EDDIE SNYDER, 92, songwriter; wrote lyrics to 'Strangers In the Night', 'A Time For Us', 'Spanish Eyes', others
MDB1...@hotmail.com
February 22, 1919 - March 10, 2011
You may not know his name. His list of hits is perhaps not the most
extensive. But it included some of the biggest, and most covered, hit
ballads of the rock/folk dominated 1960s.
Born in New York, N.Y., Edward Abraham Snyder studied at Juilliard.
Like many songwriters of his generation, he worked for a time at the
famed Brill Building. Unlike most of his fellow songwriters, who
achieved their greatest hits when paired in composer/lyricist teams
such as Bacharach/David, Barry Mann & Cynthia Weil, Ellie Greewich &
Jeff Barry, Eddie Snyder found his biggest successes writing English
lyrics to songs written by European composers.
To music by the German composer Bert Kaempfert, Snyder and co-lyricist
Charlie Singleton penned lyrics for the Frank Sinatra classic
'Strangers In the Night', Wayne Newton's 'Remember When...' and Al
Martino's 'Spanish Eyes'. Both 'Strangers In the Night' and 'Spanish
Eyes' sold millions of records, and were covered by litterally dozens
of the day's best known vocalists, groups and instrumentalists.
It's been written that 'next to Bert Kaempfert, James Last (nee Hans
Warner) is the most successful German composer in the pop music genre,
internationally'. To an obscure German song written in 1966 by James
Last and text/lyrcist R. Gunter Loose, Eddie Snyder, this time co-
writing with lyricist Larry Kusik, gave the song a new title and
lyric: 'Games That Lovers Play'.
A hit version by Wayne Newton was followed by moderate hit versions by
Ray Conniff and Eddie Fisher. Fisher, likely, was hoping for a
comeback with this. But that didn't quite happen.
'When The Snow Is On the Roses', the next Last/Kusik/Snyder
collaboration, was a hit for Ed Ames in 1967.
Eddie Snyder capped off his career, and the 1960s, with one more home
run.
In 1969, composer Nino Rota's main theme to Franco Zeffirelli's film
"Romeo And Juliet" was a major hit with instrumentalists. Henry
Mancini had a number one hit with it. Co-writing again with Larry
Kusik, the piece became 'A Time For Us', an ode to oppressive love
expressed lyrically much as Bernstein and Sondheim's 'Somewhere' from
"West Side Story" had a decade earlier. The song was soon covered by
dozens of vocalists.
Among other composers with whom Eddie Snyder collaborated were Maurice
Jarre, Piero
Piccioni ('More Than A Miracle'), and Luis Aguile.
An ASCAP member since 1951, Eddie Snyder is a member of the
'Songwriters Hall of Fame'.
A few other music notables who passed away recently...
MARTY GOLD
Dec. 26, 1915-Jan. 14, 2011
Pianist; composer ('Tell Me Why'); arranger for Charlie Barnet, Ed
Ames, Sarah Vaughn, The Four Aces and Roger Williams.
IRWIN PINCUS
Nov. 29, 1929-Feb. 16, 2011
Chicago born music pubisher who was responsible for helping the
careers of many songwriters. He published many classic hits and, under
the pseudonym 'Allan Jeffrey', co-wrote one major hit himself: Patti
Page's 'Old Cape Cod'.
HENRY P. JEROME
Nov. 12, 1917-March ??, 2011
Arranger, bandleader ('Henry Jerome and his Brazen Brass') and
composer ('For The Love of Him').
AndrewJ
> To music by the German composer Bert Kaempfert, Snyder and co-lyricist
> Charlie Singleton penned lyrics for the Frank Sinatra classic
> 'Strangers In the Night'
Don't-be-don't-be-don't...