
If I'm that easy to forget.
In Skeeter Davis's song "Am I That Easy to Forget," the singer contemplates her lover leaving her for someone else, but expresses her reluctance to let go of her love for him. She questions if she is so easily forgettable, and wonders if her lover truly knows what he wants before ending their relationship. The lyrics of the song express both vulnerability and strength, as the singer struggles with the possibility of being left behind, but also asserts her own value and refuses to be easily dismissed.
The opening lines of the song set the tone, as the singer mentions her lover's infidelity, but quickly follows up by declaring that her love for him persists regardless. She is hesitant to let him go, and in the second verse, she considers the idea of finding someone else, but ultimately decides against it, stating that she only wants him. The chorus repeats the titular question, "Am I that easy to forget?", as the singer tries to understand why her lover would leave her behind.
The song ends on a note of defiance, as the singer asks her lover to be sure of his feelings before ending their relationship, and threatens to deny ever having met him if he does. This final verse is a powerful assertion of her own worth, as she refuses to be dismissed or forgotten easily.
Line by Line Meaning
You say you've found somebody new
You tell me that you have found someone else.
But that won't stop my love in you
My feelings and love for you won't change just because of this news.
I just can't let you walk away
I cannot let you leave me so easily.
Forget the love I have for you.
You are asking me to forget the love I have for you.
Guess I could find somebody too
I could also find someone else to fill the void.
But I don't want no one but you
However, I don't want anyone else but you.
How could you leave without regret
How can you leave me without any remorse or sadness?
Am I that easy to forget?
Are my feelings and love so insignificant to you that you can just forget me easily?
Before you leave me sure you find
Before you leave, make sure you are certain about your decision.
You want her love much more than mine
Make sure you want her love more than mine before you walk away.
Then I'll just say we've never met
If my love and feelings mean so little to you, then I'll just pretend we never met.
If I'm that easy to forget.
If you can forget me so easily, then maybe I am not worth remembering at all.
Lyrics © Kanjian Music, BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: CARL BELEW, W STEVENSON, W S STEVENSON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Dunhill An
Skeeter Davis - Am I That Easy to Forget
You say you've found somebody new
But that won't stop my love in you
I just can't let you walk away
Forget the love I have for you
Guess I could find somebody too
But I don't want none but you
How could you leave without regret
Am I that easy to forget?
Before you leave me sure you find
You want her love much more than mine
Then I'll just say we've never met
If I'm that easy to forget
Before you leave me sure you find
You want her love much more than mine
Then I'll just say we've never met
If I'm that easy to forget
jerryg65
Skeeter definately had a unique voice ,very easy to listen to .
Gambiro SE
jerryg65
Ruth Boykin
She sings this so beautifully!
Justin Tall
A voice that lives forever
Ralph Moore
Skeeter did every song very well. A true star. This version is oh so fine. Her beautiful voice is greatly accompanied by some great steel guitar. Skeeter is my all time favorite lady singer. I'll miss you always.
patti disch
Skeeter is doing her own harmony. Love this song.
Angelo Rinaldi
The voice of an angel and one of the very first women to make it big on country radio, together with Kitty Wells, Jean Shepard and Goldie Hill.
RIP Skeeter, I love you <3
Anabelle Edwards
Wow! Now that's country music! Love that steel guitar break. Skeeter does a great job, and whoever is playing that steel just makes the song.
jennifur sun
+Anabelle Edwards wicipedia may know. these were probably the A listers of Nashville
Nina Sammut
beautiful song