Vivian Ellis

b. 29 Oct 1903, Hampstead, London, Britain, d. 19 June 1996, London, Britain. A highly well known composer, lyricist and writer, chiefly famous for his refreshing, witty and intimate music for revues and musicals in the united kingdom through the period through the 20s to the 50s. He also had written the music for many films, including Jack port’s The Boy, starring Jack port Hulbert and Cicely Courtneidge (‘The Flies Crawled IN THE Home window’), Piccadilly Occurrence (‘Piccadilly 1944’), General public Nuisance No. 1 (‘Me And My Doggie’) and person pieces such as for example ‘Coronation Scot’, which became the personal tune of the favorite BBC radio series Paul Temple within the 40s, and surfaced again within the 80s inside a tv commercial for English Rail. As an writer, he published several novels, and some funny books entitled STEPS TO MAKE Your Fortune AROUND THE STOCK MARKET and HOW EXACTLY TO Enjoy Your Procedure, etc. Ellis’ mom was an exceptionally talented violinist, and his grandmother, Julia Woolf, was the author of a 1888 comic opera Carina. His early ambition was to be always a concert pianist, and he analyzed the piano with Dame Myra Hess and structure in the Royal Academy of Music, later on giving several recitals. In his past due teens, he created a pastime in light music and do the rounds of London’s music web publishers with a few of his compositions, ultimately getting a work as a audience and demonstrator with Francis, Time & Hunter. In the first 20s Ellis constructed the music for many quantities in revues like the Curate’s Egg, THE TINY Revue, as well as the Punch Bowl, and, in 1924, composed a lot of the music (with lyrics by Graham John) for the effective Hulbert and Courtneidge revue INCIDENTALLY. These included ‘Three Small Hairs’, ‘By The Method’, and ‘Nothing at all Ever Occurs To Me’. A season afterwards, June (née Howard-Tripp) sang his ‘Over My Make’ (lyric by Graham John) in Mercenary Mary, and she was one of the artists to execute Ellis and John’s strike ‘Small Boy Blues’ in another Hulbert and Courtneidge revue Clowns In Clover (1927). In the past due 20s, Ellis was symbolized by several compositions in a number of other Western world End displays, including Kid Boot styles, Cochran’s 1926 Revue, My Kid John, Simply Molly, Palladium Pleasures, Blue Skies, THE LADY Friend, Charlot Revue 1928, Vogue And Vanities, THE HOME That Jack Constructed, A Yankee At Ruler Arthur’s Court, and can O’ The Whispers (1928), where ‘I By no means Dreamt’ (terms and music by Ellis), was sung by the favorite American vocalist, ‘Whispering’ Jack port Smith. In 1929 Vivian Ellis shifted from your revue format and experienced his 1st musical comedy strike with Mr. Cinders, which experienced a publication and lyrics by Clifford Gray and Greatrex Newman, and extra music by Richard Myers. The display contained among Ellis’ most long lasting numbers, ‘Pass on A Little Joy’, that was performed by Binnie Hale, and many various other favourites, including ‘Ev’ry Small Minute’ (Hale and Bobby Howes), and Howes’ humor high place, ‘On The Amazon’. Despite originally cool testimonials, the present was a massive success, working for a complete of 529 shows. Ellis himself was struggling to go to the opening from the present – he was significantly ill within the south of France. On his go back to Britain he collaborated with lyricist Desmond Carter for Small Tommy Tucker (‘Allow’s Become Sentimental’), and once again, for the wistful ‘Blowing wind WITHIN THE Willows’, that was presented in Cochran’s 1930 Revue and became an exceptionally popular item within the repertoire of Leslie ‘Hutch’ Hutchinson. The display marked the start of an association using the impresario Charles B. Cochran which was to verify perhaps one of the most essential in Ellis’ professional existence. In the first 30s Ellis experienced combined fortunes. Adhere to A Celebrity was a monetary failure regardless of the presence within the solid of Hulbert, and Sophie Tucker, who sang Ellis and Jack port Yellen’s effective, bluesy ‘If Your Kisses Can’t CONTAIN THE Man You Like’, which Tucker later on utilized to close her cabaret work. The Song FROM THE Drum (‘Within My Center’), Blue Roses (‘Dance In My Rest’, ‘If I HAD DEVELOPED Three Desires’, ‘Where ARE YOU Hiding?’), and FROM THE Container (music by Ellis and Oscar Levant), were disappointing too. OPERATE And Sing, starring Jack port Buchanan and Elsie Randolph, was a lot more effective, and contained quantities by Ellis, Phil Charig and Douglas Furber, such as for example ‘There’s Generally Tomorrow’, ‘It’s Not really You’, and ‘Evening Period’. By 1934, Ellis was among the leading statistics in the United kingdom musical theater. For the revue Streamline (1934), Cochran teamed him with the writer A.P. Herbert, a cooperation that created ‘Various other People’s Infants’ (sung by Norah Howard), amongst others, which supplied a foretaste of the fruitful partnership through the past due 40s, and, briefly, within the 50s. For the time being, Ellis turned once again to Desmond Carter for the lyrics to Jill Darling (1934), a captivating musical humor that starred Frances Time, among Ellis’ most liked leading females, and included ‘Dance HAVING A Ghost’, ‘Nonny, Nonny, No’, ‘Pardon My British’, ‘Allow’s Place Our Heads Collectively’, ‘A Bloom For You’, and another from the composer’s all-time specifications, ‘I’m ON THE See-Saw’, that was performed in vivacious style by Louise Browne and John Mills, who later on became a celebrated dramatic acting professional. ‘I’m ON THE See-Saw’ was documented by Body fat Waller, inside a typically ebullient edition, and became effective in the us for Ambrose and his orchestra – among Ellis’ uncommon transatlantic strikes. In the past due 30s, Ellis started to create even more of his personal lyrics for tracks such as for example ‘Drop In THE NEXT TIME You’re Passing’ (Heading Locations), ‘The Trees and shrubs In Bloomsbury Square’ and ‘London WITHIN THE Period’ (THE CITY Talks), as well as the wonderful ‘She’s My Lovely’, sung by Bobby Howes in Cover And Look for (1937), and later on adopted by music group innovator Billy Ternent as his personal melody. In 1938 he previously three hit displays working in the Western world End: The Fleet’s Lit Up (‘Small Miss Go-As-You-Please’, ‘Figure It SHOULD BE THE Springtime’, ‘How WOULD YOU Do, Mr. Best?’, ‘Cover And Look for’), Jogging Riot (‘Take Your Companions For The Waltz’, ‘When Like Knocks WITHIN MY Door’, ‘Doing An Irish Jig’), and Under Your Head wear, ‘the funniest music comedy for years’, which ran for a complete of 512 shows in London, and included Courtneidge’s hilariously patriotic ‘The Empire DEPENDS UPON You’, as well as other numbers such as for example ‘Jointly Again’, ‘Hold It Under Your Head wear’, ‘and ‘If YOU INTEND TO Dance’. While those displays were operating in London, Ellis resided for a while in Hollywood, where he published film tunes for Deanna Durbin. He came back to Britain within the springtime of 1939, and consequently became a member of the RNVR. He achieved the rank of Lieutenant-Commander, and spent the majority of Globe War II like a Control Entertainments Official for ENSA. After his launch in 1945, Ellis resumed his cooperation having a.P. Herbert (publication and lyrics) in Cochran’s creation of the ‘light opera’ entitled Big Ben (1946). Kept in mind particularly for presenting the 19-year-old Lizbeth Webb towards the London stage, the rating included ‘Allow Us DECREASE The River’, ‘London City’, ‘I WISH TO START TO SEE THE People Content’, ‘Like Me Not really’, and ‘Who’s THE GIRL?’, and the like. One critic had written that Big Ben lacked differentiation, a thing that could under no circumstances be stated about Ellis and Herbert’s following work, Bless The Bride-to-be (1947), that was most likely Ellis’ biggest strike, as well as the climax of his profession. Featuring hit tracks like the ‘gaily traditional French pastiche’, ‘Ma Belle Marguerite’, ‘This Can be My Lovely Time’, and ‘I Was Under no circumstances Kissed Before’, Bless The Bride-to-be was essentially an enchanting operetta occur Victorian England, and may hardly have already been more dissimilar to the brash, youthful American transfer, Oklahoma!, which opened up at a close by London theatre within the same week. However, with Georges Guétary and Webb in the best functions, Bless The Bride-to-be settled in to the Adelphi Theater, and went for 886 shows. One of many reasons it shut in 1949 was that Cochran wished to replace it with Ellis and Herbert’s Challenging AT THE VERY TOP, a choice that became a pricey mistake – the brand new present ran for over four a few months. Within the 50s, the united states invasion from the English musical theater that experienced started with Oklahoma! in 1947, intensified. When confronted with everything Americana, Ellis’ 1st rating from the 10 years couldn’t have already been more parochial. THEREFORE To Bed (1951) was a musical version of J.B. Fagan’s renowned play concerning the Elizabethan diarist, Samuel Pepys, that Ellis was asked to compose music in a number of styles, such as for example madrigal, jig, and saraband. A fairly unconventional choice for the best function was ‘rubber-faced’ comic professional, Leslie Henson, whose idea the whole lot was, as well as the rating included ‘Gaze Not really IN THE Swans’, ‘Moppety Mo’, ‘Appreciate Me Small, Love Me Lengthy’, ‘Amo, Amas’, and ‘Bartholomew Good’. The display’s musical movie director was Mantovani, afterwards renowned for his ‘cascading strings’. THEREFORE To Bed experienced a healthy operate of 323 shows, and Ellis adopted it, 2 yrs later on, having a revue, ON THE Moon, before renewing his collaboration with Herbert for WATER Gipsies (1955). Ellis wrote the melody for just one song, ‘Small Boat’, within the film edition of Herbert’s 1930 book, arranged on London’s waterways, and today, over twenty years afterwards, he contributed an entire musical rating, including Dora Bryan’s amusing variations of ‘Why Do You Contact Me Lily?’, ‘You Hardly ever Know With Guys’, ‘I actually Should Get worried, and ‘It Would Cramp My Design’. Her existence ensured the display’s initial achievement, however when she became pregnant and acquired to leave, WATER Gipsies folded following a operate of 239 shows. It had been Ellis’ last main musical creation, and he continues to be quoted as stating that it could have already been his greatest rating. Of his additional work around that point, his kids’s musical, PAY ATTENTION TO The Blowing wind (1954), contained many excellent music, and he continuing to donate to productions such as for example Fifty percent In Earnest, Four TOWARDS THE Bar, Six OF 1, Mr Whatnot, and Chaganog (1964). In 1973 Vivian Ellis received the Ivor Novello Prize for outstanding providers to United kingdom music, and, a decade afterwards, he was offered the Ivor Novello Life time Achievement Prize and became the Leader from the Performing Privileges Culture. In 1984, at age 80, he received the CBE, and, within the same season, the Vivian Ellis Award, an annual prize for the authors of fresh musicals, was instituted from the PRS. Bless The Bride-to-be was revived at London’s Sadler’s Wells Theater in 1987, and Ellis’ first musical humor strike, Mr. Cinders, also loved London revivals in 1983 and 1993. The second option display was first stated in America in 1988, in the Goodspeed Opera Home, and, in 1992, it finally got its NY premiere on the Mazur Theater. The display’s hit tune, ‘Spread JUST A LITTLE Pleasure’, was sung within the 1982 film Brimstone And Treacle, by Sting, the ex-leader of the united kingdom band, Law enforcement; it provided him his 1st solo Top 10 access. Peter Skellern’s edition presented within an 80s tv industrial for Lurpak butter. Spread JUST A LITTLE Joy also became the name of the ‘musical special event of Vivian Ellis’, devised by the writer and critic Sheridan Morley, and shown at London’s Ruler’s Mind and Whitehall theatres in 1992. It intended that Ellis, a modern of Ivor Novello and Noël Coward, and something of the very most essential influences within the United kingdom musical theatre through the past due 20s and 30s, still experienced his name up in lamps a lot more than 50 years later on, alongside present incumbents such as for example Andrew Lloyd Webber. Until soon before his loss of life, Ellis was dealing with Dan Crawford, creative director from the Ruler’s Head Theater, on the revival of his 1954 musical, PAY ATTENTION TO The Blowing wind. He had written three new tracks and the creation opened to exceptional notices in Dec 1996.