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.
Sweet & Lovely
Les Paul & Mary Ford Lyrics
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Sweet and lovely heaven must have sent her my way
Skies above me never were as blue as her eyes
And she loves me, who would want a sweeter surprise
When she nestles in my arms so tenderly
There's a thrill that words cannot express
In my heart a song of love is taunting me, melody, haunting me
And she loves me, there is nothing more I can say
Sweet and lovely sweeter than the roses in May
Sweet and lovely heaven must have sent her my way
Skies above me never were as blue as her eyes
And she loves me, who would want a sweeter surprise
When she nestles in my arms so tenderly
There's a thrill that words cannot express
In my heart a song of love is taunting me, melody, haunting me
Sweet and lovely sweeter than the roses in May
And she loves me, there is nothing more I can say
The lyrics to "Sweet and Lovely" by Les Paul and Mary Ford are a celebration of the joys and pleasures of being in love. The singer marvels at the wonderful woman who has come into his life, describing her as "sweeter than the roses in May" and suggesting that she must have been sent to him by heaven. He notes the beauty of the skies above him and compares them to the loveliness of her eyes. The singer feels truly blessed to have this woman by his side, and he expresses his gratitude for her love.
The chorus of the song emphasizes the depth of the singer's feelings for his beloved. He describes the pleasure he feels when she nestles in his arms, and he notes that there is a song in his heart that expresses his love for her. The melody of this song seems to follow him wherever he goes, "haunting" him with its beauty. The singer concludes by praising his sweetheart once again, calling her "sweet and lovely" and marveling at the wonder of her love.
Overall, "Sweet and Lovely" is a touching and romantic tribute to the joys of love. The lyrics are simple yet heartfelt, and they capture the deep emotions that come with being in a loving relationship.
Line by Line Meaning
Sweet and lovely sweeter than the roses in May
The subject of the song is sweet and lovely, even sweeter than the roses that bloom in May.
Sweet and lovely heaven must have sent her my way
The subject of the song is so perfect that the singer believes she was sent to him from heaven above.
Skies above me never were as blue as her eyes
The singer is in awe of the subject's beautiful blue eyes and compares them to the skies above him.
And she loves me, who would want a sweeter surprise
Because the subject loves the singer, he feels blessed and doesn't believe there could be a sweeter surprise.
When she nestles in my arms so tenderly
The singer feels deep affection for the subject when she snuggles up into his arms affectionately.
There's a thrill that words cannot express
The feeling the singer gets when he's holding the subject is so intense that it cannot be put into words.
In my heart a song of love is taunting me, melody, haunting me
The singer's heart is overflowing with love for the subject and it manifests itself as a joyful, yet haunting, melody in his head.
And she loves me, there is nothing more I can say
Because the subject loves the singer in return, he feels incredibly content and doesn't believe there's anything more to be said.
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc., HARRY TOBIAS MUSIC COMPANY, CARLIN AMERICA INC
Written by: CHARLES N. DANIELS, GUS ARNHEIM, HARRY TOBIAS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind