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.
The Best Things in Life Are Free
Les Paul & Mary Ford Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The best things in life are free
The stars belong to ev'ryone
They gleam there for you and me
The flowers in spring
The robins that sing
The sunbeams that shine
And love can come to ev'ryone
The best things in life are free
The lyrics to Les Paul & Mary Ford's song The Best Things in Life Are Free portray a message of optimism, reminding us that there are certain things in life that we can all enjoy and appreciate, regardless of our differences. The moon, stars, flowers, and sunbeams are all examples of things that we can all behold and derive joy from at no cost. The song ties this concept into the idea that love is also a free gift that can be given and received by everyone.
The song's message is particularly powerful because it was written and released during the post-war era, a time when people were beginning to rebuild and redefine their lives. After a long period of scarcity and difficulty, the idea that some of the best things in life were accessible to all, and didn't require money, was a hopeful and encouraging message to hear.
Line by Line Meaning
The moon belongs to ev'ryone
We all have equal access to the beauty of the moon
The best things in life are free
The things that truly matter and make us happy cannot be bought with money
The stars belong to ev'ryone
We all have the privilege of admiring the beauty of the stars
They gleam there for you and me
We both have the opportunity to enjoy the stars' shimmering beauty
The flowers in spring
The natural beauty of flowers that come to life during spring
The robins that sing
The melodious sound of birds chirping during springtime
The sunbeams that shine
The warmth and light from the sun that provides growth, nourishment, and happiness for all living things
They're yours, they're mine
We all have an equal share of nature's gifts and beauty
And love can come to ev'ryone
Love is not reserved for a select few; it can find its way to anyone who is open to it
The best things in life are free
Once again asserting that happiness and fulfillment cannot be bought and that the beauty of life lies in the simple joys that are available to us all
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: LEW BROWN, B. G. DE SYLVA, RAY HENDERSON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind