Emile Ford was born in Castries, Saint Lucia, in the West Indies. He was the son of Barbadian politician, Frederick Edward Miller, and Madge Murray, a singer and musical theatre director whose father had founded and conducted the St. Lucia Philharmonic Band. His mother married again, taking the name of Sweetnam; some sources erroneously give Emile Ford's birth name as Sweetnam or Sweetman.
He was educated at St Mary’s College, Castries. He moved to London with his mother and family in the mid-1950s, partly motivated by his desire to explore improved sound reproduction technology, and studied at the Paddington Technical College in London. It was during this time that he taught himself to play a number of musical instruments, including guitar, piano, violin, bass guitar and drums. Using an abbreviated form of his name, as Emile Ford, he first entered show business at the age of 20, and made his first public performance at the Buttery, Kensington. His first appearance with a backing group was at the Athenaeum Ballroom in Muswell Hill. His TV appearances in 1958 included outings on The Music Shop, the Pearl Carr & Teddy Johnson Show, Oh, Boy!, and Six-Five Special.
He teamed up in January 1959 with his half-brother, bassist George Sweetnam-Ford (born 1 January 1941), electric guitarist Ken Street (born 1943) and drummer John Cuffley to form Emile Ford & the Checkmates. The band appeared on the TV programme Sunday Serenade, which ran for six weeks. They won the Soho Fair talent contest in July 1959, but turned down a recording contract with EMI because the company would not allow Ford to produce their records, and instead agreed to a deal with Pye Records. Their first self-produced recording, "What Do You Want to Make Those Eyes at Me For?", a song originally recorded by Ada Jones and Billy Murray in 1917, went to number one in the UK Singles Chart at the end of 1959 and stayed there for six weeks. Ford was the first black British artist to sell one million copies of a single.
In January 1960, Ford signed a two-year employment management contract with Leslie Grade. He had several more hits in the UK, and also scored a number one EP in 1960. The readers of the British music magazine New Musical Express voted Emile Ford and the Checkmates as the "Best New Act" in 1960. Ford's debut album was made up of covers. He made several albums, but his last studio recordings were in 1963. His half-brothers George and Dave Sweetnam-Ford were later members of the Ferris Wheel.
As a sound engineer, Ford was responsible for creating a backing track system for stage shows, first used in 1960, which provided a basis for what became known as karaoke. In 1969, he set up a recording studio in Barbados with the help of his father, before moving to Sweden. While there, he further developed a new open-air playback system for stage shows, patented as the Liveoteque Sound Frequency Feedback Injection System.
Counting Teardrops, an anthology including all of Ford's recordings with Pye Records, was released in 2001.
Emile Ford died in London on 11 April 2016.
Them There Eyes
Emile Ford Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Life was a beautiful song
Didn't have a care nor worry
Then you had to come along
I fell in love with you first time
I looked into them there eyes
You've got a certain lil' cute way of flirtin'
With them there eyes
No stallin'
I'm fallin'
Going in a big way for sweet little you
My heart is jumpin'
You sure started somethin'
With them there eyes
You'd better watch them if you're wise
They sparkle, they bubble
They're gonna get you in a whole lot of trouble
You're overworkin' 'em
There's danger lurkin' in
Them there eyes
Maybe you think I'm just flirtin'
Maybe you think I'm all lies
Just because I get romantic when I gaze in
Them there eyes
I fell in love with you first time
I looked into them there eyes
You've got a certain lil' cute way of flirtin'
With them there eyes
They make me feel happy, they make me blue
No stallin'
I'm fallin'
Going in a big way for sweet little you
My heart is jumpin'
You sure started somethin'
With them there eyes
You'd better watch them if you're wise
They sparkle
They bubble
They're gonna get you in a whole lot of trouble
You're overworkin' 'em
There's danger lurkin' in
Them there eyes
Emile Ford's song 'Them There Eyes' is a love song in which the singer is describing how he fell in love with someone after he looked into their eyes for the first time. Prior to this, he was content in his life, carefree and without worry. The song is a testament to the power that eyes have, as they can make one fall in love without even needing to know the person. The lyrics talk about how his love for the person is despite or maybe even because of how they flirt with their eyes. He says that their eyes make him feel happy and blue at the same time, indicating the power and range of emotions that love can bring.
The chorus repeats the phrase "With them there eyes" multiple times, emphasizing the importance of the eyes in this song. The lyrics warn that there is danger lurking in the eyes, but also an undeniable attraction that made the singer fall in love in the first place. The song has a playful, upbeat tune that complements the romantic lyrics well.
Line by Line Meaning
I was just minding my business
I was going about my day without a care in the world
Life was a beautiful song
Everything was going great for me
Didn't have a care nor worry
I wasn't concerned or troubled about anything
Then you had to come along
But then you entered the picture
I fell in love with you first time
I instantly fell in love with you
I looked into them there eyes
Your eyes captured my heart
You've got a certain lil' cute way of flirtin'
You have a charming and adorable way of flirting
With them there eyes
Using your eyes to flirt with me
They make me feel happy, they make me blue
Your eyes make me feel both happy and sad
No stallin'
I'm not hesitating
I'm fallin'
I'm falling in love with you
Going in a big way for sweet little you
I'm fully committing to you
My heart is jumpin'
You've made my heart skip a beat
You sure started somethin'
You've ignited something within me
You'd better watch them if you're wise
You should be careful with your eyes if you're smart
They sparkle, they bubble
Your eyes twinkle and seem to bubble with energy
They're gonna get you in a whole lot of trouble
Your eyes are so alluring that they may lead me into trouble
You're overworkin' 'em
You're using your eyes too much
There's danger lurkin' in
There may be dangerous consequences from your flirtatious eyes
Maybe you think I'm just flirtin'
You might think I'm only flirting with you
Maybe you think I'm all lies
You could believe that I'm not being truthful
Lyrics © DistroKid, Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Maceo Pinkard, Doris Tauber, William Tracy
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@juliewillcox3398
I. used to love Emile when I was younger he was so handsome
@annehillyard
He is 78 now god bless him
@josephamego1528
+phil hillyard Thought he must be getting on a bit, good entertainer.
@pamsie100
+josephamego1528 Emile passed away ob 11 April last. So sorry for the bearer of bad news. He's my relative
@pamsie100
+phil hillyard Emile died on 11 April just, sorry to bring sad news xx
@josephamego1528
+Pamela Evans. WOW. was he a close or distant relative? He was very good. liked his style and records, at 78 he was 5 years older than me, By all the reports he was a very talented man in his field of sound engineer. I often wondered what happened to him as his records seemed to dry up in the 60's. I'm sad to hear of his passing, I never read or heard anything of his death. R.I.P
@pamsie100
Yes he married my cousin and they lived with us for a while in Warwickshire xx
@harrymerlet6245
Great song!
@christinerendell4185
brilliant song
@snicky58
How cute! :)