They began writing and recording their own music in 1956, and their first hit song came in 1957, with "Bye Bye Love", written by Felice and Boudleaux Bryant. The song hit No. 1 in the spring of 1957, and additional hits would follow through 1958, many of them written by the Bryants, including "Wake Up Little Susie", "All I Have to Do Is Dream", and "Problems". In 1960, they signed with the major label Warner Bros. Records and recorded "Cathy's Clown", written by the brothers themselves, which was their biggest selling single. The brothers enlisted in the United States Marine Corps Reserve in 1961, and their output dropped off, though additional hit singles continued through 1962, with "That's Old Fashioned (That's the Way Love Should Be)" being their last top-10 hit.
Long-simmering disputes with Wesley Rose, the CEO of Acuff-Rose Music, which managed the group, a growing drug usage in the 1960s, as well as changing tastes in popular music, led to the group's decline in popularity in its native U.S., though the brothers continued to release hit singles in the U.K. and Canada, and had many highly successful tours throughout the 1960s. In the early 1970s, the brothers began releasing solo recordings, and in 1973 they officially broke up. Starting in 1983, the brothers got back together, and would continue to perform periodically until Phil's death in 2014. Don died seven years later.
The group was highly influential on the music of the generation that followed it. Many of the top acts of the 1960s were heavily influenced by the close-harmony singing and acoustic guitar playing of the Everly Brothers, including the Beatles, the Beach Boys, the Bee Gees, and Simon & Garfunkel. In 2015, Rolling Stone ranked the Everly Brothers No. 1 on its list of the 20 Greatest Duos of All Time. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as part of the inaugural class of 1986, and into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2001. Don was inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum in 2019, earning the organization's first Iconic Riff Award for his distinctive rhythm guitar intro to the Everlys' massive 1957 hit "Wake Up Little Susie".
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Everly_Brothers
Take a Message to Mary
The Everly Brothers Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Who lost his love when he turned bad
Take a message to Mary but don't tell her where I am
Take a message to Mary but don't say I'm in a jam
You can tell her I had to see the world or tell her that my ship set sail
You can say she'd better not wait for me but don't tell her I'm in jail
Oh, don't tell her I'm in jail
Take a message to Mary but don't tell her what I've done
Please don't mention the stagecoach and the shot from a careless gun
You can tell her I had to change my plans and cancel out the wedding day
But please don't mention my lonely cell where I'm gonna pine away
Until my dying day
Take a message to Mary but don't tell her all you know
My heart's achin' for Mary, Lord knows I miss her so
Just tell her I went to Timbuktu, tell her I'm searchin' for gold
You can say she'd better find someone new to cherish and to hold
Oh, Lord, this cell is cold
Mary, Mary
Oh, Lord this cell is cold
The Everly Brothers’ song “Take a Message to Mary” tells the story of a frontier lad who lost his love when he turned bad. He is asking for someone to take a message to Mary but to keep certain details from her. The lyrics reveal that the singer is in jail and does not want Mary to know. He asks for a message to be delivered to her without mentioning that he is incarcerated. He also suggests that Mary should move on and find someone new to cherish and to hold. The song ends on a melancholic note, with the singer lamenting about the coldness of his cell.
The song has an interesting plotline and raises questions about the circumstances that led to the singer’s imprisonment. The lyrics reveal that the singer took certain actions which caused him to fall out of favor with Mary. It could be interpreted that he might have been involved in a robbery or some other criminal activity.
The song was released in 1959 and became a hit for the Everly Brothers. It was written by Felice and Boudleaux Bryant who also wrote many of the Everly Brothers’ other hit songs. The song has been covered by numerous artists over the years, including the Grateful Dead, Simon and Garfunkel, and Elvis Costello.
Line by Line Meaning
These are the words of a frontier lad
This is the story of a young man from the frontier
Who lost his love when he turned bad
He lost the love of his life after he made a bad decision
Take a message to Mary but don't tell her where I am
Please deliver a message to Mary without revealing my location
Take a message to Mary but don't say I'm in a jam
Please tell Mary I am not in trouble
You can tell her I had to see the world or tell her that my ship set sail
You can say that I had to travel or leave on a ship
You can say she'd better not wait for me but don't tell her I'm in jail
You can suggest that she finds someone else, but don't mention that I am in jail
Oh, don't tell her I'm in jail
Please, do not mention that I am in prison to Mary
Take a message to Mary but don't tell her what I've done
Please do not inform Mary of my actions
Please don't mention the stagecoach and the shot from a careless gun
Don't mention the stagecoach incident and the accidental shooting
You can tell her I had to change my plans and cancel out the wedding day
Mention that my plans changed and that the wedding is canceled
But please don't mention my lonely cell where I'm gonna pine away
Avoid mentioning the depressing prison cell where I will be alone
Until my dying day
For the rest of my life
Take a message to Mary but don't tell her all you know
Please keep some information from Mary
My heart's achin' for Mary, Lord knows I miss her so
I miss Mary deeply and my heart is filled with sorrow
Just tell her I went to Timbuktu, tell her I'm searchin' for gold
Say that I went to Timbuktu and searching for gold
You can say she'd better find someone new to cherish and to hold
Suggest that she should find someone else to love and cherish
Oh, Lord, this cell is cold
This prison cell is very cold and lonely
Mary, Mary
A plea to Mary
Lyrics © Kanjian Music, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: BOUDLEAUX BRYANT, FELICE BRYANT
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@chefjay328
Who again is here in 2023? 🔥🔥🔥♥️
@activeoffroadwesertal
I'am here - in 2024 !
@True_Justice
I’m Nigerian…growing up my elder sister would play this song over and over at first it was annoying but over time we all fell in love with it. It randomly pops in my head but today I decided to search for it on YouTube..brings back so many memories🥹 I miss home😔😔
@williamscott6406
Hello,how are you
@joanmathias6248
Same here...
Only that it was my uncle for me.
@toby9573
Sameeee
@True_Justice
@@williamscott6406 I’m fine…just saw this🤍
@JodieGreat
Awww... used to hear it over and over from the compound next to ours when I was a kid. #memories
@markmorgan3741
Here in China 🇨🇳 i can't stop playing this song. 2022 Who's still listening like me?
@oldskul60s66
Here in Nigeria I can't stop listening... 2020 who's still listening like me?