Ben Oakland
Ben Oakland (September 24, 1907 – August 26, 1979) was an American composer, lyricist, and pianist, most active from the 1920s through the 1940s. He composed mainly for Broadway and vaudeville, though he also worked on several Hollywood scores including for the film My Little Chickadee. Oakland often composed music only, collaborating with lyricists including Oscar Hammerstein II, Bob Russell, Milton Drake, L. Wolfe Gilbert, and Artie Shaw. Notable compositions include "Java Jive", "I'll Take Romance", and "I'm A Hundred Percent For You". The two songs that Oakland wrote with Oscar Hammerstein II are "I'll Take Romance" and "A Mist Over the Moon." The latter, which was written for a 1938 picture called The Lady Objects won Hammerstein and Oakland an Oscar nomination. The former, which was written for a 1937 film starring Grace Moore, won no awards but is frequently performed. June Christy sang it, to an arrangement by Pete Rugolo, on the 1954 album Something Cool. Another popular version at that time was sung by Eydie Gorme on her LP Sincerely Yours, to an arrangement by Sid Feller. He collaborated with Artie Shaw and Milton Drake on the love song "If It's You" introduced by Tony Martin in the 1941 Marx Brothers' picture The Big Store. "If I Love Again," which has a lyric by Jack Murray, was performed by Anita O'Day on the 1960 album Incomparable! and by Barbra Streisand in the 1975 film Funny Lady. It was written for the 1933 musical, Hold Your Horses. The Songwriter's Hall of Fame lists Oakland on their notable (non-inducted) songwriters list, for contributions to the American popular song. |
Birth and Death Data: Born September 24, 1907 (Brooklyn), Died August 26, 1979 (Beverly Hills)
Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1931 - 1948
Roles Represented in DAHR: composer, songwriter
= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.
Recordings (Results 26-48 of 48 records)
Company | Matrix No. | Size | First Recording Date | Title | Primary Performer | Description | Role | Audio |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Victor | BS-035358 | 10-in. | 3/27/1939 | Y' had it comin' to you | Edward Mallory Orchestra ; Ethel Waters | Female vocal solo, with jazz/dance band | composer | |
Victor | BS-050563 | 10-in. | 5/13/1940 | Java jive | Four King Sisters ; Alvino Rey | Female vocal quartet, with jazz/dance band | composer | |
Victor | PBS-055067 | 10-in. | 9/7/1940 | If it's you | Artie Shaw Orchestra ; Anita Boyer | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo | songwriter | |
Victor | PBS-055068 | 10-in. | 9/7/1940 | Old, old castle in Scotland | Artie Shaw Orchestra ; Anita Boyer | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo | composer | |
Victor | PBS-055224 | 10-in. | 12/17/1940 | The calypso | Artie Shaw Orchestra ; Anita Boyer | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo | composer | |
Victor | PBS-055225 | 10-in. | 12/17/1940 | Beau night in Hotchkiss Corners | Artie Shaw Orchestra ; Anita Boyer | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo | composer | |
Victor | BS-057012 | 10-in. | 10/21/1940 | Old, old castle in Scotland | Bob Chester Orchestra ; Dolores O'Neill | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo | composer | |
Victor | BS-058756 | 10-in. | 1/6/1941 | Beau night in Hotchkiss Corners | Bob Chester Orchestra ; Betty Bradley | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo | composer | |
Victor | BS-066178 | 10-in. | 7/2/1941 | If it's you | Dinah Shore ; Paul Wetstein | Female vocal solo, with jazz/dance band | songwriter | |
Victor | BS-066435 | 10-in. | 6/30/1941 | If it's you | Vaughn Monroe's Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | songwriter | |
Victor | BS-067740 | 10-in. | 9/2/1941 | If I love again | Artie Shaw Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | composer | |
Victor | BS-074745 | 10-in. | 7/16/1942 | A pink cocktail for a blue lady | Glenn Miller Orchestra ; Skip Nelson | Male vocal solo, with jazz/dance band | composer | |
Victor | D7VB-0501 | 10-in. | 4/18/1947 | You're not so easy to forget | Tony Martin | Male vocal solo, with vocal chorus and instrumental ensemble | composer | |
Victor | D7VB-1360 | 10-in. | 9/17/1947 | I'll dance at your wedding | Earle Hagen Orchestra ; Tony Martin | Male vocal solo, with vocal chorus and jazz/dance band | composer | |
Victor | D7VB-1447 | 10-in. | 7/24/1947 | I'll never make the same mistake again | Louis Prima Orchestra ; Louis Prima | Male vocal solo, with vocal chorus and jazz/dance band | songwriter | |
Victor | D8VB-3449 | 10-in. | 12/27/1948 | We're not getting any younger, baby | Earle Hagen Orchestra ; Jud Conlon Singers ; Tony Martin | Male vocal solo, with vocal group and instrumental ensemble | composer | |
Victor | BS-Test-1181 | 10-in. | 1/19/1934 | The party's over | Dell Campo ; Con Conrad | Male vocal solo, with piano | composer | |
Columbia | W151680 | 10-in. | 7/14/1931 | Do the New York | Ben Selvin and his Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal trio and male vocal quartet | songwriter | |
Columbia | W152717 | 10-in. | 2/23/1934 | Get goin' | Benny Morton Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | songwriter | |
Columbia | W152762 | 10-in. | 6/4/1934 | I'm counting on you | Emil Coleman Orchestra ; Stanley Worth | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | composer | |
Columbia | W351070 | 10-in. | 7/7/1931 | Do the New York | Jerry Fenwyck and his Orchestra [Selvin's Orchestra] | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | songwriter | |
Brunswick | E36910 | 10-in. | 7/6/1931 | Do the New York | Casa Loma Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal quartet | songwriter | |
Brunswick | B23642 | 10-in. | 10/31/1938 | Everybody's laughing | Billie Holiday ; Teddy Wilson Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo | composer |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Oakland, Ben," accessed November 21, 2024, https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/105679.
Oakland, Ben. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved November 21, 2024, from https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/105679.
"Oakland, Ben." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 21 November 2024.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: Oakland, Ben, 1907-1979 - http://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n87847033
Wikidata: Ben Oakland - http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q649938
VIAF: http://viaf.org/viaf/18744799
MusicBrainz: Ben Oakland - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/9d0287e7-3e65-46d1-a0bf-781353a66ee1
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