Harry M. Woods
Encyclopedia
Henry MacGregor Woods was a Tin Pan Alley
songwriter
and pianist
. Woods is sometimes credited as Harry Woods.
. He had no fingers on his left hand since birth. Nonetheless, Woods' mother, a concert singer, encouraged him to play the piano. Woods got his bachelor's degree at Harvard University
, where he supported himself by singing in church choirs and giving piano recitals. After graduation, Woods settled in Cape Cod
and began life as a farmer. He was drafted into the Army during World War I
; it was there that he began cultivating his talent for songwriting. After his discharge, Woods settled in New York City
and began his successful career as a songwriter.
, and a #2 hit song in 1924 for Al Jolson
. The same year, "Paddlin' Madeleine Home" was published with words & music by Woods (a recording by Cliff Edwards
in 1925 would reach #3 on the Billboard chart).
By 1926, Woods had become an established songwriter on Tin Pan Alley, and he would become legendary with his new song, "When the Red, Red Robin (Comes Bob, Bob, Bobbin' Along)
". The song was an instant hit for singers like "Whispering" Jack Smith, Cliff Edwards
and the Ipana Troubadors
. Al Jolson, however, had the most success with his recording, which reached #1 on the Billboard charts. The song was recorded in 1953 by Doris Day
, and again reached considerable success on the charts.
In 1929, Woods began contributing songs to Hollywood musicals such as The Vagabond Lover
, A Lady's Morals
, Artistic Temper, Aunt Sally, Twentieth Century
, Road House, Limelight, It's Love Again, Merry Go Round of 1938, and She's For Me. In 1934, he moved to London
, where he lived for three years and worked for the British film studio Gaumont British
, contributing to the films Jack Ahoy
and Evergreen
.
While Woods primarily created both the words and music for his songs, he also collaborated with Mort Dixon
, Al Sherman
, Howard Johnson
, Arthur Freed
, Rube Bloom
and Gus Kahn
. Alone, and with his collaborators, he wrote "I'm Looking Over a Four Leaf Clover
", "I'm Goin' South", "The Clouds Will Soon Roll By", "Just a Butterfly that’s Caught in the Rain", "Side by Side
", "My Old Man", "A Little Kiss Each Morning", "Heigh-Ho, Everybody, Heigh-Ho", "Man From the South", "River Stay 'Way from My Door", "When the Moon Comes Over the Mountain
", "We Just Couldn’t Say Goodbye", "Just an Echo in the Valley", "A Little Street Where Old Friends Meet", "You Ought to See Sally on Sunday", "Hustlin' and Bustlin' for Baby", "What a Little Moonlight Can Do
", "Try a Little Tenderness
", "I'll Never Say 'Never Again' Again", "Over My Shoulder", "Tinkle Tinkle Tinkle", "When You've Got a Little Springtime in Your Heart", and "I Nearly Let Love Go Slipping Through My Fingers".
where he died on January 14, 1970.
Tin Pan Alley
Tin Pan Alley is the name given to the collection of New York City music publishers and songwriters who dominated the popular music of the United States in the late 19th century and early 20th century...
songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
and pianist
Pianist
A pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers.-Choice of genres:...
. Woods is sometimes credited as Harry Woods.
Early life
Woods was born in North Chelmsford, MassachusettsNorth Chelmsford, Massachusetts
North Chelmsford is an unincorporated village in the town of Chelmsford, Massachusetts, United States. Although North Chelmsford has its own zip code , library, post office, police station, fire station, and local calling area, it is run by the same local town government and is part of the same...
. He had no fingers on his left hand since birth. Nonetheless, Woods' mother, a concert singer, encouraged him to play the piano. Woods got his bachelor's degree at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
, where he supported himself by singing in church choirs and giving piano recitals. After graduation, Woods settled in Cape Cod
Cape Cod
Cape Cod, often referred to locally as simply the Cape, is a cape in the easternmost portion of the state of Massachusetts, in the Northeastern United States...
and began life as a farmer. He was drafted into the Army during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
; it was there that he began cultivating his talent for songwriting. After his discharge, Woods settled in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and began his successful career as a songwriter.
Career
Woods' first songwriting success came in 1923 with the song "I'm Goin' South", written with Abner SilverAbner Silver
Abner Silver was an American songwriter who worked primarily during the Tin Pan Alley era of the craft. He was born on December 28, 1899, in New York....
, and a #2 hit song in 1924 for Al Jolson
Al Jolson
Al Jolson was an American singer, comedian and actor. In his heyday, he was dubbed "The World's Greatest Entertainer"....
. The same year, "Paddlin' Madeleine Home" was published with words & music by Woods (a recording by Cliff Edwards
Cliff Edwards
Cliff Edwards , also known as "Ukelele Ike", was an American singer and voice actor who enjoyed considerable popularity in the 1920s and early 1930s, specializing in jazzy renditions of pop standards and novelty tunes. He had a number-one hit with "Singin' in the Rain" in 1929...
in 1925 would reach #3 on the Billboard chart).
By 1926, Woods had become an established songwriter on Tin Pan Alley, and he would become legendary with his new song, "When the Red, Red Robin (Comes Bob, Bob, Bobbin' Along)
When the Red, Red Robin (Comes Bob, Bob, Bobbin' Along)
"When the Red, Red Robin " was a 1926 popular song written by songwriter Harry M. Woods. The song was an instant hit for singers like "Whispering" Jack Smith, Cliff Edwards and the Ipana Troubadors...
". The song was an instant hit for singers like "Whispering" Jack Smith, Cliff Edwards
Cliff Edwards
Cliff Edwards , also known as "Ukelele Ike", was an American singer and voice actor who enjoyed considerable popularity in the 1920s and early 1930s, specializing in jazzy renditions of pop standards and novelty tunes. He had a number-one hit with "Singin' in the Rain" in 1929...
and the Ipana Troubadors
The Ipana Troubadors
The Ipana Troubadors was a musical variety radio program which began in New York on WEAF in 1923. In actuality, the Troubadors were the Sam Lanin Orchestra...
. Al Jolson, however, had the most success with his recording, which reached #1 on the Billboard charts. The song was recorded in 1953 by Doris Day
Doris Day
Doris Day is an American actress, singer and, since her retirement from show business, an animal rights activist. With an entertainment career that spanned through almost 50 years, Day started her career as a big band singer in 1939, but only began to be noticed after her first hit recording,...
, and again reached considerable success on the charts.
In 1929, Woods began contributing songs to Hollywood musicals such as The Vagabond Lover
The Vagabond Lover
The Vagabond Lover is a 1929 American black-and-white, comedy-drama musical film about a small-town boy who finds fame and romance when he joins a dance band. The film is directed by Marshall Neilan, and is based on the novel of the same name, written by James Ashmore Creelman who also wrote the...
, A Lady's Morals
A Lady's Morals
A Lady's Morals is a 1930 film offering a highly fictionalized account of singer Jenny Lind. The movie features Grace Moore as Lind, Reginald Denny as a lover, and Wallace Beery as P. T. Barnum; Beery would play Barnum again four years later in The Mighty Barnum...
, Artistic Temper, Aunt Sally, Twentieth Century
Twentieth Century (film)
Twentieth Century is a 1934 American screwball comedy film. Much of the film is set on the 20th Century Limited train as it travels from Chicago to New York. The film was directed by Howard Hawks, stars John Barrymore and Carole Lombard, and features Walter Connolly, Roscoe Karns and Edgar Kennedy...
, Road House, Limelight, It's Love Again, Merry Go Round of 1938, and She's For Me. In 1934, he moved to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, where he lived for three years and worked for the British film studio Gaumont British
Gaumont British
Gaumont-British Picture Corporation was the British arm of the French film company Gaumont. The company became independent of its French parent in 1922, when Isidore Ostrer acquired control of Gaumont-British....
, contributing to the films Jack Ahoy
Jack Ahoy
Jack Ahoy is a 1935 British comedy film directed by Walter Forde and starring Jack Hulbert, Nancy O'Neil, Alfred Drayton and Sam Wilkinson. A humble seaman falls in love with an Admiral's daughter, whilst trying to battle Chinese pirates....
and Evergreen
Evergreen (film)
Evergreen is a 1934 Gaumont British musical film, starring Jessie Matthews as a music hall singer, based on the 1930 musical Ever Green, also starring Matthews. Matthews had a dual role as both mother and daughter....
.
While Woods primarily created both the words and music for his songs, he also collaborated with Mort Dixon
Mort Dixon
-Biography:Born in New York, Dixon began writing songs in the early 1920s, and was active into the 1930s. He achieved success with his first published effort, 1923's "That Old Gang of Mine". His chief composer collaborators were Ray Henderson, Harry Warren, Harry M...
, Al Sherman
Al Sherman
Al Sherman was an American Tin Pan Alley songwriter from the first half of the twentieth century. Sherman is a link in a long chain of musical Sherman family members.-Early life:...
, Howard Johnson
Howard Johnson (lyricist)
Howard Johnson was a song lyricist. He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1970.Songwriter , author and lyricist, Johnson was born in Waterbury, Connecticut, and died in New York, New York. He was educated in high school and in private music study...
, Arthur Freed
Arthur Freed
Arthur Freed was born Arthur Grossman in Charleston, South Carolina. He was a Jewish American lyricist and a Hollywood film producer.- Biography :Freed began his career as a song-plugger and pianist in Chicago...
, Rube Bloom
Rube Bloom
Reuben Bloom was a Jewish American multi-faceted entertainer, and in addition to being a songwriter, pianist, arranger, band leader, recording artist, vocalist, and writer .During his career, he worked with many well-known performers, including Bix Beiderbecke, Joe Venuti, Ruth Etting,...
and Gus Kahn
Gus Kahn
Gustav Gerson Kahn was a musician, songwriter and lyricist.-Biography:Kahn was born in Koblenz, Germany in 1886. The family emigrated from there to the United States and moved to Chicago, Illinois in 1890...
. Alone, and with his collaborators, he wrote "I'm Looking Over a Four Leaf Clover
I'm Looking Over a Four Leaf Clover
"I'm Looking Over a Four Leaf Clover" is a song from 1927, written by Mort Dixon with music by Harry M. Woods. It was a hit for Art Mooney & His Orchestra in 1948 and was largely popularized by him. In modern times the song is perhaps most associated with Merrie Melodies cartoons, as it appeared in...
", "I'm Goin' South", "The Clouds Will Soon Roll By", "Just a Butterfly that’s Caught in the Rain", "Side by Side
Side by Side (1927 song)
"Side by Side" is a popular song with lyrics by Gus Kahn and music by Harry M. Woods written in 1927, now considered a standard.It has been recorded by many artists, but is probably best known in a 1953 recording by Kay Starr.-Recorded versions:...
", "My Old Man", "A Little Kiss Each Morning", "Heigh-Ho, Everybody, Heigh-Ho", "Man From the South", "River Stay 'Way from My Door", "When the Moon Comes Over the Mountain
When the Moon Comes over the Mountain
"When the Moon Comes Over the Mountain" is a popular song, published in 1931, and credited as written by Howard Johnson, Harry M. Woods, and Kate Smith...
", "We Just Couldn’t Say Goodbye", "Just an Echo in the Valley", "A Little Street Where Old Friends Meet", "You Ought to See Sally on Sunday", "Hustlin' and Bustlin' for Baby", "What a Little Moonlight Can Do
What a Little Moonlight Can Do
"What a Little Moonlight Can Do" is a popular song written by Harry M. Woods in 1934. It was originally recorded by Billie Holiday accompanied by Teddy Wilson & His Orchestra on July 2, 1935. Peggy Lee covered it with a Nelson Riddle arrangement on her 1959 album Jump for Joy. Steve Tyrell...
", "Try a Little Tenderness
Try a Little Tenderness
"Try a Little Tenderness" is a love song written by Jimmy Campbell, Reg Connelly and Harry M. Woods, and recorded initially on December 8, 1932 by the Ray Noble Orchestra followed by both Ruth Etting and Bing Crosby in 1933...
", "I'll Never Say 'Never Again' Again", "Over My Shoulder", "Tinkle Tinkle Tinkle", "When You've Got a Little Springtime in Your Heart", and "I Nearly Let Love Go Slipping Through My Fingers".
Personal life
Despite a successful career composing mostly upbeat and popular songs, Woods' temperament was in sharp contrast to the songs he wrote and composed. He was reportedly a dangerous and volatile alcoholic. According to legend, Woods once exchanged heated words with a man in a nightclub after consuming a large quantity of alcohol. The argument escalated into a physical fight with Woods pinning the man to the floor while hitting him with his right hand and bashing him in the face with the stump of his left hand. When police arrived at the club and arrested Woods, a woman entered the club and asked, "Who is that horrible man?" Still seated at the bar, a friend of the songwriter's proudly announced, "That's Harry Woods. He wrote 'Try a Little Tenderness'."Death
Around 1945, Woods retired and moved to Glendale, ArizonaGlendale, Arizona
Glendale is a city in Maricopa County, Arizona, USA, located about nine miles northwest from Downtown Phoenix. According to 2010 Census Bureau, the population of the city is 226,721....
where he died on January 14, 1970.