Les Paul (Lester William Polsfuss, June 9, 1915 – August 12, 2009) and Mary Ford (Iris Colleen Summers, July 7, 1924 – September 30, 1977) were introduced to each other by Gene Autry in 1946 and married in 1949.
They first appeared in the pop charts in 1950. Between the years 1950 and 1954, Les Paul and Mary Ford had 16 top-ten hits. They had five top-ten hits within nine months. "Tennessee Waltz", "Mockin' Bird Hill", "How High the Moon" (#1 for nine weeks), "The World Is Waiting for the Sunrise" and "Whispering". From August 1952 to March 1953 they had five more top-ten hits; "My Baby's Coming Home", "Lady of Spain", "Bye Bye Blues", "I'm Sitting on Top of the World" and "Vaya Con Dios" (#1 for 11 weeks). Their 1954 version of "I'm a Fool to Care" went to #6, and was featured in a memorable Southern Comfort commercial in 2013 that got over 1 million views on YouTube.
In 2009, they were inducted into the Hit Parade Hall of Fame.
Les Paul and Mary Ford are famous for creating a makeshift recording studio in their garage. In their garage studio, they used multitrack recording to record many of their hits including ‘Lover’, ‘Nola’, ‘Brazil’ and ‘Whispering' with only the two of them.
YouTube has a large selection of clips from their syndicated TV show "Les Paul & Mary Ford At Home" (1954-'55).
Les Paul and Mary Ford divorced acrimoniously in December 1964, which also ended the collaboration between the two.
The duo have a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Les Paul had hosted a 15-minute radio program, The Les Paul Show, on NBC in 1950, featuring his trio (himself, Ford, and rhythm player Eddie Stapleton) and his electronics, recorded from their home and with gentle humour between Paul and Ford bridging musical selections, some of which had already been successful on records, some of which anticipated the couple's recordings, and many of which presented dazzling re-interpretations of such jazz and pop selections as "In the Mood," "Little Rock Getaway," "Brazil," and "Tiger Rag." Several recordings of these shows survive among old-time radio collectors today.
The show also appeared on television a few years later with the same format, but excluding the trio and retitled The Les Paul & Mary Ford Show (aka Les Paul & Mary Ford At Home) with "Vaya Con Dios" as a theme song. Sponsored by Warner Lambert's Listerine, it was widely syndicated during 1954–55 and was only five minutes long (one or two songs) on film and therefore used as a brief interlude or fill-in on programming schedules. Since Les created the entire show himself, including audio and video, he maintained the original recordings and was in the process of restoring them to up-to-date quality at the time of his death.
I'm Confessin
Les Paul & Mary Ford Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Tell me, do you love me too?
I'm confessin' that I need you,
Honest I do, need you every moment.
In your eyes I read such strange things,
But your lips deny they're true,
Will your answer really change things
Making me blue?
I'm afraid some day you'll leave me,
Saying "can't we still be friends"
If you go, you know you'll grieve me,
All in life on you depends.
Am I guessin' that you love me,
Dreaming dreams of you in vain,
I'm confessin' that I love you, over again.
Les Paul's song "I'm Confessin" is a heartfelt confession of love as the title implies. The first four lines suggest that the singer takes the risk to declare their affection openly, and they inquire if their love is reciprocated. The following lines indicate the singer's desperate need for their lover and how they read conflicting emotions in their lover's eyes, which they hope their words will resolve. The use of the conditional tense in the subsequent line points out the singer's fear of rejection and acknowledging that their happiness is reliant on their lover.
The third stanza refers to the singer's apprehension of being relegated to the "friend-zone," and the consequences that arise due to disinterest from their lover. In the second line, the phrase "All in life on you depends" is effectively hyperbole, as nobody's life depends entirely on another person. However, the line is essential as it underpins how the singer feels the significance of the other person in their life. The fourth stanza is the climax of the confession, where the singer states that they believe that their love is not reciprocated and laments over the unattainable longing, that is seemingly unrequited.
Overall, the song reveals how vulnerable one becomes when confessing love with no idea of how it might be accepted. The lyrics portray a melancholic tone, conveying the difficulty of unrequited love and the fear of becoming estranged from the object of one's affection.
Line by Line Meaning
I'm confessin' that I love you,
I am expressing to you honestly and openly that I am in love with you.
Tell me, do you love me too?
I am seeking clarification from you if you also reciprocate the feelings of love towards me.
I'm confessin' that I need you,
I am revealing to you that I require your presence and affection in my life.
Honest I do, need you every moment.
I am being sincere in saying that I need you in every aspect of my life, always.
In your eyes I read such strange things,
Your eyes communicate things to me that I find unusual and complicated.
But your lips deny they're true,
Despite what your eyes seem to convey, your words indicate that those things are not factual.
Will your answer really change things
I wonder if your response will alter the current state of our relationship.
Making me blue?
I am concerned that your answer will cause me sadness, disappointment or heartache.
I'm afraid some day you'll leave me,
I have a fear that one day you might abandon me or end our relationship.
Saying "can't we still be friends"
If you did leave me, I am worried that you may want to remain friends despite breaking my heart.
If you go, you know you'll grieve me,
You are aware that if you were to leave me, it would cause me great sadness and pain.
All in life on you depends.
My entire existence and happiness is in some way tied to our relationship and the way you feel about me.
Am I guessin' that you love me,
I am uncertain if you love me and pondering if my feelings for you are reciprocated.
Dreaming dreams of you in vain,
I have been having unfulfilled dreams about you and our relationship.
I'm confessin' that I love you, over again.
I am restating that I am in love with you despite any doubts or uncertainties I may have.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Al J Neiburg, Doc Daugherty, Ellis Reynolds
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@electroswiggety6621
So beautiful! Wow!
@yarabamba
Nice melody.
@philipanderson4673
thank you.
@rudyflower9133
I've been posting this beautiful song for years:))
Thank you for posting ❤