On this, the 114th birthday of Hoagy Carmichael (11/22/1899 – 12/26/1981), I daresay you could mention his name to 100 random people under age 60, and 99 (maybe all 100) would say, “Hoagy who?” But why waste time lamenting the fate awaiting almost all “celebrities” sooner or later? Fame is indeed fleeting — perhaps now more than ever — and relative few are the songwriters, actors and singers (for Hoagy was all three) who will be remembered on their triple-digit birthdays by succeeding generations. So it is with Bloomington, Indiana’s Hoagy — but his star shines on, nonetheless, for those who appreciate the timelessness of creative magic.
For this occasion, I have pulled from my bookshelves a 1999 Hoagy double-autobiography which is a republication of The Stardust Road (1946) and Sometimes I Wonder (1965), with a new introduction by John Edward Hasse. I’d read this volume a few years ago, and it’s as good a way as any to re-visit Hoagland Howard Carmichael, a man whose music and film roles I’d known since my youth in the 1940s. As Hasse puts it in his introduction:
Hoagy Carmichael was a true American original. First of all, there was his name…. Then there was that singing voice–the flat, Hoosier cadences–and that laconic public persona, impossible to mistake for anyone else’s. And there was his unusual career path–from law student, lawyer, and Wall Street employee to hit songwriter and celebrity via records, motion pictures, radio and television.
But most original of all were the songs Carmichael wrote, songs that typically sound like nobody else’s.
I love the way Hoagy begins The Stardust Road:
The phone rang and I picked it up. It was Wad Allen. “Bix died,” he said (referring to Hoagy’s close friend and legendary early jazz trumpeter, Bix Beiderbecke).
Wad laughed a funny laugh. “I wonder if it will hurt old Gabriel’s feelings to play second trumpet?” Wad asked.
I could hear Wad’s breathing, then suddenly, but gradually getting clearer, I heard something else.
“I can hear him,” I said. “I can hear him fine from here.”
Over and around the sound I heard Wad’s voice.
“Sure,” he said shakily. “So can I.”
“I guess he didn’t die, then.”
And so it went back and forth, until Hoagy said, “Call me up again,” I told him, “when somebody else doesn’t die.”
But Wad had hung up. I tilted back in the chair before my desk and felt tears behind my eyes.
These are the kind of personal reminiscences you can only get from those who experienced them. If you’re a true lover of classic jazz and the Golden Age of popular music, you will find Hoagy’s autobiographies irresistible. THE STARDUST ROAD/SOMETIMES I WONDER combo is available on Amazon.com, AbeBook.com and elsewhere.
And speaking of combos, let’s close with two versions of Hoagy’s immortal Star Dust, the first by Louis Armstrong, whose incomparable 1931 rendition still sets the standard after all these years, and the second, by Hoagy himself:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r94-7nJt-WM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j2fbOAyNOpM
calmkate 4:32 am on June 30, 2019 Permalink |
a great selection, don’t recall hearing his name before so thanks for the ed!
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mistermuse 9:08 am on June 30, 2019 Permalink |
Thanks, Kate. Frankly, since you’re unfamiliar with Loesser, I should let you know (to avoid being a guesser) that his name is pronounced LESSER.
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calmkate 3:58 pm on June 30, 2019 Permalink
ha ha yes they pronounced it in that first video … coz I was saying loser, a most confusing name!
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scifihammy 8:35 am on June 30, 2019 Permalink |
Thank you for the entertainment. 🙂
The song writers often go overlooked, so it’s good to hear about one. 🙂
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mistermuse 9:15 am on June 30, 2019 Permalink |
You’re right — the performers of songs are usually much better known than the writers. As a writer (though not of songs), I protest!
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scifihammy 11:09 am on June 30, 2019 Permalink
🙂
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Carmen 8:55 am on June 30, 2019 Permalink |
Good stuff, mistermuse!
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mistermuse 9:20 am on June 30, 2019 Permalink |
Thanks, Carmen. I considered titling this post CHILDREN OF A LOESSER GOD, but decided that Loesser Is More….more or less.
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smbabbitt 12:11 pm on June 30, 2019 Permalink |
Great post! Loesser could hardly be called unsung (ouch), but, as in the case of Lorenz Hart, we have to say repeatedly, “He wrote that, too”?
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mistermuse 4:00 pm on June 30, 2019 Permalink |
Thank you, smb. I also like the comparison with Cole Porter which is made in the opening clip. Like Porter, Loesser wrote both words and music, but unlike Porter, he was solely a lyricist when he started. In 1942 his first attempt at writing both was the blockbuster WWII hit PRAISE THE LORD AND PASS THE AMMUNITION, which probably qualifies as one of those “He wrote that, too?” songs you mentioned.
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Elizabeth 4:54 pm on June 30, 2019 Permalink |
I actually was already familiar with Loesser. As a kid I learned the names of all the Broadway musicals’ writers and song writers. I loved the first video clip you shared. Thanks.
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mistermuse 5:02 pm on June 30, 2019 Permalink |
You’re very welcome, Elizabeth. Sounds like you were brought up on the ‘right note!’
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Rosaliene Bacchus 8:45 pm on June 30, 2019 Permalink |
Didn’t know the name, but I like his music.
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mistermuse 9:59 pm on June 30, 2019 Permalink |
Thanks for your comment. Fame is ephemeral for song writers of his era unless you’re George Gershwin, Cole Porter, and a few others. That’s why I occasionally publish posts such as this, to re-recognize some of the men and women who wrote the music which past generations loved just as much as the ‘now’ generation loves its music.
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mlrover 9:55 am on July 1, 2019 Permalink |
Oh, this brought back so many delicious memories of when I was much younger and did musical comedy. One of my favorites to sing was Adelaide’s Lament.
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mistermuse 11:44 am on July 1, 2019 Permalink |
How wonderful that you did musical comedy, mlrover….but you’ve been holding out on us — I just checked your bio on your blog and didn’t find any mention of it. I bet Vivian Blaine had nothing on you when it comes to singing ADELAIDE’S LAMENT….
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mlrover 2:24 pm on July 1, 2019 Permalink |
Your check is in the mail for that lovely compliment. I played her more sultry and not so whiny. I never realized I left out the theater history. Thanks for the suggestion!
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Silver Screenings 1:41 pm on July 9, 2019 Permalink |
Thanks for all the info on Frank Loesser. I know his music, but am ashamed to say I didn’t know his name. Thanks for the biographical links, too! 🙂
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mistermuse 5:26 pm on July 9, 2019 Permalink |
At least you know his music, SS. Not knowing his NAME is the Loesser of two evils (on the other hand, my puns are the worser of lesser evils).
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Silver Screenings 5:30 pm on July 9, 2019 Permalink
Bahaha! Good one!
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luisa zambrotta 6:29 am on July 27, 2019 Permalink |
Great post
❤
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