Daffan was born in Beauregard Parish, Louisiana. He lived in Texas in the 1930s, working in an instrument repair shop in Houston.
In the late 1930s Western Swing bandleader Milton Brown convinced Daffin to start performing. Soon after he scored his first success as a songwriter with "Truck Drivers' Blues", one of the first truck-driving songs, a motif which would come to dominate country music for decades.
Daffan wrote the seminal "Truck Drivers' Blues" after he stopped at a roadside diner and noticed that every time a trucker parked his rig and strolled into the cafe, the first thing he did, even before ordering a cup of coffee, was push a coin in the jukebox. He decided to write a song to capture some of the truck drivers' nickels and make himself rich and famous. Recorded by western swing artist Cliff Bruner (with Moon Mullican on lead vocal) in 1939, the song sold more than 100,000 copies, the best-selling record of that year. It was later featured in James Jones' best-selling novel, From Here to Eternity.[dubious – discuss]
Forming his own band, The Texans, Daffan scored a string of hits, including "Worried Mind", "Born to Lose", "Those Blue Eyes Are Not Shining Anymore", "She Goes The Other Way" and "No Letter Today". "Born to Lose" may have sold as many as 7 million copies.
Daffan left active performance in the 1960s, and founded a Nashville-based publishing house with Hank Snow. He retired to Houston, but retained interests in the publishing business for a time. He died in 1996 in Houston, Texas
Born to Lose
Ted Daffan's Texans Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Every dream has only brought me pain
All my life I've always been so blue
Born to lose and now I'm losing you
Born to lose it seems so hard to bear
How I long to always have you there
You've grown tired and now you say we're through
Born to lose and now I'm losing you
The chorus of Ted Daffan's Texans's song Born To Lose speaks of a deeply felt futility and sense of defeat. The line "Born to lose I lived my life in vain" suggests that the singer has always felt they were destined to fail, regardless of their efforts to succeed. The word choice here is significant, as the use of "lived" implies that this has been a lifelong struggle. The following line, "Every dream has only brought me pain," reinforces this idea that the singer has been disillusioned and disappointed by their attempts to better their situation.
The second half of the chorus is particularly poignant, as the singer bemoans the loss of a relationship. "You've grown tired and now you say we're through / Born to lose and now I'm losing you" suggests that the singer's sense of defeat has contributed to the end of their partnership. The repetition of "losing" emphasizes the sense of loss and despair that pervades the song. Overall, Born To Lose is a powerful statement of hopelessness and suffering that has resonated with generations of listeners.
Line by Line Meaning
Born to lose I lived my life in vain
I have always been destined to fail and my life has been a waste.
Every dream has only brought me pain
All my hopes and aspirations have resulted in disappointment and heartache.
All my life I've always been so blue
I have been depressed and unhappy for as long as I can remember.
Born to lose and now I'm losing you
My fate as a loser has resulted in the loss of the person I love.
Born to lose it seems so hard to bear
It is difficult to accept that I was born with a predetermined destiny to fail.
How I long to always have you there
I desperately wish that the person I love could always be by my side.
You've grown tired and now you say we're through
The person I love has become exhausted and is ending our relationship.
Born to lose and now I'm losing you
Once again, my fate as a loser has caused me to lose someone I deeply care about.
Writer(s): Ted Daffan
Contributed by Abigail S. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@rbrand9159
I just found my great aunt's diaries!! She writes on March 10, 1944, just two days after her true love was drafted, [I cried today. The girls were singing love songs such as, "If I knew then what I know now", "Goodbye little darling, I'm leaving" and "Born to Lose", and so forth.] Thank you for letting me experience this version of this song, just as she knew it. ❤
@andrewb731
I met Ted Daffan in his later years. Nice, cordial guy. "Born to Lose" was huge in 1943.
@thomasdorsey6197
i knew him also when he was elderly also. he was living in Houston. he was also a stonecutter and made jewelry for his grandchildren. he has a silver platinum record on his wall for BTL. it was right next to a plaque from NASA. BTL was neil armstrongs favorite song and he took a cassette to the moon with him with BTL on it. he was really proud of the nasa plaque. he called BORN TO LOSE the greatest B side single in history! it probably was. great man and great artist.
@royrush5374
Send this song on a gold record into space.
@blastboltthebolt3854
Bennett Foddy
@thomasdorsey6197
they did neil armstrong took a cassette to the moon with BORN To Lose on it (it was his favorite song)!
@frankchilds9848
This is one of the most iconic country songs ever. Almost everyone has heard it in one version or another.
@miguelosvaldofloresdomingu8911
I didn't knew there was a Ray Charles version!
This original version is great!
@jlassie
I will also note that the drummer for these February 1942 Daffan recordings is none other than Spike Jones - already recording with his City Slickers for Bluebird, but still working day-to-day as a studio musician!
@RoryVanucchi
Great old song. Ray Charles, of course, gave it life again.