Vaya con Dios (song)

"Vaya con Dios"
Single by Les Paul and Mary Ford
B-side	"Johnny (Is the Boy For Me)"
Released	June 1953
Format	7" single
Genre	Pop
Length	2:50
Label	Capitol 2486
Writer(s)	Larry Russell, Inez James, and Buddy Pepper
Les Paul and Mary Ford singles chronology
"Sleep" (1953) "Vaya con Dios" (1953) "Johnny" (1953)

"Vaya con Dios" (translated as "Go with God") is a popular song written by Larry Russell, Inez James, and Buddy Pepper, and first recorded by Anita O'Day in December 1952. Les Paul and Mary Ford had a no. 1 recording of the song in 1953. Members of the Western Writers of America chose it as one of the Top 100 Western songs of all time.^[1]

Background

The most popular version of the song was recorded by Les Paul and Mary Ford. This recording was released by Capitol Records as catalog number 2486 with "Johnny (Is the Boy For Me)" as the flip side in May, 1953.^[2] It first reached the Billboard magazine Best Seller chart on June 13, 1953 and lasted thirty-one weeks on the chart, reaching number one on August 8 and remaining at number one for a total of eleven weeks.^[3] The song also reached number one on the Cash Box chart where it remained at no. 1 for five weeks.^[4]

The Les Paul and Mary Ford single reached no. 7 in the UK backed with the Les Paul instrumental composition "Deep in the Blues" as the flip side.

In 2005, the 1953 Les Paul and Mary Ford recording was inducted in the Grammy Hall of Fame.

Other notable recordings

1953 sheet music cover for the Les Paul and Mary Ford recording, Ardmore Music. New York.

The song has been recorded by:

• The McGuire Sisters (1966)
• The Beverley Sisters (1953)
• Wingy Manone (1953)
• Bob London (1953)
• Larry Clinton (1953)
• Jairo (1982)
• Roberto Alagna
• Desi Arnaz (who used it comically on the Home Movies episode of I Love Lucy)
• Chet Atkins
• Gene Autry
• Chuck Berry
• Jeff Beck with Imelda May (2011)
• The Cats
• Pat Boone
• Rocky Burnette
• Carole Carr with orchestra cond. by Hill Bowen. Recorded in London on September 13, 1953. It was released by EMI on the His Master's Voice label as catalog number B 10570.
• Richard Clayderman
• Nat King Cole (in Spanish)
• Bing Crosby
• The Drifters (1964)
• Chiemi Eri (in Japanese)
• Freddy Fender (1976)
• Inez & Charlie Fox
• Connie Francis (Spanish: 1960, German: 1966)
• Don Gibson
• Harry James – Harry James & His Western Friends (Dot DLP 3735 and DLP 25735)
• Julio Iglesias – in 1976 Spanish version, in 2005 French version "C'est Votre Histoire Et La Mienne"
• Pedro Infante (1953^[5] in Spanish)
• Los Panchos
• Joni James
• Gloria Jones
• Andrea Jürgens (1990)
• Kitty Kallen
• Byron Lee
• The Lennon Sisters
• Julie London
• Al Martino (1978)
• Miguel Aceves Mejía
• Millican & Nesbitt (1973)
• Bob Moore (1967)
• Nana Mouskouri
• Chico O'Farrill
• Tony Orlando & Dawn (1972)
• Les Paul & Mary Ford (1953)
• Jim Reeves
• Semprini with Rhythm Accompaniment. Recorded in London on October 13, 1953 as the first melody of the medley "Dancing to the piano (No. 22) – Hit medley of waltzes" along with "My Love, My Love" and "The Melba Waltz". The medley was released by EMI on the His Master's Voice label as catalog number B 10592.
• Hank Snow
• Sylvia Syms (1968)
• Mel Tormé
• Doris Troy (1970)
• Jerry Vale
• Johnny Ventura
• Slim Whitman
• Dyango in his 1977 album Contigo en la Distancia
• Roger Whittaker
• Anne Murray (2002)
• Sunshine Quartett
• The Popes
• Rob & Gilly Bennett (1993)
• Manu Dibango
• Giorgio Consolini in Italian
• Ginette & Raymond Lavoie in French
• Julie Daraîche in French
• Lily Berglund (in Swedish)
• Roy Black (in German)
• Peter Alexander (in German)

References

1. Western Writers of America (2010). "The Top 100 Western Songs". American Cowboy. Archived from the original on 10 August 2014.
2. Vaya Con Dios. Second Hand Songs.
3. Whitburn, Joel (1973). Top Pop Records 1940–1955. Record Research.
4. "Song artist 161 - Les Paul & Mary Ford". Tsort.info. Retrieved 2014-05-23.
5. Pedro Infante. Discogs.

Sources

• Jacobson, Bob. Les Paul: Guitar Wizard. Madison, Wisconsin: Wisconsin Historical Society Press, 2012.
• Shaughnessy, Mary. Les Paul: An American Original. New York: Morrow, 1993.
• Wyckoff, Edwin Brit. Electric Guitar Man: The Genius of Les Paul. Genius at Work! Berkeley Heights, N.J.: Enslow Publishers, 2008.