Spencer Williams
b. Oct. 14, 1889, New Orleans, LA, USA. d. 1965
Here's a photograph of Spencer Williams, who was educated at St. Charles University in New Orleans, LA. Williams was working in Chicago, IL, ca. 1907, as a vocalist and pianist, where he often worked with another pianist composer, -bandleader Clarence Williams (no relation). About the time of WW1, he began writing songs, an example of which is "Squeeze Me" which he co-composed with Fats Waller.

In 1925, he traveled to Paris where he wrote songs for the voluptuous, American expatriate, Josephine Baker, who was then working at the famed 'Follies Bergere'. (Interested Visitors to our site may want to hear Josephine Baker, at the height of her career singing "Le Petite Tonkinoise" ) In 1930, he made several recordings, singing and playing the piano, with with Teddy Bunn, and with Lonnie Johnson. (Okeh Records) In 1932, he and his friend Fats Waller vacationed in France. But while Wallerreturned to the U.S., Williams moved to England, where he remained in residence until 1951, after which he made Sweden his home.

Among his best known songs are:
"I Ain't Got Nobody", "Basin St. Blues", "Mahogany Hall Stomp", "Royal Garden Blues", "I Found a New Baby", "Everybody Loves My Baby", "Shim-Me-Sha-Wable", "I Ain't Gonna Give Nobody None of My Jelly Roll", "Tishomongo Blues".

   Meredith Willson
b. May 18, 1902, Mason City, Iowa, USA.
d. 1984, Santa Monica, California, USA.
né: Robert Meredith Reiniger
Overview
This composer's career began as a flutist in John Philip Sousa's band in 1919. He subsequently held positions with the New York Philharmonic and as musical director for the ABC radio network. He wrote a few songs that were popular hits before his Broadway debut: 1941's "You and I" and 1951's "May the Good Lord Bless and Keep You." His scores for the Broadway musicals 'Music Man' (1957), and 'The Unsinkable Molly Brown'(1960) were very successful; 'Here's Love' (1963) fared less well.

Willson came from a musical family, and learned to play piccolo and flute while still in high school. In 1919, at age 17, he enrolled in New York's Institute of Musical Art, where he studied the flute under Georges Barrere. Between 1921 and 1923, he toured the U.S., Cuba, and Mexico as the flutist with John Phillip Sousa's Band. In 1924, he worked briefly in New York's Rialto theater orchestra, under the leadership of Hugo Riesenfeld. From late 1924 to 1929 he was flutist in the New York Philharmonic Orchestra and the New York Chamber Music Society.

Brief Chronology:
1924 "Parade Fantastique", an orchestral work debuted in New York.
1929 He is Music Director for San Francisco station 'KFRC'.
1932 He is Music Director for NBC Western Division.(San Francisco)

During this time, he often appeared as a guest conductor:
San Francisco Symphony Orchestra
Seattle Symphony Orchestra.
Los Angeles Philharmonic Orch.

1936 He conducted the San Francisco Symphony orchestra in a performance of his first symphony called 'San Francisco'.

1937 Willson settles in Los Angeles, still NBC Western Director.
A reader has sent this photo (which was credited to David Alexander, son-in-law of Alice Sizer.) of Meredith Willson and the William Sisters, rehearsing for a 1937 episode of the Carefree Carnival Show. (L-R: Laura Williams is standing, next to her is Alice Sizer, and Ethelyn Williams is seated.

1940 Albert Coates conducted the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra in a performance of his second symphony, 'The Missions of California'.

In 1940, Willson began writing music for motion pictures.
1940 Scored for the Charlie Chaplin film 'The Great Dictator'.
1941 Scored the Goldwyn film 'The Little Foxes'.
1941 His first 'Hit' song is on the Hit Parade for 19 weeks.
"You and I", music and lyric by Willson.
1942 Willson enlists in the U.S. Army, and becomes leader of the Armed Forces Radio Service.

After his discharge he return to radio, working as commentator, composer, conductor, and similar chores. Some of Willson's songs at this time included:
"Two in Love"
"Iowa"
"I See the Moon", a favorite with our Korean G.I.'s.
1950 "May the Good Lord Bless and Keep You", A million seller.

In 1957, Meredith commences writing for Broadway.
1957 Scored the Broadway show 'The Music Man', starring Robert Preston. Among the 'honors' that this show received were the, New York Drama Critic's Circle Award Antoinette Perry (Toni) Award
"Lida Rose"
"Goodnight, My Someone"
"Seventy Six Trombones"
"'Til There Was You"
1957 Broadway Historical Society named him 'Showman of the Year'.
1958 Received "The State of Texas Award' as outstanding showman.
1960 Scored his second Broadway show 'The Unsinkable Molly Brown'.
The actress Tammy Grimes starred in the Broadway production and Debbie Reynolds in the movie version. The songs included:
"Dulci Far Niente"
"I Ain't Down Yet"
"Are You Sure?"

Willson is the author of several books.
'And There I Stood with My Piccolo'
'Who Did What to Fedalia'
'Eggs I Have Laid'
'But He Doesn't Know the Territory'.

Willson died in 1984, in Santa Monica, CA., at age 82.

   Haydn Wood
b: 1882, Slaithwaite, Yorkshire, England, UK. d: 1959
Haydn was born into a musical family, that moved to the Isle of Man when he was just 2. As a young man, he studied the violin at London's Royal College of Music with Arbs, and composition with Stanford (his "Stanford Rhapsody" Westward Ho was a tribute to this teacher). Later, he also studied at a school in Brussels, Belgium. In 1909, he married soprano Dorothy Court, and began his composing career, during which time he wrote well over 100 ballads, and other more serious works. His tunes and scoring was always inventive. Interestingly, for his "Manx Overture", the "British Empire Fantasia" and some shorter pieces, he included parts for saxophones, while his "Sketch for a Dandy" has an accordion part. In 1937, Havergal Brian, commenting on Woods' orchestral arrangement of four Elgar Songs, said that Woods had "the true Elgarian touch".

His instrumental works include:
  "Prelude" (orig. published for solo piano and for solo organ)
  "Scherzo Fantastique" (orig. published for solo piano and for solo organ)
  "Silver Clouds" (orig. published for solo piano and for solo organ)
  "Slumber Song" (orig. written for violin, later appearing in orchestral form)
  "Elfin Dance" (orig. written for violin, later appearing in orchestral form)
  "Melodie Plaintive" (orig. written for violin, later appearing in orchestral form)

Concert Hall Choral Works, include :
  "Lochinvar" (cantata)
  "Ode to Genius"
Some of his solo songs, like "Roses of Picardy" (sung here be John McCormick in 1919), and "With a Smile and a Song", were also arranged for chorus.

As mentioned earlier, Haydn grew up on the Isle of Man, and this fact was the inspiration for many of his Orchestral works, among which are:
  The Manx Rhapsody (Mylecharane)
  Manx Country Dance
  Manx Countryside Sketches Suite
  Manx Overture (with saxophone parts)
  "Mannin Veen (a 1938 Manx Tone Poem)

Concertos:
  "Concerto in B Minor" (1933 violin with piano accomp. Antonio Brosa and the BBSO)
  "Concerto in D Minor" (1933 piano. 1947 version for two pianos.)
  "Philharmonic Variations for Cello and Orchestra"

Rhapsodies:
  The Seafarer" (1942 based on popular shanties)
  "King Orry"
  "American Rhapsody" (1948),
  "British Rhapsody"
  "Southern Rhapsody"
  "Virginia" (1927)

Overtures:
  Apollo" (1935)
  Manx Overture" (1936)
  Eros"
  Love and Life" (1938)
  A May Day"
  Minerva Overture" (1941)

Marches:
  "March of the Patriots"
  "Torch of Freedom"
  "Homage March"
  "Festival March (1949. written for the BBC's first Light Music Festival)
  "Elizabeth of England (1952)

Suites:
  "Cities of Romance" (1927: Budapest, Venice, Seville)
  "Suite for Light Orchestra" (1929)
  "Moods" (1932 in six movements )
  "Sketch for a Dandy" (included a part for accordion)
  "Scherzo in the Olden Style" (1932)
  "Mannin Veen" (1933)
  "A Day in Fairyland" (1933)
  "Market Day" (1934)
  "In an Old Cathedral Town" (1934)
  "Paris" (1935) ("Montmartre March" became popular stand-alone part.)
  "Frescoes" (1936)
  "Cities of Romance" (1937)
  "King Orry" (1938)
  "East of Suez" (1939)
  "Egypt"
  "Variations for Cello" (1939)
  "Phantasy for Strings" (1945).
  "Firelight Fancies" (1949)
  "Three Famous Cinema Stars" ("Valse Apache" -Ivor Novello; "Romance" -Dolores Del Rio; "Humoreske" -Charles Chaplin)
  "Three Famous Pictures" (Luke Fildes The Village Wedding, The Doctor, Laughing Cavalier)

Among his Ballads are:
  "A Brown Bird Singing"
  "Bird of Love Divine"
  "Love's Garden of Roses"
  "Dear Hands That Gave Me Violets"
  "O Flower Divine"
  "The Island of Love"
  "Roses of Picardy" (In 1916, -his best known composition.)
  "Elizabeth of England"
  "Casey the Fiddler"
  "When Dawn Breaks Through"
  "A Bird Sang in the Rain"
  "A Leaf and Lullaby"
  "Daffodil Gold"
  "I Want Your Heart"
  "Homeward at Eventide"
  "Beware", (in both duet and solo form)
  "God Made Me Kind", (in solo and orchestral versions)
  "When The Home Bells Ring Again", (in solo and orchestral versions)
  "The Little Ships" (1940 for successful Dunkirk evacuation)
  "Give Me Your Hand" (1957. Maybe the last published ballad)

His song output included a few "cycles":
  "Three Sea Songs"
  "Songs of June", (also three in number),
  "Twelve Little Songs of the Year"
  "Play Time: A Cycle of (7) Nursery Rhymes"

For the musical stage , he worked on:
1915, Haydn and Paul Rubens collaborated on a musical comedy entitled Tina.
1917, he worked on another musical, Cash on Delivery, soon followed by Clovertown and Dear Love, on which he worked jointly with Waller and Tunbridge,

And yet, even with all this excellent work, Woods is still mainly remembered for his song "Roses of Picardy", a huge World War 1 hit, and still popular today. (The lyric was by Frederic Weatherly.

To hear one of the original 1916 versions of the song.
  'Click' here to Download a picardy.mp3, file, or
  'Click' here for an online 'streaming' Real Audio, version to hear while online.
  (Both are the same tune, just different formats.) And, be sure to sing along with the lyric.

She is watching by the poplars, Colinette with the sea blue eyes, She is watching and longing and waiting Where the long white roadway lies. And a song that stirs in the silence, As the wind in the boughs above. She listens and starts and trembles. 'Tis the first little song of love... Roses are shining in Picardy, In the hush of the silvery dew. Roses are flowering in Picardy, But there's never a rose like you! And the roses will die with the summertime, And our paths may be far apart, But there's one rose that dies not in Picardy! 'Tis the rose that I keep in my heart!" And the years fly on forever, 'Til shadows veil their skies, But he loves to hold her little hands And look in her sea blue eyes. And she sees the road by the poplars, Where they met in the bygone years, For the first little song of the roses Is the last little song she hears: Roses are shining in Picardy, In the hush of the silvery dew. Roses are flowering in Picardy, But there's never a rose like you! And the roses will die with the summertime, And our hearts may be far apart, But there's one rose that dies not in Picardy! 'Tis the rose that I keep in my heart!