Biography
Born in New York City, New York Ervin Drake had his first song published at age 12, in 1931. The son of Max Druckman and Pearl Cohen, he attended Townsend Harris High School in the borough of The Bronx, New York, graduating in 1935, and went on to receive a bachelor of arts degree in social science from the City College of New York in 1940. His elder brother, Milton, also became a songwriter, with work including "The Java Jive" and "Nina Never Knew"; and his younger brother Arnold Drake, become a writer for DC Comics, Marvel Comics, and others, as well as an author and playwright.
Duke Ellington's recording of Perdido (music by Juan Tizol and lyrics by Ervin Drake) was a highlight in the young composer's career. Besides composing music and lyrics for dozens of pieces he was also a television producer and worked with performers including Jackie Gleason and Milton Berle. Among his best known songs is "I Believe", introduced by Jane Froman which became a number-one hit for Frankie Laine in 1953 and holds the record for number of non-consecutive weeks spent at number one. It has also been recorded by over a dozen other artists including Barbra Streisand and Elvis Presley.
He wrote the words and music for "It Was a Very Good Year" in 1961, when a publisher friend told him that Bob Shane of the folk music group the Kingston Trio would be in the publisher's office the next morning, and the publisher asked Drake to write a song for the group. The band recorded it for the album Goin' Places and other folk performers covered it. In a 2009 interview, Drake said that in 1965, Frank Sinatra had heard the song on his car radio, and recorded it for the melancholy and introspective album September of My Years. The Sinatra recording hit the top ten on the charts for 1966. The piece has been recorded in over 10 languages and more than 50 artists on many major labels. As lyricist, Drake, with composer Irene Higgenbothom, wrote the jazz standard "Good Morning Heartache". It has been recorded by over 100 artists, including Diana Ross for the movie Lady Sings the Blues.
He was president of American Guild of Authors and Composers from 1973 to 1982.
Read more about this topic: Ervin Drake
Famous quotes containing the word biography:
“There never was a good biography of a good novelist. There couldn’t be. He is too many people, if he’s any good.”
—F. Scott Fitzgerald (1896–1940)
“Had Dr. Johnson written his own life, in conformity with the opinion which he has given, that every man’s life may be best written by himself; had he employed in the preservation of his own history, that clearness of narration and elegance of language in which he has embalmed so many eminent persons, the world would probably have had the most perfect example of biography that was ever exhibited.”
—James Boswell (1740–95)
“The best part of a writer’s biography is not the record of his adventures but the story of his style.”
—Vladimir Nabokov (1899–1977)