Doc Pomus
Doc Pomus (born Jerome Solon fields ; * 27. June 1925 in New York ; † 14. March 1991 ) was an American rock 'n' roll - and Pop - Composer .
Life
He began in his youth - despite a polio illness , because of which he was dependent on crutches - as a saxophone player and blues singer in clubs and bars. After his first self-sung and self-composed single Blues in the Red from October 1945, recorded with the Tab Smith Septet , he had released 18 more records without chart placement by 1952.
In August 1952 Doc Pomus succeeded in offering his composition Don't you cry to the successful blues singer Big Joe Turner , who made this song number 5 on the R&B charts. From then on he was able to win other interpreters for his compositions. Boogie Woogie Country Girl , which is important for the further development of rock'n'roll , was undeservedly relegated to the B-side of a Joe Turner single in April 1956. The breakthrough came with the autobiographical Lonely Avenue for Ray Charles in October 1956.
Now songwriting became his main job: with the support of his songwriting partner and pianist Mort Shuman , he wrote numerous hits from 1956 for stars of the time such as Elvis Presley (including Viva Las Vegas , Suspicion , Little Sister , His Latest Flame ), Fabian ( I'm a Man , Turn Me Loose ), Bobby Darin ( Plain Jane ), Dion and the Belmonts ( Teenager in Love ), several songs for The Drifters ( Sweets for My Sweet ), successfully covered by the Searchers , and Save the Last Dance for Me . He also wrote a few songs with the composer duo Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller , including the title Young Blood (from youth jargon for a good-looking girl) for the Coasters in May 1957 (No. 2 on the R&B charts). After the partnership with Mort Shuman ended because of his move to Europe in 1964, Pomus left the music business for ten years and earned his living as a poker player. After his return he worked as a songwriter for artists such as BB King , for whom he and Dr. John wrote the autobiographical There Must Be a Better World Somewhere . Johnny Adams released an album of Pomus songs in September 1991 under the title Johnny Adams Sings Doc Pomus , from which There Is Always One More Time (composed by Pomus and Dr. John) is to be mentioned. Mink DeVille took into account on his album Sporting Life , released in June 1985, the Pomus composition Something Beautiful Dying ; DeVille's 1980 album Le chat bleu contained the Pomus songs That World Outside and You Just Keep Holding On . Pomus also produced for Ray Charles , Joe Cocker and Marianne Faithfull , among others , until he died of lung cancer in New York in 1991.
Song statistics
According to Broadcast Music Incorporated , Pomus has a total of 561 registered copyrights. It is estimated that around 100 million records of his songs have been sold worldwide to date. For his achievements, he was awarded, among other things, the induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (1992), several Grammys and the Pioneer Award of the Rhythm and Blues Foundation. In 2015 Rolling Stone listed Pomus, together with Mort Shuman, at 61st of the 100 best songwriters of all time .
Web links
- Website of the composer
- Works by and about Doc Pomus in the catalog of the German National Library
- Stephen Holden : Jerome (Doc) Pomus, 65, Lyricist For Some of Rock's Greatest Hits (obituary in The New York Times, March 15, 1991)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Archive link ( Memento from November 9, 2008 in the Internet Archive )
- ↑ The 100 Greatest Songwriters of All Time. Rolling Stone , August 2015, accessed August 7, 2017 .
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Pomus, Doc |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Felder, Jerome Solon (real name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American rock 'n' roll and pop composer |
| DATE OF BIRTH | June 27, 1925 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | new York |
| DATE OF DEATH | March 14, 1991 |
| Place of death | new York |