Miller's start as a songwriter came when he was sixteen years old. In 1956, both Gale Storm and Bonnie Guitar had Top Five hits with different versions of the song "Dark Moon", which Miller co-wrote. Another song he wrote "A Falling Star", was a country hit for Jimmy C. Newman. Very notable is also his uptempo song "Cave In", which in 1960 was the flip side of Warren Smith's, No. 5 country hit "I Don't Believe I'll Fall In Love Today" recorded for the Liberty records label.
He wrote and recorded "From a Jack to a King", which was released on Fabor Records but saw little success on the charts. After being briefly signed to Capitol Records, Miller returned to Fabor and persuaded them to re-release "From a Jack to a King". The song proved successful the second time around, and became a crossover hit for Miller. It sold over two million copies by July 1963, and was awarded a gold disc and endured in covers by stars like Elvis Presley and Bobby Darin and Ricky Van Shelton a.o..
Invisible Tears" was recorded by a.o. Dean Martin, Faron Young, Connie Smith, Bobby Bare, and the Ray Conniff Singers.
Miller was not particularly interested in his singing career, and rarely toured owing to stage fright. He gave up recording in the 1970s and soon moved to Prescott, Arizona, and later to Las Vegas, Nevada.
Ned Miller died on March 18, 2016 in Medford, Oregon.
Mona Lisa
Ned Miller Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You're so like the lady with the mystic smile
Is it only cause you're lonely they have blamed you
For that Mona Lisa strangeness in your smile
Do you smile to tempt a lover Mona Lisa?
Or is this your way to hide a broken heart?
Many dreams have been brought to your doorstep
They just lie there, and they die there
Or just a cold and lonely, lovely work of art.
Do you smile to tempt a lover Mona Lisa?
Or is this your way to hide a broken heart?
Many dreams have been brought to your doorstep
They just lie there, and they die there
Are you warm, are you real Mona Lisa?
Or just a cold and lonely, lovely work of art.
Mona Lisa, Mona Lisa.
In the song "Mona Lisa" by Ned Miller, the lyrics are addressing the famous painting by Leonardo da Vinci. The painting is of a woman with a "mystic smile" that has captivated many. The song questions whether the subject of the painting is smiling to tempt a lover, or if it is her way to hide a broken heart. The lyrics also suggest that many dreams have been brought to her doorstep, but they have just died there.
The song presents an interesting interpretation of the Mona Lisa painting. It portrays Mona Lisa as a lonely and sad figure hiding behind her enigmatic smile. The lyrics suggest that the painting may be a reflection of a woman with a broken heart, which adds a layer of depth to the famous artwork. The song also reflects on the idea that beauty can be a lonely and isolating experience. The lyrics question whether Mona Lisa is a real, warm person or just a cold and lifeless work of art.
Interestingly, the song was not originally written by Ned Miller. It was actually written by Ray Evans and Jay Livingston as part of a movie soundtrack for the 1950 film "Captain Carey, U.S.A." Later, the song was covered by various artists, including Nat King Cole and Elvis Presley.
Line by Line Meaning
Mona Lisa, Mona Lisa men have named you
People have given you the name of Mona Lisa
You're so like the lady with the mystic smile
Your smile is similar to that of a mysterious lady
Is it only cause you're lonely they have blamed you
Are people blaming your mysteries on your loneliness?
For that Mona Lisa strangeness in your smile
Your smile has a unique and strange quality about it
Do you smile to tempt a lover Mona Lisa?
Are you using your smile to seduce a lover?
Or is this your way to hide a broken heart?
Or are you hiding a hurt within yourself through your smile?
Many dreams have been brought to your doorstep
People have had many hopes and fantasies about you
They just lie there, and they die there
However, these dreams remain unrealized and forgotten
Are you warm, are you real Mona Lisa?
Is there more to you than just being a painting?
Or just a cold and lonely, lovely work of art.
Or are you simply a beautiful but lonely work of art?
Mona Lisa, Mona Lisa.
Repeating her name to emphasize her significance
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Songtrust Ave
Written by: Ray Evans, Jay Livingston
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Maykechi77
This song is fire, worthy of being spoken of in the same breath as the painting itself.
Platitudinous
@Xia1 thank you for extracting all of the subtlety from this comment
urd247
absolutely worth...remembering 😂
Riley Mundt
I know you're referencing the movie, but Nat King Cole's voice makes this comment absolutely true.
leann lewis
His name was Miles Bron.
In Your Face, Guitar !
As a guitarist, I gotta say I was blown away by this guitarist. Nat makes playing the piano look like a walk in the park. What a talent.
Kevin Falvey
Oscar Moore
David Hayden
One of the greatest!
arrin
The guy goes to all that trouble to play a concerto behind Nat, and no one thinks to mention his name! Thank heavens (and you) that someone knows!
Michael Cap
@Kevin Falvey Sounds like Les Paul.