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.
Wrap Your Troubles In Dreams
Les Paul & Mary Ford Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
They're only grey for a day,
So wrap your troubles in dreams,
And dream your troubles away.
Until that sunshine peeps through,
There's only one thing to do,
Just wrap your troubles in dreams,
And dream your troubles away.
That's Fate after all,
Life's really funny that way.
No use to grumble,
Just smile as they fall,
Weren't you King for a day?
Say!
Just remember that sunshine
Always follows the rain,
So wrap your troubles in dreams,
And dream your troubles away.
The song "Wrap Your Troubles In Dreams" by Les Paul & Mary Ford is a song about coping with difficult times in life. The lyrics suggest that when things are not going well, it is important to remain optimistic and keep dreaming. The lyricist encourages listeners to wrap their troubles in dreams, meaning to focus on positive thoughts and to keep hope alive, until things improve. This message is conveyed through a series of metaphors, such as "skies are cloudy and grey," "castles may tumble," and "sunshine follows the rain."
The first verse of the song suggests that although life may be difficult, it is important to remember that things will get better. The second verse hints that bad things may happen, but it is important to keep a positive attitude towards it. The chorus reinforces the idea that through difficult times, having hope and dreams for a better future can be a source of comfort.
The song is ultimately an uplifting and motivating message of resilience and hope. It acknowledges the ups and downs of life but encourages listeners to keep their head up and stay optimistic, reminding them that after every rain comes sunshine.
Line by Line Meaning
When skies are cloudy and grey,
When there are bad times or situations,
They're only grey for a day,
They don't last forever; they only last a short while,
So wrap your troubles in dreams,
Take your problems and put them aside for a while,
And dream your troubles away.
Replace reality with something better in your mind,
Until that sunshine peeps through,
Until things turn around and get better,
There's only one thing to do,
You must take control and do something to make yourself feel better,
Just wrap your troubles in dreams,
Resort to positive thoughts, such as daydreaming, as an escape from reality,
And dream your troubles away.
Allow your imagination to take over until your problems seem less serious,
Your castles may tumble,
Things may fall apart or not go as planned in life,
That's Fate after all,
This is just how life works sometimes,
Life's really funny that way.
Life has a sense of humor and can be unpredictable,
No use to grumble,
There is no point in complaining about what you cannot control,
Just smile as they fall,
Instead, find joy in the little things and don't lose sight of the positives,
Weren't you King for a day?
At some point, everything may have seemed perfect and under your control,
Say!
Hey! Listen up!
Just remember that sunshine
Remember that good times will come,
Always follows the rain,
There is always good that comes out of bad situations,
So wrap your troubles in dreams,
Continue to use positive thoughts to get through difficult times,
And dream your troubles away.
Focus on something better until things start to look up.
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Billy Moll, Harry Barris, Ted Koehler
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@GrogBarrel
The end of 'Blood Ties' episode 23 season 5 of Northern Exposure brought me here.
@atrocious_pr0xy
On a quest for a certain song from Northern Exposure. Heard it as a kid.. but glad i found this. Very pleasant.
@69dragster
I used to listen to this record when I was a kid thank you for the memories
@trixesatelier
Rocked my baby to this 23 years ago, had an old cassette that I wore out Thank you for posting <3
@ebergeron
Tracey Hastings-Ward That recording is a lot older than 23 years LOL. You are welcome, glad you liked it!
@trixesatelier
It sure is, but nothing like appreciating the good stuff.
@ebergeron
You're quite welcome!
@ronmarler5746
My Mary Ford Playlist https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLX2VCaa5t1t4N4OXvfeWyDzbwZ7aoaucf
@chrisbaldwin3148
I love Doris Day and Frank Sinatra, but neither of those two greats created as dreamlike an atmosphere with their versions as did Les and Mary on this recording.