Steve Lawrence

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Steve Lawrence, 1999

Steve Lawrence (born July 8, 1935 in Brooklyn , New York ; actually Sidney Liebowitz ) is an American pop singer , entertainer and actor . He became known through some hit parades in the 1960s and shows together with his wife Eydie Gormé .

biography

Steve Lawrence is the son of Jewish parents and sang as a child in the local synagogue , where his father was a cantor . He pursued the music with determination, as a teenager he learned the piano and saxophone, he sang in school and applied to record companies. In 1951 he won first prize on a local television talent show and just a year later he had a recording deal with King Records . With his second single, a recording of a jazz classic entitled Poinciana , he even landed in the US bestseller charts at the age of only 16.

In 1953 he was hired as a singer for the forerunner of the Tonight Show by Steve Allen and became known locally and from September 1954 nationally. There he also met the singer Eydie Gormé . The two made a congenial duo, not only as a singer and entertainer. In 1957 they became a couple in private.

In addition to the show, Lawrence, now under contract with Coral Records , continued to record solo and in a duet with Gormé and in 1957 he returned to the charts with his version of the Banana Boat song . He had his first top 10 hit with the follow -up single Party Doll , previously a number 1 hit for Buddy Knox , and he entered the album charts for the first time in 1958 with the album Here's Steve Lawrence .

In the meantime, he and Gormé continued to appear on television and during the summer break from Allen's show in 1958, they and the presenter had their own show for two months.

After that, Lawrence had to begin a two-year military service, which he was allowed to do as a singer in the military band and during which he could continue to make recordings and continue his chart career. Among other things, he not only had another top 10 hit in the USA with the number Footsteps co-written by Barry Mann , but also his first hit in Great Britain.

After serving in the army, they began their stage career with his wife. He also recorded the first joint LP with her in 1960. For the title song We Got Us they got a Grammy as a duo for the best vocal performance of the year. Two more label changes and numerous other successful recordings followed. With the single Portrait of My Love he not only had another Top 10 hit in 1961, it also earned him a Grammy nomination. Then the couple signed with Columbia Records in 1962 , where they worked with songwriters such as Barry Mann & Cynthia Weil and Gerry Goffin & Carole King . The former two wrote Gormé's biggest hit, Blame It on the Bossa Nova, and Goffin and King wrote Go Away Little Girl for Steve Lawrence . This song was also his biggest hit, selling over a million copies and reached 1963 No. 1 on the US charts. Together they had their biggest hit in Great Britain with I Want to Stay Here at No. 3. But then came the Beatles and British pop music and Lawrence's music was pushed into the easy listening charts, where he was placed a total of 30 times from 1961.

During this time Lawrence was looking for a new challenge as a musical singer and from 1964 to 1965 he successfully played in over 500 performances of the Broadway musical What Makes Sammy Run? which earned him a Critic Award and a Tony nomination. In the meantime he tried his own The Steve Lawrence Show on television , but it was not very successful and was discontinued after a few months. This was followed by joint stage shows with his wife and in 1968/69 the joint musical Golden Rainbow , which had 385 performances on Broadway in less than a year.

In addition to stage appearances and recordings, the two of them also had television appearances again and again in the years to come. Her television specials about famous American songwriters were particularly successful. In 1978 the Steve and Eydie Celebrate Irving Berlin memorial show was awarded seven Emmys . They got two more Emmys for the show about George and Ira Gershwin .

From the mid-70s, Steve Lawrence also tried his hand at acting. In Blues Brothers and later in the sequel Blues Brothers 2000 he had a minor role and he played in several well-known television series such as Hardcastle & McCormick , Frasier or in The Nanny in two later episodes as the father of the main character.

At that time, he and Gormé also settled in Las Vegas , where they stood on stage together for many years, ten years alone as the main show at Caesars Palace . They won the Las Vegas Entertainment Award for Musical Variety Act of the Year four times. Lawrence and Gormé are also immortalized on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and have been recognized by the Songwriters Hall of Fame for their life's work .

The Lawrence-Gormé couple have a son, David Lawrence , who is a successful film composer (including American Pie 2 and High School Musical ) and who also worked as an album producer with his parents. Another son named Michael died in 1986 at the age of 23.

Discography

Albums

year title Top ranking, total weeks, awardChartsChart placements
(Year, title, rankings, weeks, awards, notes)
Remarks
US US
1958 Here's Steve Lawrence US19 (2 weeks)
US
1961 Portrait of My Love US76 (10 weeks)
US
1963 Winners! US27 (29 weeks)
US
1964 Academy Award Losers US135 (5 weeks)
US
What Makes Sammy Run?
Steve Lawrence, Sally Ann Howes & Robert Alda
US28 (14 weeks)
US
Musical soundtrack
Everybody knows US73 (9 weeks)
US
1965 The Steve Lawrence Show US133 (2 weeks)
US
1967 Together on Broadway
Steve Lawrence & Eydie Gormé
US136 (6 weeks)
US
1969 What It Was, Was Love
Steve Lawrence & Eydie Gormé
US141 (6 weeks)
US
Real True Lovin '
Steve Lawrence & Eydie Gormé
US188 (3 weeks)
US

More albums

  • Steve Lawrence (1953)
  • About That Girl (1955)
  • Songs by Steve Lawrence (1956)
  • All About Love (1958)
  • Swing Softly with Me (1960)
  • The Steve Lawrence Sound (1960)
  • Lawrence Goes Latin (1960)

Steve & Eydie

  • We Got Us (1960, Grammy )
  • Eydie Gormé and Steve Lawrence Sing the Golden Hits (1960)
  • That Holiday Feeling (1964)

Singles

year Title
album
Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements
(Year, title, album , rankings, weeks, awards, notes)
Remarks
UK UK US US
1952 Poinciana
Steve Lawrence
- US21 (3 weeks)
US
Authors: Nat Simon, Buddy Bernier
1957 The Banana Boat Song
Songs by Steve Lawrence
- US18 (14 weeks)
US
Traditional; was a top 5 hit for Harry Belafonte that same year
Party Doll
Songs by Steve Lawrence
- US5 (20 weeks)
US
the original by Buddy Knox reached # 1; Authors: Buddy Knox, Jimmy Bowen
with Pum-Pa-Lum on a single
(The Bad Donkey) Pum-Pa-Lum
Songs by Steve Lawrence
- US45 (7 weeks)
US
Author: Al Wood
with Party Doll on a single
Can't Wait for Summer
Songs by Steve Lawrence
- US42 (11 weeks)
US
Authors: John Gluck, Diane Lampert
with Fabulous on a single
Fabulous
Songs by Steve Lawrence
- US71 (7 weeks)
US
Charlie Grace's version reached number 16; Authors: Harry Land, Kal Mann
with Can't Wait for Summer on a single
Miss
Here’s Steve Lawrence
- US54 (8 weeks)
US
a country number 1 hit for Bobby Helms ; Author: Lawton Williams
1958 Uh-huh, oh yeah - US73 (2 weeks)
US
Song from the Broadway musical The Body Beautiful ; Authors: Jerry Bock , Sheldon Harnick
Many a time - US97 (2 weeks)
US
Authors: Frank Mader, Paul Koy
1959 (I Don't Care) Only Love Me
The Best of Steve Lawrence
- US62 (4 weeks)
US
Authors: Manny Curtis, Dante Panzuti, Pinchi
Pretty Blue Eyes
The Best of Steve Lawrence
- US9 (18 weeks)
US
Authors: Teddy Randazzo, Bob Weinstein
1960 Footsteps
The Best of Steve Lawrence
UK4 (13 weeks)
UK
US7 (13 weeks)
US
Authors: Barry Mann , Hank Hunter
Girls, girls, girls UK49 (1 week)
UK
-
Authors: Barry Mann, Howard Greenfield
1961 Portrait of My Love
Portrait of My Love
- US9 (16 weeks)
US
1960 UK hit for Matt Monro ; Authors: Norman Newell , Cyril Ornadel
My Claire de Lune
The Very Best of Steve Lawrence
- US68 (5 weeks)
US
Authors: Jerry Leiber, Mike Stoller ; is based on Clair de lune , the 3rd movement of the Bergamasque suite by Claude Debussy
with In Time on a single
In time - US94 (1 week)
US
Author: Buck Ram ; based on Tchaikovsky's sixth symphony ("Pathétique")
with My Claire de Lune on a single
Somewhere Along the Way
The Very Best of Steve Lawrence
- US67 (5 weeks)
US
Original: Nat King Cole (1952); Authors: Kurt Adams, Sammy Gallop
1962 Go Away Little Girl
Winners!
- US1 (17 weeks)
US
Authors: Carole King , Gerry Goffin
1971 Donny Osmond brought the song to number 1 for a second time
1963 Don't Be Afraid, Little Darlin ' - US26 (9 weeks)
US
Poor little rich girl - US27 (8 weeks)
US
Authors: Carole King, Gerry Goffin
I want to stay here UK3 (13 weeks)
UK
US28 (11 weeks)
US
with Eydie Gorme
Authors: Carole King, Gerry Goffin
Walking proud - US26 (9 weeks)
US
Authors: Carole King, Gerry Goffin
I Can't Stop Talking About You - US35 (9 weeks)
US
with Eydie Gorme
Authors: Carole King, Gerry Goffin
1964 Everybody Knows
Everybody Knows
- US72 (5 weeks)
US
Authors: Jimmy Duncan, Les Reed
Yet… I Know (Et pourtant)
Everybody Knows
- US77 (6 weeks)
US
Original: Charles Aznavour (1963) as Et pourtant
Authors: Charles Aznavour, Don Raye , Diran Garvarentz
1972 We Can Make It Together - US68 (10 weeks)
US
with Eydie Gorme and the Osmonds
Authors: Alan Osmond , Merrill Osmond , Wayne Osmond

More singles

  • Our Concerto (1962)
  • The Lady Wants to Twist (1962)
  • More (Theme from the Film 'Mondo Cane') (1963)
  • My Home Town (1964)
  • A Room Without Windows (1964)
  • Bewitched (1965)
  • I Will Wait for You (1965)
  • Last Night I Made a Little Girl Cry (1965)
  • Millions of Roses (1965)
  • The Ballad of the Sad Young Men (1966)
  • The Week-End (1966)
  • Sweet Maria (1967)
  • I've Gotta Be Me (1968)
  • Runaround (1968)
  • The Drifter (1969)
  • Groovin ' (1970)
  • Mama, a Rainbow (1970)
  • Ain't No Sunshine / You Are My Sunshine (1972)
  • The End (At the End of a Rainbow) (1973)
  • Now That We're in Love (1975)

Steve & Eydie

  • Make Yourself Comfortable / I've Gotta Crow (1954)
  • The Facts of Life (1960, Oscar nomination)
  • The Honeymoon Is Over (1967)
  • The Two of Us (1968)
  • Real True Lovin ' (1969)
  • (You're My) Soul and Inspiriation (1970)
  • Love Is Blue / Autumn Leaves (1971)
  • Feelin ' (1973)
  • Hallelujah (1979, as Parker & Penny )

swell

  1. U.S. catalog number Columbia 42601; the title was produced by Al Kaska. For more information on the title, see: Bronson, Fred: The Billboard Book of Number One Hits . 3rd revised and expanded edition. New York City, New York: Billboard Publications, 1992, p. 122
  2. Steve & Eydie ... Through the Years (Biography) on the Steve Lawrence & Eydie Gorme website
  3. ^ A b Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gorme in the Las Vegas Online Entertainment Guide
  4. A Treasure You May Be Overlooking , Will Friedwald, New York Daily Sun, June 2003, copy from Steve Lawrence & Eydie Gorme website
  5. a b c d Chart sources: UK US
  6. ^ The Billboard Albums by Joel Whitburn , 6th Edition, Record Research 2006, ISBN 0-89820-166-7
  7. ^ Joel Whitburn : Billboard Pop Hits Singles & Albums 1940-1954 . 6th edition. Record Research, 2002, ISBN 978-0-89820-198-7 . / Joel Whitburn : Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-2006 . Billboard Books, New York 2007, ISBN 0-89820-172-1 .
  8. Hit Guide - US Chart Singles 1950-1963, Taurus Press Hamburg, 1992
  9. ^ British Hit Singles & Albums (Ed. 18), Guinness World Record Ltd. 2005

Web links

Commons : Steve Lawrence  - collection of images, videos and audio files