Les Paul and Mary Ford - Runnin' Wild

As I mentioned yesterday, there were two 45 singles in my Mom's old record collection that I played over and over. "Stratosphere Boogie" by Jimmy Bryant and Speedy West was one; the other was a single by Les Paul and Mary Ford, a fast, uptempo track called "Runnin' Wild," released on Capitol Records in 1956.

Les Paul was a magician in the recording studio, which makes sense, since he invented and developed much of the technology for what would become today's multi-track recording gear that populates professional as well as home recording studios around the world (not to mention what may have been the first solid-body electric guitar). With Mary Ford, the duo sold millions of records in the 1950s, with 16 top ten hits...five of those within a nine-month period. The popularity of the pair's radio program and appearances on a syndicated TV show called Les Paul & Mary Ford At Home helped them achieve superstar status.

Les Paul and Mary Ford

But those recordings that they made in Les Paul's studio using his pioneering recording techniques were nothing short of inspired. Paul frequently overdubbed Mary Ford's vocals, allowing her to double her lines and harmonize with herself. He also enjoyed employing little touches such as altering the tape recorder's speed while overdubbing his guitar parts, which accounts for his lightning-fast soloing in "Runnin' Wild," pitched in a range much higher than a standard guitar can reach. That sound really caught my attention...even at a young age, and even though I wasn't yet learning how to play, I knew that a regular guitar couldn't play those notes or that solo. But I still knew it was a guitar. How did Les Paul do that? Years later, I learned.

From the Artist Biography by Laurie Mercer at AllMusic

The husband-and-wife musical duo of Les Paul & Mary Ford enjoyed immense popularity in the 1950s, with their popular appeal based as much on their musical talent as the revolutionary recording techniques developed by Paul. Both were music industry veterans when they came together as a couple, both professionally and romantically. Les Paul was one of the giants of music innovation in the 20th century, inventing multi-track recording, studio techniques such as "close miking," and -- most famously -- designing and building one of the first solid-body electric guitars. Iris Summers originally was a country music singer and guitarist, working with Gene Autry and Jimmy Wakely, and one of the Sunshine Girls trio, appearing briefly in the film I'm from Arkansas. They were introduced to each other in 1946 by Gene Autry, and their chemistry was obvious -- they started performing together almost immediately. To make their billing simple, Paul selected "Mary Ford" from a telephone directory so her name would be almost as short as his. Their romantic and professional careers seemed perfect -- married in 1949, they began broadcasting The Les Paul Show to a national audience on NBC that same year.

The combination of Paul's technical genius and their national radio audience propelled them quickly to the top of the charts. Paul was an innovator in using multi-track recording, which had generated instrumental pop hits for him earlier in his career; now he was able to use Mary's voice for his most important studio experiments to date. First, he successfully achieved a close-miking effect by placing the microphone within six inches of her mouth, producing a warm and intimate sound. Then, by duplicating her performance on multiple tape tracks, it seemed she was harmonizing perfectly with herself, an effect that instantly connected the listener with the emotion of her recording. Together, they changed forever the sound of pop music. From that point until 1954, the duo of Les Paul & Mary Ford had a 16 Top Ten hits, including an astounding five Top Ten hits in a nine-month span -- "Tennessee Waltz," "Mockin' Bird Hill," "How High the Moon" (which stayed at number one for nine weeks), "The World Is Waiting for the Sunrise," and "Whispering." Then, from August 1952 to March 1953, they had five more Top Ten hits: "My Baby's Coming Home," "Lady of Spain," "Bye Bye Blues," "I'm Sitting on Top of the World," and "Vaya con Dios" (which stayed at number one for 11 weeks).

By the 1960s, Les Paul and Mary Ford were no longer charting top ten hits. As audience musical tastes evolved and Paul's studio techniques started to become more and more common among other performers, producers and engineers, the novelty had worn off. At the same time, Mary Ford had grown tired of the work and tour schedule that the workaholic Paul favored. They went through a nasty divorce in 1964, which also ended their professional relationship.

Mary Ford died in 1977 from a diabetes-related ailment. Les Paul continued to record and perform until his death at 94 in 2009.

Les Paul was another of my first guitar heroes, and I fell in love with the Gibson Les Paul model electric guitar the first time I saw one. I knew that guitar would be the electric guitar I would play one day, and at 18, I got my first, a sunburst Les Paul Deluxe that still is my go-to electric to this day (my Les Paul Custom is a close second). Those guitars feel like parts of me...they fit my playing style so comfortably. I can't imaging playing without them.