Born in Bristol, Tennessee, to Clarence Thomas Ford and Maud Long, Ford began his radio career as an announcer at station WOPI in Bristol, leaving in 1939 to study classical music and voice at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music. 1st Lieut. Ford served in World War II as the bombardier on a B-29 Superfortress flying missions over Japan. After the war, Ford worked at radio stations in San Bernardino and Pasadena, Calif. In San Bernardino, hired as a radio announcer, Ernest J. Ford did the news and general announcing. He was assigned the job of hosting an early morning country music disc jockey programme titled "Bar Nothin' Ranch." To differentiate himself, he created the personality of "Tennessee Ernie," a wild, madcap exaggerated hillbilly. He became popular in the area and was soon hired away by Pasadena's KXLA radio.
At KXLA he continued doing the same show and also joined the cast of Cliffie Stone's popular live KXLA country show "Dinner Bell Roundup" as a vocalist while still doing the early morning broadcast. Stone, a part-time talent scout for Capitol Records, brought him to the attention of the label. In 1949, while still doing his morning show, he signed a contract with Capitol. He also became a local television star as the star of Stone's popular Southern California "Hometown Jamboree" television show. He released almost fifty country singles through the early 1950s, several of which made the charts. Many of his early records, including "The Shot Gun Boogie", "Blackberry Boogie", and so on were exciting, driving boogie-woogie records featuring exciting accompaniment by the Hometown Jamboree band which included Jimmy Bryant on lead guitar and pioneer pedal steel guitarist Speedy West. "I'll Never Be Free", a duet pairing Ford with Capitol Records pop singer Kay Starr, became a huge country and pop crossover hit in 1950.
Ford eventually ended his KXLA morning show and in the early 1950s, moved on from Hometown Jamboree. He took over from bandleader Kay Kyser as host of the television version of the NBC quiz show "College of Musical Knowledge" when it returned briefly in 1954 after a four-year break. He also portrayed the country bumpkin Cousin Ernie on I Love Lucy.
Ford scored an unexpected hit on the pop charts in 1955 with his rendition of Merle Travis' "Sixteen Tons", a sparsely arranged coal-miner's lament that Travis wrote in 1946, based on his own family's experience in the mines of Muhlenberg County, Kentucky. With a unique clarinet-driven pop arrangement by Ford's Musical Director, Jack Fascinato, "Sixteen Tons" spent ten weeks at number one on the country charts and eight weeks at number one on the pop charts, and made Ford a crossover star. It became Ford's signature song.
Ford subsequently helmed his own primetime variety programme, The Ford Show, which ran on NBC from 1956 to 1961. Ford's programme was notable for the inclusion of a religious song at the end of every show; Ford insisted on this despite objections from network officials who feared it might provoke controversy. It quickly became the most popular segment of the show. He earned the nickname "The Ol' Pea-Picker" becafter his catch-phrase, "Bless your pea-pickin' heart!"
In 1956 he released Hymns, his first gospel album, which remained on Billboard's "Top Album" charts for a remarkable 277 consecutive weeks; his album Great Gospel Songs won a Grammy Award in 1964. After the NBC show ended, Ford moved his family to Northern California and from 1962 to 1965, hosted a daytime talk show The Tennessee Ernie Ford Show from San Francisco, broadcast over the ABC TV network.
Over the years, Ford has been awarded three stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, for radio, records, and television. He was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1984 and was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1990.
Ford, who offstage contended with a serious alcohol problem that never affected his professional work, began suffering increasing liver problems in the 1980s that worsened in 1990, the year he was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame. He fell ill in 1991 after leaving a state dinner at the White House hosted by President George Bush, and died in a Virginia hospital on 17th October, exactly thirty-six years after "Sixteen Tons" was released and one day shy of the first anniversary of his induction into the Hall of Fame.
Ford was posthumously recognized for his gospel music contributions by being added to the Gospel Music Association's Gospel Music Hall of Fame in 1994.
Catfish Boogie
Tennessee Ernie Ford Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
TENNESSEE ERNIE FORD (Capitol 2602, 1953)
Catfish boogie-woogie, boogie-woogie, boogie-woogie
Catfish boogie-woogie, boogie-woogie, boogie-woogie
Woke up this morning about half past four
Who'd I see tiptoeing cross my floor
My everlovin' baby with a rod in her hand
She yelled at me and said, git up son
Come along with me and let's have some fun
I grabbed my bridges and a long cane pole
Headed for the red hot catfish hole
Catfish boogie-woogie, boogie-woogie, boogie-woogie
Catfish boogie-woogie, boogie-woogie, boogie-woogie
Catfish boogie, do it, baby with me
We arrived post haste on the bank of the creek
Don't make no noise, don't even speak
She threaded a worm right on that hook
And dropped it in the water in a shady nook
The bopper jumped when mister whiskers hit
My gal flipped and throed a fit
She pulled and tugged and yelled, what's wrong
I said, baby he's a big and that cat's real gone
Catfish boogie-woogie, boogie-woogie, boogie-woogie
Catfish boogie-woogie, boogie-woogie, boogie-woogie
Catfish boogie, do it, baby with me
We fished for a while, caught a great big mess
A long string of blue cap hapiness
She smiled at me and her eyes did roll
She said, set your pole and let's take a stroll
We walked along the creek, me and my miss
She gave me a hug and a great big kiss
She held me close and said, I love you
I said, I got all of this and fishin' too
Catfish boogie-woogie, boogie-woogie, boogie-woogie
Catfish boogie-woogie, boogie-woogie, boogie-woogie
Catfish boogie, do it, baby with me
The song "Catfish Boogie" by Tennessee Ernie Ford is a lively and cheerful tune about a fishing adventure. The song is about waking up in the morning and finding one's lover with a fishing rod in her hand, heading towards the creek called Catfish Land. The singer joins her in the boogie-woogie fishing adventure and they both catch a large mess of fish.
Throughout the song, the singer expresses his admiration and love for his partner. They talk, fish and walk together, proving that their love can thrive even while they are engaging in an everyday activity such as fishing. The song has a positive and upbeat tone, portraying the joy of spending time with loved ones, connecting with nature, and enjoying the simple pleasures in life.
Overall, "Catfish Boogie" is a fun and enjoyable song that celebrates love, companionship, and the beauty of nature. The lyrics convey a sense of playfulness and lightheartedness, making it a perfect tune to dance along with.
Line by Line Meaning
Catfish boogie-woogie, boogie-woogie, boogie-woogie
Let's dance and have some fun
Woke up this morning about half past four
I woke up early in the morning
Who'd I see tiptoeing cross my floor
I saw my partner sneaking around my room
My everlovin' baby with a rod in her hand
My partner came with a fishing rod to go fishing with me
Headin' for the creek called Catfish Land
We're going to the creek where there are lots of catfish
She yelled at me and said, git up son
My partner woke me up and told me to come along
Come along with me and let's have some fun
Let's have some fun together
I grabbed my bridges and a long cane pole
I got dressed and took a fishing rod
Headed for the red hot catfish hole
We went to the spot where we knew there were a lot of catfish
We arrived post haste on the bank of the creek
We got to the creek quickly
Don't make no noise, don't even speak
We need to be quiet to avoid scaring the fish
She threaded a worm right on that hook
My partner put a worm on the hook
And dropped it in the water in a shady nook
She put the bait in the water where there was shade
The bopper jumped when mister whiskers hit
The bobber moved when the catfish bit the hook
My gal flipped and throed a fit
My partner got excited and started shouting
She pulled and tugged and yelled, what's wrong
My partner was trying to reel in the fish and was struggling
I said, baby he's a big and that cat's real gone
I informed my partner that the catfish was big and was putting up a good fight
We fished for a while, caught a great big mess
We fished for a while and caught a lot of catfish
A long string of blue cap hapiness
We caught a lot of catfish, which made us very happy
She smiled at me and her eyes did roll
My partner smiled at me and rolled her eyes
She said, set your pole and let's take a stroll
My partner asked me to put down my fishing rod and take a walk with her
We walked along the creek, me and my miss
We walked along the creek together
She gave me a hug and a great big kiss
My partner hugged me and gave me a big kiss
She held me close and said, I love you
My partner held me close and told me she loved me
I said, I got all of this and fishin' too
I responded that I have everything I want, including fishing with my partner
Catfish boogie-woogie, boogie-woogie, boogie-woogie
Let's dance and end the day with some fun
Contributed by Carson B. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
BoZ CarSoN
I love this Album! Ernie Ford is one of the best of all times!
Ricardo Sales De Mello
yeeaahhh!!!!!!!! é joiiiaaaa adorei ❤❤❤❤❤❤
Tim Whitlock
Brilliant accompaniment by Speedy West and Jimmy Bryant!
Tonya Marinaro
I LOVE THIS !!!
Tony Altano
🎶👌✔
Jan Adamec
perfect steel guitar
Slick Andrews
Jan Adamec hiya! That's Speedy West on steel... Jimmy Bryant on takeoff guitar... What a band, huh?
bobobob1230
Ok so my local college station has been playing a bunch of tunes with serious Fallout vibes, got in the car tonight and this was on and I lost it ;'D gotta go stock up on RadAway
Edit: for future readers the coronavirus is going on rn, hope you all still have a civilization ;'D
victoria Springer
my best
Eileen Gray
Tennessee earny ford river of no return