Bernie Hanighen

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Bernard D. "Bernie" Hanighen (born April 27, 1908 in Omaha , † October 19, 1976 in New York City ) was an American songwriter , composer and music producer .

Live and act

Bernie Hanighen studied at Harvard University and played the violin; During this time he had already written several musicals and founded his own student jazz band. In April 1929, Hanighen was chairman of the Cambridge Theater Club and organized a music show called Close Up , for which he asked young Henry Fonda , with whom he was friends.

Upon graduation, Hanighen moved to New York City to pursue a career in the music industry. Hanighen supported Billie Holiday's career as musical director at Columbia Records and co-produced her early recordings for Vocalion Records with John Hammond from 1936 to 1939. Billie Holiday claimed in her autobiography that Hanighen almost lost his job because he was dating campaigned for her to get more money. Lady Day and Hanighen also briefly had an affair with each other and remained friends for life. Hanighen co-wrote the song Yankee Doodle Never Went to Town , which Billi Holiday recorded with Teddy Wilson's band in 1935 . In 1952, Holiday recorded his composition If the Moon Turns Green, written with Paul Coates .

He had his first hit in 1934 when he wrote When a Woman Loves a Man with Gordon Jenkins to a lyrics by Johnny Mercer . A number of other songs were created in collaboration with Mercer, including Poor Mr Chisholm (which Fred Astaire sang in the 1940 musical film Second Chorus ) and Bob White (Whatcha Gonna Swing Tonight?) , First sung by Bing Crosby in 1937. Hanighen has also written for Broadway shows and films. During World War II he was a newscaster for CBS.

78s by Cootie Williams & Orchestra - 'Round Midnight. Copywriter Bernie Hanighen is misspelled on the label.

Most remembered is his collaboration with Cootie Williams ; Hanighen and the Ellington Trumpeter wrote the lyrics for Thelonious Monk's composition 'Round Midnight . He also wrote the music and lyrics of the spiritual Two Little Fishes (and Five Loaves of Bread) , which Josh White interpreted.

Other songs by Hanighen were

  • The Little Man Who Wasn't There (with Harold Adamson )
  • If the Moon Turns Green (with Paul Coates)
  • My Old Man (played by the Spirits of Rhythm ), Fare-Thee-Well to Harlem, Poor Mr Chisholm (Hoe Down the Bayou), Me and the Ghost Upstairs, Show Your Linen, Miss Richardson (with Johnny Mercer)
  • Valley Low (music by Raymond Scott ),
  • You're a Joy (with Tadd Dameron ),
  • Blue Fool (1949, music by Alec Wilder )
  • Baby Doll (1951, with Kenyon Hopkins).

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Donald Clarke: Billie Holiday - Wishing on the Moon . A biography, Piper Verlag 1995, ISBN 3-492-03756-9
  2. ↑ According to Donald Clarke, the Hanighen musicians are said to have made recordings with Fletcher Henderson for the English market. Tom Lord mentions a Hanighen session in 1924.
  3. ↑ Kevin Sweeney: Henry Fonda: A Bio-Bibliography 1992. p. 7
  4. ^ Meg Greene: Billie Holiday: A Biography 2007. p. 26
  5. ^ Maya C. Gibson: Alternate Takes: Billie Holiday at the Intersection of Black . 2008, p. 143
  6. ↑ Clarke relativizes in his book the merits of John Hammond and Benny Goodman for the discovery of Billie Holidays in favor of Hanighen and his collaborator Ernie Anderson. See Donald Clarke, p. 139
  7. ↑ Billie Holiday recorded the song in 1938.
  8. ↑ Donald Clarke claims in his Holiday biography that the song was written by "Hanighen, Paul Coates and Billy Rose (in that order)". See Clarke, p. 117
  9. ↑ The song was used in the 1988 soundtrack for Annie's Men and was nominated for the 1989 Golden Globe Awards .
  10. ↑ Don Tyler: Hit Songs, 1900-1955: American Popular Music of the Pre-Rock Era . 2007. Page 404
  11. ↑ http://www.lib.utk.edu/music/songdb/songdb.php?composer=HANIGHEN,%20BERNIE
  12. ↑ Jim Cox: The Great Radio Sitcoms . 2007 - Page 274
  13. ^ Roger D. Kinkle: The Complete Encyclopedia of Popular Music and Jazz, 1900-1950 - Volume 2 1974 - Page 423.
  14. ^ Paul Combs: Dameronia , p. 490.
  15. ↑ David Demsey, Ronald E. Prather, Judith Bell: Alec Wilder: a Bio-Bibliography . 1993 - Page 71
  16. ^ David F. Lonergan: Hit Records: 1950-1975 . P. 11
personal data
SURNAME Hanighen, Bernie
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Hanighen, Bernard
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American songwriter, composer, and record producer
DATE OF BIRTH April 27, 1908
PLACE OF BIRTH Omaha
DATE OF DEATH 19th October 1976
Place of death New York City