David Rose
Encyclopedia
David Rose was a British-born American songwriter, composer, arranger, pianist, and orchestra leader. His most famous compositions were "The Stripper
", "Holiday for Strings", and "Calypso Melody". He also wrote music for many television series, including It's a Great Life
, The Tony Martin Show
, Little House on the Prairie
, Highway To Heaven
, Bonanza
, and Highway Patrol
under the pseudonym "Ray Llewellyn." Rose's work in composing music for television programs earned him four Emmys. In addition, Rose was musical director for The Red Skelton Show
during its 21-year-run on the CBS
and NBC
networks. He was a member of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia
, the national fraternity for men in music.
. He composed several early swing originals such as "Break It Down" with Frankie Trumbauer
, "Transcontinental," "Plantation Moods," and a piece recorded under three different titles: "I've Got It", "Itchola", and "Jigsaw Rhythm," his original version with the WGN band including Louis Prima
.
Rose was asked to come to Hollywood, where he formed his orchestra, doing a twice-weekly radio show for Mutual Broadcasting System
called California Melodies, where he wrote all the broadcast arrangements. He worked his way up to becoming music director of the Mutual network. Rose's first try at composing was his hit song "Holiday for Strings". During World War II, Rose entered the Army and it was here where he met Red Skelton
. Skelton asked Rose to become the conductor for his Raleigh Cigarettes Program. Rose joined the cast in 1948 and went on to work with Skelton on his television show for over 20 years.
In 1957 his rendition of Larry Clinton
's "Calypso Melody" became Rose's second million selling record
, and was awarded a gold disc
.
"The Stripper
" was composed by Rose and recorded in 1958. It was originally used as the B-side
to his single, "Ebb Tide". The choice of the record's B-side was not by Rose, but by an MGM office boy. MGM indicated they wanted to put the record on the market quickly. A B-side was needed and with Rose away, the office boy went through some of Rose's tapes searching for one. "The Stripper
" featured especially prominent trombone lines, giving the tune its lascivious signature, and evokes the feel of music used to accompany vaudeville striptease artists. The piece features in the films Slap Shot, The Full Monty
and Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit
as well as TV series Little Britain
and Scrubs
. It was also famously used in a parody by British comedy duo Morecambe and Wise
, where they danced to the tune while making breakfast.
"Holiday for Strings" became well-known as the theme for Red Skelton's programs. A parody version, retitled "Holiday for States", was recorded as a vocal by Allan Sherman
, with the straight melody but with ersatz lyrics
comprised solely of the names of the American states. In Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In, Ruth Buzzi
"laughed" the melody of the song, imitating the Spike Jones
version. On his album Leon Live, Leon Russell
plays a strain from the song in the middle of a performance of his own song, "Shootout on the Plantation."
Also, had many great MGM albums like The Americanization of Emily, Autumn Leaves and Gigi(which are paired in a superb Dutton CD. Also on Dutton, is the restored Kapp recording "Songs of the Fabulous Thirties" which is a must in every collection of fine "lounge" music.
. They were divorced on May 19, 1941. Rose was married for a second time, on July 28, 1941, to the actress and singer Judy Garland
. They had no children, though Garland, according to biographer Gerald Clarke, underwent at least one abortion during the marriage, at the insistence of her mother, her husband, and the studio that employed her, MGM. Garland and Rose divorced in 1944.
He had two daughters with his third wife, Betty Bartholomew. His granddaughter is singer-songwriter Samantha James
.
Rose was a live steam
hobbyist, with his own backyard railroad
.
at the age of 80 and was buried in Mount Sinai Memorial Park Cemetery
in Hollywood Hills, California.
The Stripper
"The Stripper" is an instrumental composed by David Rose and recorded in 1962. It evinces a jazz influence with especially prominent trombone lines, and evokes the feel of music used to accompany striptease artists....
", "Holiday for Strings", and "Calypso Melody". He also wrote music for many television series, including It's a Great Life
It's a Great Life
It's a Great Life is an American situation comedy which aired on NBC from 1954 to 1956...
, The Tony Martin Show
The Tony Martin Show
The Tony Martin Show is a 15-minute weekly musical variety television series hosted by entertainer Tony Martin, which aired in NBC prime time from April 26, 1954, to February 27, 1956...
, Little House on the Prairie
Little House on the Prairie (TV series)
Little House on the Prairie is an American Western drama television series, starring Michael Landon and Melissa Gilbert, about a family living on a farm in Walnut Grove, Minnesota, in the 1870s and 1880s. The show was an adaptation of Laura Ingalls Wilder's best-selling series of Little House books...
, Highway To Heaven
Highway to Heaven
Highway to Heaven is an American television drama series which ran on NBC from 1984 to 1989.- Season 1 :- Season 2 :- Season 3 :- Season 4 :- Season 5 :...
, Bonanza
Bonanza
Bonanza is an American western television series that both ran on and was a production of NBC from September 12, 1959 to January 16, 1973. Lasting 14 seasons and 430 episodes, it ranks as the second longest running western series and still continues to air in syndication. It centers on the...
, and Highway Patrol
Highway Patrol (TV series)
Highway Patrol is a syndicated action crime drama series produced 1955-1959.-Overview:Highway Patrol stars Broderick Crawford as Dan Mathews, the gruff and dedicated head of a police force in an unidentified Western state...
under the pseudonym "Ray Llewellyn." Rose's work in composing music for television programs earned him four Emmys. In addition, Rose was musical director for The Red Skelton Show
The Red Skelton Show
The Red Skelton Show is an American variety show that was a television staple for two decades, from 1951 to 1971. It was second to Gunsmoke and third to The Ed Sullivan Show in the ratings during that time. Skelton, who had previously been a radio star, had appeared in several motion pictures as...
during its 21-year-run on the CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
and NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
networks. He was a member of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia
Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia
Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia is an American collegiate social fraternity for men with a special interest in music...
, the national fraternity for men in music.
Career
Recipient of four Emmy awards, David Rose was born in London to Jewish parents and raised in Chicago, Illinois. Rose's career in music began when he worked with Ted Fio Rito's band when he was sixteen. Rose also worked as a standby pianist for NBC Radio. It was here, in the early 1930s, that he first gained a reputation, while arranging for the Frank Trumbauer orchestra and later leading a house band at station WGNWGN
WGN may refer to:*World's Greatest Newspaper, former slogan of the Chicago Tribune and the namesake for the WGN broadcasting outlets in Chicago, Illinois.** WGN , a radio station licensed to Chicago, Illinois, United States...
. He composed several early swing originals such as "Break It Down" with Frankie Trumbauer
Frankie Trumbauer
Orie Frank Trumbauer was one of the leading jazz saxophonists of the 1920s and 1930s. He played the C-melody saxophone which, in size, is between an alto and tenor saxophone...
, "Transcontinental," "Plantation Moods," and a piece recorded under three different titles: "I've Got It", "Itchola", and "Jigsaw Rhythm," his original version with the WGN band including Louis Prima
Louis Prima
Louis Prima was a Sicilian American singer, actor, songwriter, and trumpeter. Prima rode the musical trends of his time, starting with his seven-piece New Orleans style jazz band in the 1920s, then successively leading a swing combo in the 1930s, a big band in the 1940s, a Vegas lounge act in the...
.
Rose was asked to come to Hollywood, where he formed his orchestra, doing a twice-weekly radio show for Mutual Broadcasting System
Mutual Broadcasting System
The Mutual Broadcasting System was an American radio network, in operation from 1934 to 1999. In the golden age of U.S. radio drama, MBS was best known as the original network home of The Lone Ranger and The Adventures of Superman and as the long-time radio residence of The Shadow...
called California Melodies, where he wrote all the broadcast arrangements. He worked his way up to becoming music director of the Mutual network. Rose's first try at composing was his hit song "Holiday for Strings". During World War II, Rose entered the Army and it was here where he met Red Skelton
Red Skelton
Richard Bernard "Red" Skelton was an American comedian who is best known as a top radio and television star from 1937 to 1971. Skelton's show business career began in his teens as a circus clown and went on to vaudeville, Broadway, films, radio, TV, night clubs and casinos, all while pursuing...
. Skelton asked Rose to become the conductor for his Raleigh Cigarettes Program. Rose joined the cast in 1948 and went on to work with Skelton on his television show for over 20 years.
In 1957 his rendition of Larry Clinton
Larry Clinton
Larry Clinton was a trumpeter who became a prominent American bandleader.-Biography:Clinton was born in Brooklyn, New York. He became a versatile musician, capable of playing trumpet, trombone, and clarinet...
's "Calypso Melody" became Rose's second million selling record
Gramophone record
A gramophone record, commonly known as a phonograph record , vinyl record , or colloquially, a record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove...
, and was awarded a gold disc
Music recording sales certification
Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,...
.
"The Stripper
The Stripper
"The Stripper" is an instrumental composed by David Rose and recorded in 1962. It evinces a jazz influence with especially prominent trombone lines, and evokes the feel of music used to accompany striptease artists....
" was composed by Rose and recorded in 1958. It was originally used as the B-side
A-side and B-side
A-side and B-side originally referred to the two sides of gramophone records on which singles were released beginning in the 1950s. The terms have come to refer to the types of song conventionally placed on each side of the record, with the A-side being the featured song , while the B-side, or...
to his single, "Ebb Tide". The choice of the record's B-side was not by Rose, but by an MGM office boy. MGM indicated they wanted to put the record on the market quickly. A B-side was needed and with Rose away, the office boy went through some of Rose's tapes searching for one. "The Stripper
The Stripper
"The Stripper" is an instrumental composed by David Rose and recorded in 1962. It evinces a jazz influence with especially prominent trombone lines, and evokes the feel of music used to accompany striptease artists....
" featured especially prominent trombone lines, giving the tune its lascivious signature, and evokes the feel of music used to accompany vaudeville striptease artists. The piece features in the films Slap Shot, The Full Monty
The Full Monty
The Full Monty is a 1997 British comedy film directed by Peter Cattaneo, starring Robert Carlyle, Mark Addy, William Snape, Steve Huison, Tom Wilkinson, Paul Barber, and Hugo Speer. The screenplay was written by Simon Beaufoy...
and Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit
Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit
Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit is a 2005 British clay-mation animated comedy horror film, the first feature-length Wallace and Gromit film. It was produced by DreamWorks Animation and Aardman Animations, and released by DreamWorksPictures...
as well as TV series Little Britain
Little Britain
Little Britain is a British character-based comedy sketch show which was first broadcast on BBC radio and then turned into a television show. It was written by comic duo David Walliams and Matt Lucas...
and Scrubs
Scrubs (TV series)
Scrubs is an American medical comedy-drama television series created in 2001 by Bill Lawrence and produced by ABC Studios. The show follows the lives of several employees of the fictional Sacred Heart, a teaching hospital. It features fast-paced screenplay, slapstick, and surreal vignettes...
. It was also famously used in a parody by British comedy duo Morecambe and Wise
Morecambe and Wise
Eric Morecambe and Ernie Wise, usually referred to as Morecambe and Wise, or Eric and Ernie, were a British comic double act, working in variety, radio, film and most successfully in television. Their partnership lasted from 1941 until Morecambe's death in 1984...
, where they danced to the tune while making breakfast.
"Holiday for Strings" became well-known as the theme for Red Skelton's programs. A parody version, retitled "Holiday for States", was recorded as a vocal by Allan Sherman
Allan Sherman
Allan Sherman was an American comedy writer and television producer who became famous as a song parodist in the early 1960s. His first album, My Son, the Folk Singer , became the fastest-selling record album up to that time...
, with the straight melody but with ersatz lyrics
Lyrics
Lyrics are a set of words that make up a song. The writer of lyrics is a lyricist or lyrist. The meaning of lyrics can either be explicit or implicit. Some lyrics are abstract, almost unintelligible, and, in such cases, their explication emphasizes form, articulation, meter, and symmetry of...
comprised solely of the names of the American states. In Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In, Ruth Buzzi
Ruth Buzzi
Ruth Ann Buzzi is an American comedienne and actress of theatre, film, and television. She is especially known for her performances on the comedy-variety show Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In from 1968 to 1973.-Early life:...
"laughed" the melody of the song, imitating the Spike Jones
Spike Jones
Mel Blanc, the voice of Bugs Bunny and other Warner Brothers cartoon characters, performed a drunken, hiccuping verse for 1942's "Clink! Clink! Another Drink"...
version. On his album Leon Live, Leon Russell
Leon Russell
Claude Russell Bridges , known professionally as Leon Russell, is an American musician and songwriter, who has recorded as a session musician, sideman, and maintained a solo career in music....
plays a strain from the song in the middle of a performance of his own song, "Shootout on the Plantation."
Also, had many great MGM albums like The Americanization of Emily, Autumn Leaves and Gigi(which are paired in a superb Dutton CD. Also on Dutton, is the restored Kapp recording "Songs of the Fabulous Thirties" which is a must in every collection of fine "lounge" music.
Personal life
He was married on October 8, 1938, to the actress Martha RayeMartha Raye
Martha Raye was an American comic actress and standards singer who performed in movies, and later on television....
. They were divorced on May 19, 1941. Rose was married for a second time, on July 28, 1941, to the actress and singer Judy Garland
Judy Garland
Judy Garland was an American actress and singer. Through a career that spanned 45 of her 47 years and for her renowned contralto voice, she attained international stardom as an actress in musical and dramatic roles, as a recording artist and on the concert stage...
. They had no children, though Garland, according to biographer Gerald Clarke, underwent at least one abortion during the marriage, at the insistence of her mother, her husband, and the studio that employed her, MGM. Garland and Rose divorced in 1944.
He had two daughters with his third wife, Betty Bartholomew. His granddaughter is singer-songwriter Samantha James
Samantha James
Samantha James is an American dance musician from Los Angeles. She released her debut album, Rise, in 2007 on Om Records, which features production work by Sebastian Arocha Morton . The title track from the album was released as a single and has reached #1 on the US Billboard Dance charts...
.
Rose was a live steam
Live steam
Live steam is steam under pressure, obtained by heating water in a boiler. The steam is used to operate stationary or moving equipment.A live steam machine or device is one powered by steam, but the term is usually reserved for those that are replicas, scale models, toys, or otherwise used for...
hobbyist, with his own backyard railroad
Backyard railroad
A backyard railroad is a privately owned, outdoor railroad, most often in miniature, but large enough for one or several persons to ride on. The rail gauge can be anything from to or more. Smaller backyard or outdoor railroads that cannot be ridden are called garden railroads.Hundreds, even...
.
Death
Rose died in Burbank, CaliforniaBurbank, California
Burbank is a city in Los Angeles County in Southern California, United States, north of downtown Los Angeles. The estimated population in 2010 was 103,340....
at the age of 80 and was buried in Mount Sinai Memorial Park Cemetery
Mount Sinai Memorial Park Cemetery
Mount Sinai Memorial Parks and Mortuaries refers to two Jewish cemeteries in the Los Angeles, California metropolitan area. The original cemetery is located at 5950 Forest Lawn Drive in the Hollywood Hills of Los Angeles. The cemetery was originally established in 1953 by the neighboring Forest...
in Hollywood Hills, California.
Singles
- Holiday For Strings (US #2, 1944)
- Poinciana (Song Of The Tree) (US #11, 1944)
- The Stripper (US #1, 1962)
Television
- The Red Skelton ShowThe Red Skelton ShowThe Red Skelton Show is an American variety show that was a television staple for two decades, from 1951 to 1971. It was second to Gunsmoke and third to The Ed Sullivan Show in the ratings during that time. Skelton, who had previously been a radio star, had appeared in several motion pictures as...
- BonanzaBonanzaBonanza is an American western television series that both ran on and was a production of NBC from September 12, 1959 to January 16, 1973. Lasting 14 seasons and 430 episodes, it ranks as the second longest running western series and still continues to air in syndication. It centers on the...
(1971 Emmy) - The High ChaparralThe High ChaparralThe High Chaparral is a Western-themed television series starring Leif Erickson and Cameron Mitchell which aired on NBC from 1967 to 1971. The show was created by David Dortort, who had previously created the hit Bonanza for the network...
- Little House on the PrairieLittle House on the Prairie (TV series)Little House on the Prairie is an American Western drama television series, starring Michael Landon and Melissa Gilbert, about a family living on a farm in Walnut Grove, Minnesota, in the 1870s and 1880s. The show was an adaptation of Laura Ingalls Wilder's best-selling series of Little House books...
(1979 and 1982 Emmys) - Father MurphyFather MurphyFather Murphy is an American television drama series that aired on the NBC network from November 3, 1981 to September 18, 1983. Michael Landon created the series, was the executive producer, and also directed the show in partnership with William F...
- Highway to HeavenHighway to HeavenHighway to Heaven is an American television drama series which ran on NBC from 1984 to 1989.- Season 1 :- Season 2 :- Season 3 :- Season 4 :- Season 5 :...
- Highway PatrolHighway patrolA highway patrol is either a police unit created primarily for the purpose of overseeing and enforcing traffic safety compliance on roads and highways, or a detail within an existing local or regional police agency that is primarily concerned with such duties.Duties of highway patrols or traffic...