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
Where I Ought to Be
Skeeter Davis Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'm surprised you thought of me
But I don't believe your wedding
Is just where I ought to be
For you put your arms around her
Kiss her lips sp tenderly
As she standing there beside you
Like a fool I introduced you
i said baby meet my friend
Never thought I could lose you
But I lost you there and then
I took the diamond ring you gave me
Threw it way out to sea
And I had an awful feeling
That's just where I ought to be
In Skeeter Davis's song, "Where I Ought to Be," the singer describes receiving a wedding invitation from her ex-lover, who she introduced to his new bride. While she is surprised that she has been invited, she thinks that attending the wedding would be too painful because she doesn't believe "your wedding is just where I ought to be." As she watches her ex-lover embrace and tenderly kiss his new bride, she feels that being by his side would have been where she ought to be. In a moment of heartbreak, she throws the diamond ring he gave her out to sea and reflects on the fact that losing him was something she should have expected and where she ought to be.
The song tells the story of heartache and moving on, and the lyrics allow listeners to dive into the emotions that come along with losing someone you love. Skeeter Davis's delivery of the song allows her to be able to fully capture the emotional weight of the lyrics, which makes the song relatable to anyone who has gone through a breakup. The song is a reminder that sometimes, the place where you ought to be is not always the most comfortable or easiest.
Line by Line Meaning
I got your wedding invitation
I have received your invitation to your wedding
I'm surprised you thought of me
I'm shocked you still remember me
But I don't believe your wedding
But I don't accept your marriage
Is just where I ought to be
I am not required to be there
For you put your arms around her
Because you embrace her
Kiss her lips so tenderly
Kissing her lips so affectionately
As she standing there beside you
With her standing next to you
That's just where I ought to be
That's where I should have been
Like a fool I introduced you
I made a mistake introducing you
i said baby meet my friend
I innocently introduced her to you
Never thought I could lose you
I never imagined I would lose you
But I lost you there and then
But that's when I lost you
I took the diamond ring you gave me
I took the diamond ring that was your gift to me
Threw it way out to sea
I threw it far into the sea
And I had an awful feeling
And I had an unpleasant sensation
That's just where I ought to be
That's precisely where I should have been
Lyrics Β© Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, JOHNNY BOND PUBLICATIONS
Written by: HARLAN HOWARD
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Carl V
Such a great song. Sad words and organ, but upbeat youthful vocals as Skeeter is singing with herself. She sings a great harmony duet just like the Everly Brothers; but she's just one person. I think the only people who don't love Skeeter are the people who haven't heard her songs from around this time.
Cathy Burrows
I have had this album since thr 60βs. I have played it a million times. So many songs by her brings back those teenage tears. But what the problem they are still flowing
Uche Courage
I have been playing this for 30yrs. She is genius. Thanks skeeter
Jane van Spall
Love these songs, good memories
Don Hawkins
a big hit for skeeter...!
Hiquest
Liked this grest sad song for 45 years. Now i play it on my guitar every moment.
Iyke Harrison
Beautiful song but sad sad tale.
Music Rocks!
πππSkeeterπππ
autumn in my heart
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JoΓ£o Baptista
whos here after fiona apple?