Irving Gordon
Irving Gordon (* 14. February 1915 in Brooklyn , † 1. December 1996 in Los Angeles ) was an American songwriter and composer .
Live and act
Irving Gordon studied the violin as a child and worked as a songwriter at a resort in the Catskill Mountains , where he wrote parodies and eventually lyrics for Irving Mills , who was Duke Ellington's manager. In 1939 he became a member of the ASCAP . Gordon contributed (with Mills as co-author in copyright) texts for Ellington titles, Pyramid , All Too Soon and Prelude to a Kiss (1938). He also worked with Allan Roberts , Al Kaufman and Jack Lawrence . As a composer and lyricist, Gordon wrote several songs, including What Will I Tell My Heart , a 1937 hit for Bing Crosby and Unforgettable in 1941 , popularized by Nat King Cole , as well as Be Anything (But Be Mine) (1952) and Sinner or Saint (1952), both recorded by Sarah Vaughan . Frank Sinatra recorded Christmas Dreaming (1947), which Gordon wrote with Lee Lester. With Jerry Livingston he wrote Unbelievable (1954), which Nat Cole recorded again. In 1992 he was able to see Natalie Cole's new recording of Unforgettable at the 1992 Grammy Awards, single of the year .
Other well-known songs were
- Mister And Mississippi (recordings by Patti Page , among others ),
- How (How Do I Go About It?) (Recorded by Nat Cole),
- The Kentuckian Song (recordings by Eddy Arnold ),
- Tonight I Shall Sleep With a Smile On My Face (recording by Stan Getz / João Gilberto ),
- Mason-Dixon Line (recordings by the Ames Brothers ),
- Be Anything (recorded by Dakota Staton ),
- Two Brothers (recordings by Tom Jones ),
- Blue Lou (recordings by Benny Goodman ),
- Me, Myself And I (Are All In Love With You) (recorded by Billie Holiday ),
- Allentown Jail (recordings from The Seekers , Dusty Springfield ),
- Delaware (photos by Perry Como ).
Web links
- Works by and about Irving Gordon in the catalog of the German National Library
- Portrait at jazzstandards.com
- Irving Gordon at Allmusic (English)
- Irving Gordon at Discogs (English)
- Irving Gordon in the Internet Movie Database (English)
personal data | |
---|---|
SURNAME | Gordon, Irving |
BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American songwriter |
DATE OF BIRTH | February 14, 1915 |
PLACE OF BIRTH | Brooklyn |
DATE OF DEATH | December 1, 1996 |
Place of death | los Angeles |