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
Little Music Box
Skeeter Davis Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Take back the promise take back the ring without your love they don't mean a thing
One think I ask before you go how could you give and be so cold
Take every gift but leave just one the little music box that plays our song
Now the little music box plays our song
As I listen I keep wondering what went wrong
All I have is mem'ries of your love that's gone
And the little music box that plays our song
The pretty little tune it plays so sweet brightens up my heart with memories
And though it hurts me I will just pretend
When the music plays that we're in love again
Don't say you're sorry say goodbye the longer you stay either the more I cry
Take every gift but leave just one the little music box that plays our song
Now the little music box
Just the little music box that plays our song
The lyrics of Skeeter Davis's song Little Music Box are filled with pain, regret and heartache. It speaks of the end of a relationship and the sorrow that comes with it. The singer is requesting that their former partner takes back everything they gave in the relationship, all but one gift--the little music box that plays their song. The song itself is a bittersweet reminder of the love they once shared. As the music plays, the singer is left wondering what went wrong and holding on to the memories of the love that's gone.
The first verse speaks directly to the pain of a relationship ending. The singer wants everything to be returned, as they no longer have meaning without the love of their former partner. They understand that the end has come, but they still hold on to the love they once had. Through this song and its sweet melody, the singer can find some way to hold on to the memories they have shared. As the song progresses into the second verse, the singer accepts the end of the relationship but still continues to hold on through the music box that continues to play their song.
Overall, the song tells the tale of heartache and the power of music to soothe the soul and keep the memories of love alive.
Line by Line Meaning
Take back the gifts you gave to me all the pretty things you gave so free
Return all the material things you gave me, because they were never a true expression of love
Take back the promise take back the ring without your love they don't mean a thing
Withdraw the promise of love you made to me, along with the engagement ring, because without love, they are nothing
One think I ask before you go how could you give and be so cold
Before you leave, please tell me why you could give me things so generously but still remain distant and uncaring
Take every gift but leave just one the little music box that plays our song
You can take all your gifts back, but leave me the one thing that reminds me of our love - the music box that plays our special song
Now the little music box plays our song
The music box that we shared plays our song
As I listen I keep wondering what went wrong
Every time I hear the music box, I wonder where our love went wrong
All I have is mem'ries of your love that's gone
The only thing I have now is memories of our lost love
The pretty little tune it plays so sweet brightens up my heart with memories
The melody of the music box is a bittersweet reminder of the love we once had
And though it hurts me I will just pretend when the music plays that we're in love again
Even though it hurts, I will pretend that we are still in love when I hear the music
Don't say you're sorry say goodbye the longer you stay either the more I cry
Rather than apologize, it's better if you just leave. The longer you stay, the more it hurts me
Now the little music box
Now it's just the music box that reminds me of our past love
Just the little music box that plays our song
Only the music box remains as a reminder of our once beautiful love story
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: THACKER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
CaliBard
I am almost 22 years old. My mother sang this to me when I was younger, but when I asked her to sing it again recently I don't think I've ever cried so hard in my life. I love Skeeter Davis, but I don't think I'll ever forget the way my mother sings this.
Connie Mock
Brings back memories of a time when songs had lyrics that said something worth saying. Rock on Skeeter!
cherylann Russell
still a beautiful song
usmale 49
Another great Skeeter Davis song. She was the best, I love her self-harmonies! Thank you for sharing!
Barbie Burnett
omg this is one song i thought i would never hear again? thank you sooo much! :)
Helen Jones
One of my favourits love this !
Ann Pappas
One of my Moms favorite country singers
She so loved this song andI loved it when she'd dance to it.
405fooman
my dad had that album! when i was a kid i loved this song - still do.
Don Hawkins
...her next single was the release of 'the end of the world'...still a classic almost 50 years later...!
Prologue of Zina Chia
I felt very calm..... A song is passionately charming!