Al Hoffman
Al Hoffman (September 25, 1902 – July 21, 1960) was an American song composer. He was a hit songwriter active in the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s, usually co-writing with others and responsible for number-one hits through each decade, many of which are still sung and recorded today. He was posthumously made a member of the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1984. The popularity of Hoffman's song, "Mairzy Doats", co-written with Jerry Livingston and Milton Drake, was such that newspapers and magazines wrote about the craze. Time magazine titled one article "Our Mairzy Dotage". The New York Times simply wrote the headline, "That Song". Hoffman's songs were recorded by singers such as Frank Sinatra ("Close To You", "I'm Gonna Live Until I Die"), Billy Eckstine ("I Apologize") Perry Como ("Papa Loves Mambo", "Hot Diggity"), Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong ("Who Walks In When I Walk Out"), Nat "King" Cole, Tony Bennett, the Merry Macs, Sophie Tucker, Eartha Kitt, Patsy Cline, Patti Page ("Allegheny Moon") and Bette Midler. In October, 2007, Hoffman's "I'm Gonna Live Til I Die" was the lead single from Queen Latifah's album, Trav'lin' Light. Though Hoffman had apparently little connection to Chicago, he wrote the Chicago Bears fight song "Bear Down, Chicago Bears" in 1941 under the pseudonym Jerry Downs. |
Birth and Death Data: Born September 25, 1902 (Stoŭbcy District), Died July 21, 1960 (New York City)
Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1920 - 1950
Roles Represented in DAHR: songwriter, composer, lyricist, adapter
= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.
Recordings (Results 101-125 of 245 records)
Company | Matrix No. | Size | First Recording Date | Title | Primary Performer | Description | Role | Audio |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Victor | BS-038220 | 10-in. | 6/29/1939 | I must have one more kiss, kiss, kiss (Before we say goodnight) | Jeanne D'Arcy ; Johnny Messner ; Music Box Band ; Three Jacks | Jazz/dance band, with female and male vocal solos and male vocal trio | songwriter | |
Victor | BS-038409 | 10-in. | 7/17/1939 | Stuttering in the starlight | Swing and Sway with Sammy Kaye ; The Three Barons | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal trio | songwriter | |
Victor | BS-038452 | 10-in. | 7/20/1939 | Stuttering in the starlight | Harriet Hilliard ; Ozzie Nelson Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo | songwriter | |
Victor | BS-041720 | 10-in. | 10/6/1939 | She shall have music | Five Pennies ; Red Nichols | Jazz/dance band | songwriter | |
Victor | PBS-042291 | 10-in. | 12/11/1939 | Apple blossoms and chapel bells | Freddy Martin Orchestra ; Bill Stoker | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | songwriter | |
Victor | PBS-042366 | 10-in. | 1/14/1940 | I loved you before I met you (For I saw you in my dreams) | Carl Ravazza Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | composer | |
Victor | BS-045924 | 10-in. | 1/12/1940 | Apple blossoms and chapel bells | Clyde Burke ; Swing and Sway with Sammy Kaye | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | songwriter | |
Victor | BS-047070 | 10-in. | 2/19/1940 | Starlight and music | Ray Eberle ; Glenn Miller Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | songwriter | |
Victor | BS-047744 | 10-in. | 3/4/1940 | You little heart-breaker you | Bob Chester Orchestra ; Dolores O'Neill | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo | songwriter | |
Victor | PBS-049584 | 10-in. | 3/28/1940 | The sailor with the navy blue eyes | Four King Sisters ; Alvino Rey | Female vocal quartet, with jazz/dance band | songwriter | |
Victor | BS-058101 | 10-in. | 11/27/1940 | Moon over America | Californians ; Eddie Holly ; Abe Lyman | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | songwriter | |
Victor | BS-064994 | 10-in. | 10/16/1941 | I wish I had a dime (For ev'ry time I missed you) | Rose Blane ; Californians ; Abe Lyman | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo | songwriter | |
Victor | BS-068461 | 10-in. | 12/8/1941 | The story of a starry night | Ray Eberle ; Glenn Miller Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | songwriter | |
Victor | BS-068897 | 10-in. | 1/20/1942 | Hey! Zeke (Your country's callin') | Four King Sisters ; Rhythm Reys | Female vocal quartet, with jazz/dance band | songwriter | |
Victor | BS-071431 | 10-in. | 9/30/1941 | I struck a match in the dark | Vaughn Monroe's Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | songwriter | |
Victor | BS-071662 | 10-in. | 1/23/1942 | Hey! Zeke (Your country's callin') | Don Cornell ; McFarland Twins Orchestra ; Betty Norton | Jazz/dance band, with female-male vocal duet and vocal ensemble | songwriter | |
Victor | BS-071777 | 10-in. | 2/9/1942 | A fireside chat | Joe Reichman Orchestra ; Ziggy Lane | Jazz/dance band, with vocal solo | songwriter | |
Victor | BS-071961 | 10-in. | 2/24/1942 | A fireside chat | Vaughn Monroe's Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | songwriter | |
Victor | BS-073434 | 10-in. | 3/13/1942 | The story of a starry night | Carl Denny ; Hal McIntyre Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | songwriter | |
Victor | BS-073829 | 10-in. | 4/10/1942 | Put-put-put (Your arms around me) | Wood-Nymphs ; Barry Wood | Male vocal solo, with female vocal group and instrumental ensemble | songwriter | |
Victor | BS-074305 | 10-in. | 4/7/1942 | Lalapaluza Lu | Glee Club (Kaye) ; Swing and Sway with Sammy Kaye | Jazz/dance band, with vocal chorus | songwriter | |
Victor | BS-074714 | 10-in. | 6/30/1942 | Isabella kissed a fella | Bob Chester Orchestra ; Betty Bradley | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo | songwriter | |
Victor | E0FB-5762 | 10-in. | 10/11/1950 | Esto es amor | Alfredo Antonini ; Rosita Serrano | Female vocal solo, with instrumental ensemble | songwriter | |
Victor | E0FB-5763 | 10-in. | 10/11/1950 | Soñar es desear | Rosita Serrano | Female vocal solo, with instrumental ensemble | songwriter | |
Victor | E0FB-5764 | 10-in. | 10/11/1950 | Bibbidi-bobbidi-boo | Rosita Serrano | Female vocal solo, with instrumental ensemble | songwriter |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Hoffman, Al," accessed November 21, 2024, https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/109280.
Hoffman, Al. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved November 21, 2024, from https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/109280.
"Hoffman, Al." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 21 November 2024.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: Hoffman, Al, 1902-1960 - http://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/no92010056
Wikidata: Al Hoffman - http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q2829347
VIAF: http://viaf.org/viaf/22338836
MusicBrainz: Al Hoffman - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/17051835-d7f4-45ee-b985-a9a640b570fd
Wikipedia content provided under the terms of the Creative Commons BY-SA license
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