Tilton and her family lived in Texas and Kansas, relocating to Los Angeles when she was seven years old. While attending Fairfax High School in Los Angeles, she was singing on a small radio station when she was heard by an agent who signed her and began booking her with larger stations. She then dropped out of school in the 11th grade to join Hal Grayson's band.
After singing with the quartet Three Hits and a Miss, she joined the Myer Alexander chorus on Benny Goodman's radio show, Camel Caravan. Goodman hired Tilton as a vocalist with his band in August 1937. She was with Goodman in January 1938, when the band performed the first jazz performance at Carnegie Hall. She continued to appear as Goodman's star vocalist through the end of 1939.
Tilton had a major success from 1942 to 1949 as one of the first artists to record for Capitol Records. Her first recording for Capitol was "Moon Dreams", Capitol 138, with Orchestra and The Mellowaires, composed by Johnny Mercer and Glenn Miller pianist Chummy MacGregor in 1942. "Moon Dreams" would be recorded by Glenn Miller in 1944 and by Miles Davis in 1950. Among her biggest hits as a solo artist were "I'll Walk Alone," a wartime ballad which rose to #4 on the charts in 1944; "I Should Care" and "A Stranger in Town," which both peaked at #10 in 1945; and three in 1947: "How Are Things in Glocca Morra" from Finian's Rainbow, which climbed to #8; "That's My Desire", which hit #10; and "I Wonder, I Wonder, I Wonder", which reached #9.
After she left Capitol, Tilton recorded for other labels, including Coral and Tops. Among her later albums was We Sing the Old Songs (1957, Tops), a mix of older songs and recent standards with baritone Curt Massey, who later became well known as the composer (with Paul Henning) and singer of the theme song for the CBS-TV series Petticoat Junction.
Reviewing the two-CD set, The Liltin' Miss Tilton, (Capitol, 2000), critic Don Heckman wrote:
There are those who would say that Martha Tilton wasn't a jazz singer at all. But swing-era fans won't have any doubts, remembering her for a rocking version of "Loch Lomond" at Benny Goodman's 1938 Carnegie Hall concert.
Massey and Tilton starred in Alka-Seltzer Time, a 15-minute radio series broadcast weekdays on both CBS and Mutual. Sponsored by Alka-Seltzer, this show began in 1949 as Curt Massey Time (sometimes advertised as Curt Massey Time with Martha Tilton) with a title change to highlight the sponsor's product by 1952.
By 1953, the series was heard simultaneously on Mutual (at noon) and later that same day on CBS (at 5:45pm). Ads described the show as "informal song sessions" by vocalists Massey and Tilton, who was often billed as "The liltin' Martha Tilton." The two Texas-born singers performed with Country Washburne and His Orchestra, featuring Charles LaVere on piano. The series ended November 6, 1953. However, Massey and Tilton continued to appear together during the late 1950s on such shows as Guest Star and Stars for Defense. They also teamed to record an album, We Sing the Old Songs (1957). Tilton and Massey also co-hosted a daily fifteen minute TV show in Los Angeles for approximately seven years.
Her movies include Sunny (1941), Strictly in the Groove (1942), Swing Hostess (1944), Crime, Inc.. (1945), and The Benny Goodman Story (1956). Her last film appearance was as the band vocalist in the TV movie Queen of the Stardust Ballroom (1975). Tilton's singing voice was used for other actresses including Barbara Stanwyck (Ball of Fire), Martha O'Driscoll, and Anne Gwynne. She also appeared in several Soundies musical films of the 1940s.
Her sister, Liz Tilton, also seen in Soundies, sang with Ken Baker (mid-1930s), Buddy Rogers, Bob Crosby (1941), and Jan Garber (1942).
Exactly Like You
Martha Tilton Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Not a real one, just a dream
A wonderful vision of us as a team
Can you imagine how I feel now
Love is real now, it's ideal
You're just what I wanted
And now it's nice to live
Paradise to live
I know why I've waited
Know why I've been blue
Prayed each night for someone
Exactly like you
Why should we spend money
On a show or two
No one does those love scenes
Exactly like you
You make me feel so grand
I want to hand the world to you
I hope you'll understand
Each foolish little scheme I'm schemin'
And dream I'm dreamin'
Now I know why mother
Taught me to be true
She meant me for someone
Exactly like you
The lyrics to Martha Tilton's song Exactly Like You are about finding the perfect soulmate. The song describes the singer's journey of finding true love after dreaming of it for so long. The singer had always dreamed of finding the perfect partner, someone who they could share their life with, in a perfect world. After many years of waiting and praying, the singer finally meets the person they had been waiting for, and they realize that love is real, and it's perfect. The singer can now enjoy living in paradise, knowing that they have found their match.
The song's lyrics talk about how no one can recreate the feeling of love, and how it's impossible to recreate the pure emotion that is felt between two people who are meant to be together. Even love scenes in movies or on stage can't compare to the real thing. The song is a tribute to finding the one person whom you were made for, and how it truly is a magical experience. The lyrics highlight the importance of being patient and waiting for the right person to come along, instead of settling for less.
Line by Line Meaning
I used to have a perfect sweetheart
I once imagined a perfect partner in my mind
Not a real one, just a dream
But it was just a figment of my imagination
A wonderful vision of us as a team
We would work seamlessly together in my fantasy
Can you imagine how I feel now
Could you possibly grasp how I'm feeling at this moment?
Love is real now, it's ideal
But now love has become a tangible reality, something beyond perfection
You're just what I wanted
You turned out to be exactly how I pictured my ideal partner
And now it's nice to live
Life has become wonderful and complete
Paradise to live
Living with you is paradise
I know why I've waited
I've come to understand why I waited so long for you
Know why I've been blue
I realize what caused my sadness before you entered my life
Prayed each night for someone
I used to say a prayer each night for the person I hoped to find
Exactly like you
Someone who is exactly like you
Why should we spend money
Why waste money
On a show or two
To go see a couple of plays or movies
No one does those love scenes
They can't possibly show love that truly exists
Exactly like you
The kind of love that you and I have
You make me feel so grand
You make me feel great
I want to hand the world to you
I wish I had the power to give you everything
I hope you'll understand
I hope you can see what I mean
Each foolish little scheme I'm schemin'
All my little plans and dreams
And dream I'm dreamin'
All the dreams I'm still dreaming
Now I know why mother
Now I understand the lesson my mother taught me
Taught me to be true
To always be honest with myself and others
She meant me for someone
She knew that I was meant for a person
Exactly like you
Someone with all the qualities you possess
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, RESERVOIR MEDIA MANAGEMENT INC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Dorothy Fields, Jimmy Mchugh
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind