Bennie Benjamin
Bennie Benjamin (actually Claude A. Benjamin , born November 4, 1907 in Christiansted , Saint Croix , US Virgin Islands , † May 2, 1989 in New York City ) was an American songwriter who was best known for titles such as Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood became known.
Live and act
Bennie Benjamin moved to New York when he was twenty, where he learned the banjo and guitar with Hy Smith . He then performed first in vaudeville and with various orchestras, beginning to write songs in 1941 when he became a songwriter at a music publisher. He had success with the number I Don't Want to Set the World on Fire , which he wrote with Sol Marcus, Eddie Seiler and Eddie Durham and which later became an Ink Spots hit . In the following five years he wrote in a trio with Marcus and Seiler for Harry James Strictly Instrumental , for Vera Lynn and Vaughn Monroe When the Lights Go On Again (All Over the World) and for Tony Martin Cancel the Flowers . He also studied at the Juilliard School of Music in New York .
After that he worked on his songs mostly with songwriter George David Weiss ; they wrote hits for Perry Como ( Surrender , 1946), Frankie Carle ( Rumors Are Flying , 1946), Frank Sinatra ( Oh, What It Seemed to Be , 1946), Patti Page ( Confess , 1948), Kay Starr ( Wheel of Fortune , 1952). The two also composed material for the Disney cartoons Fun and Fancy Free and Melody Time in 1947/48 . With Perry Como he founded a music publishing company in 1950 after a few successful titles. One of their greatest hits during this time was I'll Never Be Free, which Tennessee Ernie Ford and Kay Starr performed in a duet and Dinah Washington .
With Sol Marcus, he wrote hits for Elvis Presley ( I Will Be Home Again and Lonely Man ) in the early 1960s , then a number of songs for Nina Simone , which appeared on her album Broadway Blues Ballads (1964), including his most famous song Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood , which was soon successfully covered by The Animals ; the version of which was finally included in the list of the 500 best songs of all time by Rolling Stone magazine . In 1968 Benjamin became a music publisher and founded his own publishing house. In 1984 he was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame . With his wife he created a charity organization in his final years to improve infrastructure and education in the Virgin Islands.
Works (selection)
With Sol Marcus, Ed Durham and Ed Seiler
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With George David Weiss
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With Sol Marcus
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Web links
- Bennie Benjamin at Allmusic (English)
- Entry into Songwriters Hall of Fame
- Bennie Benjamin at Discogs (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Weiss biography in the Songwriters Hall of Fame ( Memento from June 7, 2011 in the Internet Archive )
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Benjamin, Bennie |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Benjamin, Claude A. (real name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American songwriter |
| DATE OF BIRTH | November 4, 1907 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Christiansted , Saint Croix , US Virgin Islands |
| DATE OF DEATH | May 2, 1989 |
| Place of death | New York City |