Arthur Hamilton

Arthur Hamilton Stern (born October 22, 1926),[2][3] known professionally as Arthur Hamilton, is an American songwriter.[4] He is best known for writing the song "Cry Me a River", first published in 1953, and recorded by Julie London and numerous other artists.

This article is about the American songwriter. For other people, see Arthur Hamilton (disambiguation).
Arthur Hamilton
Birth nameArthur Hamilton Stern [1]
Born (1926-10-22) October 22, 1926
Seattle, Washington, U.S.
OriginHollywood, California, U.S.
GenresPopular music
Occupation(s)Songwriter

Biography

Arthur "Art" Stern was born in Seattle, Washington, the son of songwriter and comedian Jacob Abraham "Jack" Stern (1896–1985) and Grace Hamilton Stern née Leet (1883–1953).[1][5] He moved as an infant with his family to Hollywood, California.[3] He learned piano as a child, and also studied music theory and counterpoint.[6]

He later began using the name Arthur Hamilton.[3] In 1949 he wrote an early live television musical for KTTV in Los Angeles, California. He also worked for a music publishing company.[5] In 1953, when under contract to Jack Webb,[7] he contributed three songs to the film Pete Kelly's Blues, including "Sing A Rainbow" and "He Needs Me", sung by Peggy Lee. However, Hamilton's third song, "Cry Me a River", sung by Ella Fitzgerald, was dropped from the film, although Ella did go on to record it later in her career. The song's first release and most famous recording was by actress and singer Julie London – who had been Jack Webb's wife[8] – in 1955.[5][9] Her performance of the song in the 1956 film The Girl Can't Help It helped to make it a million-selling hit, reaching # 9 in the US Billboard chart and # 22 in the UK. The song, which was also covered by Joe Cocker in 1970, contains the lyric: 'told me love was too plebeian, told me you were through with me 'n...'. In 2010, Hamilton attended a recording session at Capitol Records in Los Angeles, where the song was performed by Michael Bublé.[10]

His compositions have been recorded by Dinah Washington, Archie Shepp, Harry Connick Jr., Barbra Streisand, Johnny Mathis, Ray Charles, Diana Krall, The Dells (whose version of "Sing a Rainbow" was an international hit in 1969), and others.[6] On many occasions, Hamilton worked exclusively as a lyricist; his long list of collaborators includes such composers as Walter Jurmann,[11] Armando Manzanero,[12] Jerry Fielding,[13] Johnny Mandel,[14] Michel Legrand,[15] David Raksin,[16] Robert Ragland,[17] Riz Ortolani,[18] Terry Trotter,[19] Lori Barth,[20] Barry Mann,[21] Dave Grusin,[22][23] Walter Scharf,[24] Joe Harnell,[25] Leroy Holmes,[26] Harriet Schock,[27] Ron Anthony,[28] and Patrick Williams.[29] Hamilton has also been nominated for an Oscar, two Emmys, and a Golden Globe.[9]

He is a Member of the Board of Governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (Music Branch),[5] and a Member of the Board of the ASCAP Foundation.[30]

References
  1. "I'd Start a Battle to Get Back to Seattle", Museum of History & Industry, Seattle. Retrieved March 7, 2020
  2. Ancestry.com. U.S. WWII Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947 . Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011
  3. Stern, Arthur “Art”, Mar-Ken.org. Retrieved January 14, 2016
  4. "Arthur Hamilton". The New York Times.
  5. "Arthur Hamilton". IMDb.com.
  6. "Arthur Hamilton - Gemini Press". Tritone-tenuto.com.
  7. Letter from Arthur Hamilton, TheMusicEdge.com, archived. Retrieved January 14, 2016
  8. "How London Found Path To "River"", Billboard, 11 November 2000, p.45
  9. "Alan Ross Fleishman site: Arthur Hamilton". Web.mac.com.
  10. John Berlau, "Crying a River for Years", The Wall Street Journal, December 15, 2010. Retrieved January 14, 2016
  11. Search results for "Arthur Hamilton" & "Jurmann". US Copyright Office. Retrieved August 2, 2013.
  12. Renewal registration for "Never Tell Me". US Copyright Office. Retrieved August 2, 2013.
  13. Ace Repertory Database Archived March 6, 2013, at the Wayback Machine. ASCAP. Retrieved August 2, 2013. (Search for title "Holding It Together" within database.)
  14. Renewal registration for "I Never Told You". US Copyright Office. Retrieved August 2, 2013.
  15. Registration for sound recording of "Time" (lyric version of "Love Theme from 'Gable and Lombard'"). US Copyright Office. Retrieved August 2, 2013.
  16. Renewal registration for "Some Days Seemed So Beautiful". US Copyright Office. Retrieved August 2, 2013.
  17. Ace Repertory Database Archived March 6, 2013, at the Wayback Machine. ASCAP. Retrieved August 2, 2013. (Search for title "Only a Dream Away" within database, and scroll to title no. 3.)
  18. Search results for "Arthur Hamilton" & "Ortolani". US Copyright Office. Retrieved August 2, 2013.
  19. Search results for "Arthur Hamilton" & "Terry Trotter". US Copyright Office. Retrieved August 2, 2013.
  20. Search results for "Arthur Hamilton" & "Lori Barth". US Copyright Office. Retrieved August 2, 2013.
  21. Registration for "The Best I Ever Was". US Copyright Office. Retrieved August 2, 2013.
  22. Sheet music for "You Tell Yourself". Photobucket. Retrieved August 2, 2013
  23. Guide to the Dave Grusin Collection (Box 1, fd. 19) Archived January 29, 2016, at the Wayback Machine. University of Colorado at Boulder. Retrieved August 2, 2013. (Scroll all the way to the bottom.)
  24. Search results for "Arthur Hamilton" & "Walter Scharf". US Copyright Office. Retrieved August 2, 2013.
  25. Search results for "Arthur Hamilton" & "Joe Harnell". US Copyright Office. Retrieved August 2, 2013.
  26. Search results for "Arthur Hamilton" "Leroy Holmes". US Copyright Office. Retrieved August 2, 2013.
  27. Search results for "Arthur Hamilton" & "Harriet Schock". US Copyright Office. Retrieved August 2, 2013.
  28. Search results for "Arthur Hamilton" & "Ron Anthony". US Copyright Office. Retrieved August 2, 2013.
  29. Search results for "Arthur Hamilton" & "Patrick Williams". US Copyright Office. Retrieved August 2, 2013.
  30. "About The ASCAP Foundation". Retrieved 7 March 2020
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