Bus Fare to Kentucky: The Autobiography of Skeeter Davis

by Skeeter Davis

Mary Francis Penick (Skeeter Davis's Christian name) was born in a two-room shack on the banks of Eagle Creek in Glencoe, Kentucky. Energetic and imaginative, she moved so quickly that they nicknamed her Skeeter before she was in her teens. At an early age she discovered that she had an unusual singing voice. During her high school years, she teamed up with her best friend, Betty Jack Davis, and the two became recording stars under the name The Davis Sisters. Skeeter began singing her own brand of self-styled harmony to Betty Jack's lead vocals. The duo's first RCA recording in 1953, "I Forgot More Than You'll Ever Know (About Him), " soared to the top of the charts, with the pioneering rockabilly tune "Rock-a-Bye Boogie" on the flip side. The singing "sisters" continued to earn widespread recognition until Betty Jack's tragic death in an automobile accident in 1953. In 1958, Skeeter struck out on her own under the guidance of legendary guitarist and record producer Chet Atkins. The very next year - with a top ten record, a Grammy nomination, and many record industry awards to her credit - she joined WSM's Grand Ole Opry. Her unsuccessful marriage to radio and television personality and bestselling author Ralph Emery in 1960 overshadowed the string of hits which followed. Skeeter Davis was the first female country artist to have a number-one crossover hit on the pop charts. "The End of the World" remains popular today and is hummed by youngsters who weren't even born when the song was introduced. Bus Fare to Kentucky tells the poignant story of a vulnerable yet tenacious woman struggling to overcome seemingly countless dramatic twists of fate. With characteristic humor, conviction, andvitality, Skeeter recalls an innocent's experience of self-discovery as well as a triumph over personal illness. A successful remission of cancer (which caused a four-year delay in completing this memoir) gave her an even stronger belief in God. Her resilient spirit, faith, and courage make Bus Fare to Kentucky a truly touching and inspiring tale.

Genres: Memoir, Nonfiction, Music, Biography

338 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 1993

Reviews

[Paul Bryant · Rating 3 out of 5]

What is innocence? How close is innocence to stupidity? Do I hear Mary Weiss of The Shangri-Las cooing "close, very very close" in my ear?

This book poses the following questions.

- can by far the greatest love of your life, the one you rhapsodise endlessly, the one you can't bear to be parted from, be your same sex friend-love and yet you yourself not be same sex orientated? There's a more uncouth version of that question, but I will pass on to question 2 -

- this greatest love of your life, and your singing partner to boot, having died horribly in an automobile accident that nearly killed you too, and you being a rising country music singer and all, how could you NOT then go on to write the all time weepiest tragic country ballad?

- why, given my almost complete indifference to post-Hank Williams country and my almost complete indifference** to the songs of Skeeter Davis did I go to the trouble of getting this oddball memoir sent to me from Covington, West Virginia (via Alibris)?

I can't remember.

Christ, it's early onset Alzheimers.

So it sits amongst my shelves of rock & roll books like a nervous duckbilled platypus at the tigers' ball.

I thought I'd chuck it in a box along with some unlovely Booker nominees and the fossils of a few of my abandoned dreams (Spanish/English dictionary, the bridge tutorial, Twelve Steps to Beat Your Book Reviewing Obsession, 1001 Walking Tours of Peru You Must Do Before You Die, Pickle Your Own Onions for Fun and Profit, Write a Hit Song and Then Another One, Home Taxidermy : Pets Can be Forever, 1001 Sexual Positions You Must Try and Then You Will Die, Beat Your Insomnia The Natural Way With Rhubarb, Classical Music Can Be Fun : Feel the Fear and Listen to Mahler for Five Hours, The Complete Idiot's Guide to Talking To Other Human Beings) and take the whole lot to Oxfam but I thought - no, I'll keep Skeeter as a reminder that we don't fully understand ourselves. I don't and Skeeter sure didn't, that was clear by page 16.

Random quote #1, page 164:

"I fell on my knees, clawing at the tombstone, determined to pull it up and remove it, screaming "No! B.J., I never meant this!"
I choked, "Where's the one I paid for?"

Random quote #2, page 233:

"Ralph started acting crazy, holding the gun to my head. I told him to go ahead and kill me because I would just as soon be dead as live the way we were living."

Random quote #3, page 323 :

"Each day brought greater enjoyment than the previous one. Mr Kwak had studied at Kansas University, so his English was excellent."

Brilliant.



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** Exception : I Can't Stay Mad At you, but it was written by Goffin & King and is therefore not country at all

[Tom Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Skeeter Davis should be in the Country Music Hall of Fame, but she will never be voted in because she was always considered an outlaw female in the country world. This autobiography written in the late 80s before her courageous battle with cancer that took her life, is a chronicle of her personal and show biz years in Nashville.
This book gained much controversy because she had the audacity to speak of her horrendous marriage to Nashville power mogel Ralph Emery, who forbid her to ever appear on his Nashville Now show. We learn of the tragedy of the Davis Sisters, a one hit wonder, on their way to stardom when tragedy struck and Betty Jack Davis was killed in a car wreck. Betty Jack was not Skeeter's sister, just partner in song, but her memory is soaked in the pages. The book also talks about the hit years in "Nashville" and the crossover "girl group" appeal that Skeeter had and gained her not only country, but pop and international success, which includes her signature song' "The End of the World" Her crossover success was a blessing in disguise because many in Nashville rejected her, including the Opry when she criticised the police for arresting Jesus Freaks in a mall. She was suspended for a year or two because of her opinions.Skeeter became the country music ambassador around the world, and was a strong witness to her faith and conviction.
This book is every bit of good as Loretta Lynn's autobiography, and I am amazed that a film has not been done. What we do not get to read about in this book is Skeeter's Aids work, the problems of her 3rd marriage to NRBQ rocker , and the cancer struggles which all occurred after the book was published.

[Elaine · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great book this is! Skeeter has survived against all odds & kept her faith in tact, in fact her faith has grown through all of her hardships. A lesser woman would have buckled & gave up, not Skeeter. I admire her so much.

[Joyce Walton · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved Skeeter’s humbleness and honesty. She was so bold for Christ and was a great example. She is now in Heaven with her Lord and her parents and Family.

[Treasure Island Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting if you are into the early days of country music.

[Denver Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an awe inspiring testimonial! Truly glad I took the time to read it.

[Ralph Kampshoff · Rating 2 out of 5]

The main reason I was attracted to this book, was for background information on her recording of the song – “I Can’t Stay Mad at You”. Ranked at #7 on the Top 40, it was the follow-up to her biggest charting hit – “The End of the World” which charted at #2 on the Top 40 for one week in early 1963.

“End of the World” didn’t work for me. It was a country song, but her “true” natural voice was not “county”. She had a “pop, girl group” voice which was much more expressive and believable. The voice/style she uses to sing “I Can’t Stay Mad at You” is the singing voice that I am quite certain Carole King wishes she had. She nails the song. Compare the two songs – “End of World” and “I Can’t Stay Mad”. Which is more credible, believable? And spoken verses just don’t work – very distracting!

Which brings up one of many glaring omissions in the autobiography – no details on the recording sessions and the events that took place behind and during those sessions. There is absolutely no mention of the co-writers – Gerry Goffin & Carole King. However, the title of the song does appear at the end of the book in the Discography section. Otherwise, no mention or details of the recording event, no names of the musicians involved or names of the backup singers. No mention of any contact or discussions with Goffin & King regarding the song’s recording.

As mentioned, there was little information on background singers, however, there were disturbing hints of individuals lurking in the “background” acting as her “handlers”. Such influence was most pronounced after Betty Jack’s death, with the Davis family controlling her life with drugs; the fake-quasi marriage to Kenneth Depew and her inability (even with warnings from friends) to avoid the evil, sociopathic Ralph Emery. For those of you familiar with the book “Trance-Formation of America: The True Life Story of A CIA Mind Control Slave” by Cathy O’Brien and Mark Phillips, Skeeter’s life nestles nicely into the profiles of those women “controlled” by select groups beginning in the 1950’s into the late 1970’s.

I read auto-biographies thinking and hoping that the author will honestly relate their life story; getting into the dirt; pulling back the blinds shrouding the family secrets and collective shame; holding back few if any details. But that hope is seldom fully realized – usually more honesty and truth is revealed in the unauthorized biographies written by researchers and journalists. In the latter part of the book, Skeeter wraps herself in the redemptive power of religion, hiding behind the cloak of God. I wanted more revelation from Skeeter, not her hiding her head in the Kentucky soil.

[Chi Chi · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book really should be called something along the lines of "Skeeter Davis occasionally sings while a long string of terrible relationships with men."