Although she was a mainstay on the country charts for decades, Skeeter Davis’ crossover success on the pop charts was mostly limited to a pair of Top-10 singles. But one of those songs, her 1962 hit “The End of the World,” stands as one of the greatest songs ever about the aftermath of a devastating loss.
What is the meaning of the song? What inspired its writing? And how did it become a pop hit for Davis, who up to that point had only charted in the world of country music? Here is the amazing story of “The End of the World” and the woman who brought it to fame.
Skeeter’s Saga
She was born Mary Pencik in 1931 in Glencoe, Kentucky. “Skeeter” came from a relative who told her as a child that she buzzed about with the energy of a mosquito. Unfortunately, it was a tough upbringing for her, one marred with family tragedy and turmoil. Like so many artists with troubled backgrounds, she found refuge in music.
The surname “Davis”came from when she joined up with a fellow teenager named Betty Jack Davis and started singing with her when they were both teenagers. They earned the moniker The Davis Sisters, since their harmonies certainly fooled folks into believing that they were related. By the time Skeeter Davis was 22, she and her “sister” had a No. 1 country hit with the song “I Forgot More than You’ll Ever Know.”
Once again, tragedy would play a role in the trajectory of Davis’ career. Just months after releasing that No. 1 hit, Skeeter and Betty Jack were passengers in a car accident. Betty Jack was killed, while Skeeter survived her injuries. She worked a few more years in The Davis Sisters with Betty Jane’s sister Georgia, but then embarked on a solo career in 1957.
It’s Skeeter’s “World”
Despite dealing with the trauma of the tragedies in her life and a troubled first marriage, Davis soon started cranking out country hits with regularity, including a string of eight straight in the Top 20 from 1959 through 1961. She was produced by Chet Atkins, who had the idea to double-track Davis’ vocals as a nod to when she sang as part of a dual act.
“The End of the World” was written by the songwriting pair of Arthur Kent and Sylvia Dee. The lyricist, Dee was inspired to write the song by the death of her father, although the lyrics keep the loss general enough to make it seem like it could be a breakup. In any case, Davis’ performance, understated and vulnerable, took it to another level.
Instead of remaining within country music circles, “The End of the World” took off when New York DJs started spinning it on the regular. Not only did it work its way into the pop charts, hitting No. 2 in 1962, but it also hit the Top 5 on the Hot R&B, Easy Listening, and Country charts, an unprecedented feat.
What is the Meaning of “The End of the World”?
“The End of the World” deals with the notion of how losing someone from your life can cause a kind of disconnect when the rest of your surroundings insist on continuing without interruption. The opening lines lay out the premise, as Davis wonders, Why does the sun go on shining? / Why does the sea rush to shore?
Don’t they know it’s the end of the world? That’s the question the narrator keeps asking as the natural wonders around persist. In the bridge, she explains her predicament: I can’t understand, no, I can’t understand / How life goes on the way it does. Davis does a spoken rendition of the final verse that’s absolutely chilling, as her own existence is called into question: Why does my heart go on beating? / Why do these eyes of mine cry?
Skeeter Davis continued churning out country hits into the ’70s, and she also established herself as a very successful songwriter. “The End of the World” remains her monumental signature song, a touching evocation of grief, from both writers and performer, that only intimate experience with that emotion could have produced.
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