Andy Razaf
Andy Razaf (actually Andriamanantena Paul Razafinkarefo ; born December 16, 1895 in Washington, DC , † February 3, 1973 in North Hollywood ) was an American songwriter. He became known for his collaboration with Fats Waller .
Live and act
Andy Razaf was the great-nephew of the last Queen of Madagascar , Ranavalona III. , his mother was the daughter of an American consul. She fled to the USA when she was sixteen, pregnant, when Madagascar was occupied as a colony by the French . The family later moved to New York City , where Razaf was an elevator operator; on the side he began to write lyrics. Since nobody was interested in it at first, he wrote poetry that he published in the Harlem newspapers. Eventually he met the pianist Fats Waller in the 1920s; he wrote lyrics for his most important songs like Love Will Find A Way and Keepin 'Out of Mischief Now , for standards like Memories Of You (music by Eubie Blake ) and together with Fats Waller the titles Ain't Misbehavin' and Honeysuckle Rose , die are now jazz standards . Other well-known songs included That's What I Like 'Bout the South and the later Glenn Miller hit In the Mood , which Razaf sold for $ 200 .
In 1932, the collaboration between Waller and Razaf ended; the pianist now concentrated more on playing than on composing songs. Razaf continued his songwriting activity until his death in 1973. He was married four times.
Particularly noteworthy is the anti-racist song (What Did I Do to Be so) Black and Blue? Set to music by Fats Waller . , which Louis Armstrong often performed impressively.
Web links
- Biography ( Memento from August 12, 2004 in the Internet Archive ) on riverwalk.org (English)
- Andy Razaf in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- Works by and about Andy Razaf in the catalog of the German National Library
- Andy Razaf in the Songwriters Hall of Fame (English)
literature
- Ken Bloom: The American Songbook - The Singers, the Songwriters, and the Songs . Black Dog & Leventhal, New York City 2005, ISBN 1-57912-448-8 .
- Barry Singer Black and Blue: The Life and Lyrics of Andy Razaf . Schirmer Books 1992 ISBN 0-02-872395-3 .
Individual evidence
- ^ Hans-Jürgen Schaal : Andy Razaf. The Duke of Harlem . In: hjs-jazz.de , 2005. Retrieved on March 28, 2018.
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Razaf, Andy |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Razafinkarefo, Andriamanantena Paul (real name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American songwriter |
| DATE OF BIRTH | December 16, 1895 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Washington, DC |
| DATE OF DEATH | 3rd February 1973 |
| Place of death | North Hollywood |