“Patty Andrews, the lead singer of the Andrews sisters group was born in Mound, Minnesota on February 16, 1918 in a house that occupied the property where The Gillespie Center stands today.
During the 1920’s Laverne, Maxene and Patty Andrews spent their summers in Mound, living with their parents in a house across the street from the grocery store that was owned by Pete and Ed Sollie, bachelor uncles of the three girls. (Today, Green T Accounting occupies the Sollie grocery store building and The Gillespie Center is on the land where the Andrews Sisters’ house once stood.)” - From a commentary by Tom Rockvam that appeared in The Laker Newspaper during 2005.
They started their career as imitators of an earlier successful singing group, the Boswell Sisters. After singing with various dance bands and touring on Vaudeville, they first came to national attention with their recordings and radio broadcasts in 1937. Their music entertained Allied troops worldwide during World War II, sold war bonds, appeared in several films (including a few Abbott and Costello features), and performed for soldiers serving overseas. Their first film with Abbott and Costello, the pre-war comedy Buck Privates, introduced their best-known recording, "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" which would win Best Song at the Academy Awards.
They also recorded many songs with Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye and other popular artists of the era. Their popularity was such that after the war they discovered that some of their records had actually been smuggled into Germany after the labels had been changed to read "Hitler's Marching Songs."
After a brief hiatus after the war, the sisters regrouped, performing in clubs throughout the United States and Europe. They broke up in 1953, with Patty's choice to go solo. Their last appearance together was in 1962 on The Dean Martin Show. Laverne, who had cancer, retired soon after; she died five years later, in 1967 at the age of 55.
After a long silence, the two surviving sisters had something of a comeback when Bette Midler recorded a cover of their song "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy." Maxene and Patty appeared both together and separately throughout the 1970s, with Maxene releasing a solo album in 1986. Their most notable comeback; however, was in the Sherman Brothers' nostalgic World War II musical: "Over Here!" which premiered on Broadway at the Shubert Theatre in 1974. The musical featured the two then living sisters (Maxene and Patty) and was written with them in mind for the leads. It launched the careers of many, now notable theater and film icons (John Travolta, Marilu Henner, Ann Reinking, et al). Ironically it was the last major hurrah of the sisters and was cut short due to a frivolous lawsuit initiated by Patty's husband to the show's producers.
Throughout their long career, the sisters had sold over 60 million records. The group was inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 1998.
The last of the three sisters Patty Andrews died of natural causes at her home in Northridge, California on January 30, 2013, just 17 days before her 95th birthday. The sisters were interred in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Glendale, California, close to their parents.
Ferryboat Serenade
The Andrews Sisters Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I am just content to be a dreamer
Even if I could afford a steamer
I will take the ferry boat every time
I love to ride the ferry
Where music is so merry
There's a man who plays the concertina
While boys and girls are dancing
While sweethearts are romancing
Life is like a mardi-gras
Funiculi, funicula
Happy, we cling together
Happy, we sing together
Happy, with the ferry boat serenade
I am happy, very, very happy
When we're on the ferry
The music is so merry
There's a man who plays the concertina
On the moonlit upper deck arena, arena
I love to ride the ferry
Where music is so merry
There's a man who always plays the concertina, oh my
On the moonlit upper deck arena, by and by
While the boys and girls are dancing, oh dancing
While, while the sweethearts are romancing
Life is like a mardi-gras
Funiculi, funicula
Happy, we cling together
Happy, we sing together
Happy with the ferry boat serenade
I love to ride the ferry
Sailing, sailing where, where the music is so merry
There's a man who just plays the concertina
On the moonlit upper deck arena
All the while the boys and girls are dancing
Look around and you see sweethearts romancing
Life is like a mardi-gras
Funiculi, funicula
Happy, we cling together
Happy, we sing together
Happy, with the ferry boat serenade
The Andrews Sisters' "Ferryboat Serenade" is a tribute to the joy and romance of sailing on a ferry rather than a more expensive, luxurious steamer. The lyrics express a sentiment of contentment, with the singer preferring to remain a dreamer rather than compromise on taking the ferryboat as opposed to the steamer. The promise of music, dancing, and the charm of the ferry's moonlit upper deck creates a picturesque backdrop for the sweethearts to romance, and for boys and girls to dance together. The merriment of this lively community is infectious, and creates fond memories that last long after the ferry has docked.
The image of the "moonlit upper deck arena" and "concertina" conjure up a sense of nostalgia, evocative of romance and music from a bygone era. Thus, the song is a celebration of a simpler time when ferryboat rides were not just a mode of transportation but an occasion to experience a communal festive atmosphere.
Line by Line Meaning
I have never been aboard a steamer
I have never taken a voyage on a passenger ship before
I am just content to be a dreamer
I am happy just imagining what it would be like to take a trip on a steamer
Even if I could afford a steamer
Even if I had enough money to take a voyage on a passenger ship
I will take the ferry boat every time
I will always choose to travel by a smaller, more affordable boat instead of a large passenger ship
I love to ride the ferry
I enjoy traveling on the smaller, more affordable ferry very much
Where music is so merry
Where there is always cheerful and lively music playing
There's a man who plays the concertina
There is a musician who plays an accordion-like instrument called the concertina
On the moonlit upper deck arena
On the open-air deck near the top of the ferry, lit up by the moon
While boys and girls are dancing
While young men and women are moving rhythmically with each other to the music
While sweethearts are romancing
While couples are spending romantic moments together
Life is like a mardi-gras
The atmosphere feels like the lively celebration of a carnival
Funiculi, funicula
A traditional Italian song typically played on the concertina that inspires joy and cheerfulness
Happy, we cling together
We feel happy and connected to each other
Happy, we sing together
We express our happiness by singing the joyous music together
Happy with the ferry boat serenade
We are very happy with our experience on the ferry boat, especially the delightful concertina music
Lyrics © Sugarmusic s.p.a., BMG Rights Management, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Peermusic Publishing
Written by: ELDO DI LAZZARO, MARIO PANZERI
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Mumin Blues
Imposible no sentirse happy con estas sisters... fantásticas, únicas. Gracias por dejarnos la letra.
Maria Giorgio
The first time I heard this song was in 1973. I was making scrambled eggs for breakfast, it came on, the eggs burned because I dropped everything to dance around the kitchen...lol
Scion of Dorn
Fantastic, beats eggs any day, just barely mind you, but it does.
shiptech2k9
This was number 1 in the charts
eric6161
It was #1 in 1940
Jagilsdorf
Its a bop
djmhyde
man... these musics are so good!!!
Redmailnet
Those first 30' are just absolutely brilliant!
Dan Vey
its not 30s. the song is 40s, and this recording is 50s.
Redmailnet
@Dan Vey I meant seconds xD