Joseph Perkins Greene (April 19, 1915 – June 16, 1986) was an American songwriter, best known for "

Across the Alley from the Alamo "Across the Alley from the Alamo" is a song written in 1946 by Joe Greene, which has become a jazz standard. Greene's whimsical lyrics (reputed to have been inspired by a dream), concern a Navajo Indian and his pinto pony. The pair have an easyg ...

", " And Her Tears Flowed Like Wine" (1944), and " Don't Let the Sun Catch You Cryin'" (1946).

Life

Greene became a singer and actor. As a young man Greene was associated with songwriter

Hoagy Carmichael Hoagland Howard Carmichael (November 22, 1899 – December 27, 1981) was an American musician, composer, songwriter, actor and lawyer. Carmichael was one of the most successful Tin Pan Alley songwriters of the 1930s, and was among the first ...

. He is said to have discovered

Ernie Andrews Ernest Mitchell Andrews Jr. (December 25, 1927 – February 21, 2022) was an American jazz, blues, and pop singer. Life and career Andrews was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, but grew up in Los Angeles, and is said to have been discovered by ...

in 1945 and produced his first sessions. He wrote Andrews' biggest hit, the song "Soothe Me". Greene's lyrics were stylish and often had strong emotional impact. The idea for "Across the Alley from the Alamo" came to Greene in 1946 in the middle of the night. He had been writing songs for

Nat King Cole Nathaniel Adams Coles (March 17, 1919 – February 15, 1965), known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American singer, jazz pianist, and actor. Cole's music career began after he dropped out of school at the age of 15, and continued f ...

, and visited Cole's manager the next morning, who thought the song had potential.

Mel Tormé Melvin Howard Tormé (September 13, 1925 – June 5, 1999), nicknamed "The Velvet Fog", was an American musician, singer, composer, arranger, drummer, actor, and author. He composed the music for " The Christmas Song" ("Chestnuts Roasting on an ...

made a demo, then the Mills Brothers made a hit recording. This was soon followed by a version by

Woody Herman Woodrow Charles Herman (May 16, 1913 – October 29, 1987) was an American jazz clarinetist, saxophonist, singer, and big band leader. Leading groups called "The Herd", Herman came to prominence in the late 1930s and was active until his dea ...

and his Orchestra, sung by Woody Herman with The Four Chips, and a version by

Stan Kenton Stanley Newcomb Kenton (December 15, 1911 – August 25, 1979) was an American popular music and jazz artist. As a pianist, composer, arranger and band leader, he led an innovative and influential jazz orchestra for almost four decades. Though K ...

and his Orchestra, sung by

June Christy June Christy (born Shirley Luster; November 20, 1925June 21, 1990) was an American singer, known for her work in the cool jazz genre and for her silky smooth vocals. Her success as a singer began with The Stan Kenton Orchestra. She pursued a so ...

. Greene collaborated as composer and lyricist with bandleader and pianist Stan Kenton and arranger

Pete Rugolo Pietro "Pete" Rugolo (December 25, 1915 – October 16, 2011) was an American jazz composer, arranger and record producer. Life and career Rugolo was born in San Piero Patti, Sicily. His family emigrated to the United States in 1920 and settle ...

, making the Kenton band one of the most popular in America in the 1940s and 1950s. He collaborated as a lyricist with Stan Kenton on " And Her Tears Flowed Like Wine" and "I'm Going Mad for a Pad" in 1946. The band's musical style was a precursor to

West Coast jazz West Coast jazz refers to styles of jazz that developed in Los Angeles and San Francisco during the 1950s. West Coast jazz is often seen as a subgenre of cool jazz, which consisted of a calmer style than bebop or hard bop. The music relied re ...

. In 1952 Greene was working with pianist and arranger

Eddie Beal Eddie Beal (June 13, 1910, Redlands, California – December 15, 1984, Los Angeles) was an American jazz pianist. He was the brother of Charlie Beal. Beal started on drums but switched to piano in his teens. Early in the 1930s he worked in the ...

, who had accompanied Herb Jeffries and

Toni Harper Toni Harper (born June 8, 1937 in Los Angeles, California), also known as Toni Dunlap, is an American former child singer who retired from performing at the age of 29. After learning dance under Maceo Anderson, Harper was cast by the choreograp ...

, on new music for the Kenton "aggregation". June Christy and

Chris Connor Mary Jean Loutsenhizer, known professionally as Chris Connor (November 8, 1927 – August 29, 2009) was an American jazz singer. Biography Chris Connor was born Mary Loutsenhizer in Kansas City, Missouri, to Clyde Loutsenhizer and Mabel Shir ...

, vocalists with Kenton's band, performed hit songs by Greene such as "Across the Alley from the Alamo", "And Her Tears Flowed Like Wine" and " Don't Let the Sun Catch You Cryin'". Greene's songs were recorded by artists such as

Ella Fitzgerald Ella Jane Fitzgerald (April 25, 1917June 15, 1996) was an American jazz singer, sometimes referred to as the "First Lady of Song", "Queen of Jazz", and "Lady Ella". She was noted for her purity of tone, impeccable diction, phrasing, timing, in ...

Carmen McRae Carmen Mercedes McRae (April 8, 1920 – November 10, 1994) was an American jazz singer. She is considered one of the most influential jazz vocalists of the 20th century and is remembered for her behind-the-beat phrasing and ironic interpre ...

Julie London Julie London (née Peck; September 26, 1926 – October 18, 2000) was an American singer and actress whose career spanned more than 40 years. A torch singer noted for her sultry, languid contralto vocals, London recorded over thirty album ...

Fats Waller Thomas Wright "Fats" Waller (May 21, 1904 – December 15, 1943) was an American jazz pianist, organist, composer, violinist, singer, and comedic entertainer. His innovations in the Harlem stride style laid much of the basis for modern jazz pi ...

Ray Charles Ray Charles Robinson Sr. (September 23, 1930 – June 10, 2004) was an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. He is regarded as one of the most iconic and influential singers in history, and was often referred to by contemporaries as "The Ge ...

and

Dinah Washington Dinah Washington (born Ruth Lee Jones; August 29, 1924 – December 14, 1963) was an American singer and pianist, who has been cited as "the most popular black female recording artist of the 1950s songs". Primarily a jazz vocalist, she performe ...

The Muppets The Muppets are an American ensemble cast of puppet characters known for an absurdist, burlesque, and self-referential style of variety- sketch comedy. Created by Jim Henson in 1955, they are the focus of a media franchise that encompas ...

recorded one of his songs. His "Read My Lips" was recorded in 1958 by the Russ Garcia orchestra for

Liberty Records Liberty Records was a record label founded in the United States by chairman Simon Waronker in 1955 with Al Bennett as president and Theodore Keep as chief engineer. It was reactivated in 2001 in the United Kingdom and had two previous revival ...

, possibly the origin of the statement "Read my lips—no new taxes" by George H. W. Bush at the 1988 Republican National Convention. In the 1960s and 1970s Greene worked on feature film scripts and music. Greene also wrote the novel ''House of Pleasure'' (1967). Greene wrote the soundtrack for the film ''Psychedelic Sexualis'', also called ''On Her Bed of Roses'' (1966), about a violent sociopath. It has been described as "a bizarre concoction of proto-psychedelic jams ("The Boozer"), beat jazz ("The Bar Fly"), and experimental percussive abstractions ("Theme" and "Walk to Hell"). Joe Greene died of kidney failure on 16 June 1986 in a hospital in

Pasadena, California Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial district. ...

, aged 71. He was survived by his wife, Marthella, three children and four grandchildren.

Selected songs

*" And Her Tears Flowed Like Wine" (1944) Words. Music by

and Charles Lawrence. **The 1944 version by Stan Kenton and His Orchestra, vocals by

Anita O'Day Anita Belle Colton (October 18, 1919 – November 23, 2006), known professionally as Anita O'Day, was an American jazz singer and self proclaimed “song stylist” widely admired for her sense of rhythm and dynamics, and her early big band app ...

, reached number 3 on the ''Billboard'' chart. **The 1945

version reached number 4 on the ''Billboard'' chart. *"Soothe Me" (1945) Words and music. First performed by Ernie Andrews *" Don't Let the Sun Catch You Cryin'" (1946) Words and music. First performed by Ernie Andrews accompanied by the

Wilbert Baranco Wilbert Baranco (15 April 1909 – October 1983) was an American jazz pianist and bandleader. Baranco played with Curtis Mosby in the early 1930s and then put together his own bands in the 1930s and 1940s, including several military bands during ...

Trio *"

" (1947) Words and music. **The Mills Brothers version reached number 2 on the ''Billboard'' chart. *"Just Like Two Drops of Water" (1951) First performed by June Barton *"All About Ronnie" (1953) Words and music. First performed by Stan Kenton and His Orchestra, vocals by

*"Annabelle" (1953) Words; music by

Nelson Riddle Nelson Smock Riddle Jr. (June 1, 1921 – October 6, 1985) was an American arranger, composer, bandleader and orchestrator whose career stretched from the late 1940s to the mid-1980s. He worked with many world-famous vocalists at Capitol Recor ...

*"Come to the Party" (1955) Words and music *"I'm Lost Without You Tonight" (1955) Performed by

*"The Tender Touch" (1956) Words and music by Joe Greene and Nelson Riddle *"Make Me a Present of You" (1958) Performed by Dinah Washington

Film credits

Various films featured songs by Greene, including, * 1944 ''Artistry in Rhythm'' (Short) (lyrics: ''I'm Going Mad for a Pad'')Catalog of Copyright Entries. 1946.
/ref> * 1946 ''Cowboy Blues'' (music: ''I Been Down in Texas'') * 1946 ''

The Big Sleep ''The Big Sleep'' (1939) is a hardboiled crime novel by American-British writer Raymond Chandler, the first to feature the detective Philip Marlowe. It has been adapted for film twice, in 1946 and again in 1978. The story is set in Los Angel ...

'' (lyrics: ''And Her Tears Flowed Like Wine'' - uncredited) * 1946 ''

Two Guys from Milwaukee ''Two Guys from Milwaukee'' (UK title: ''Royal Flush'') is a 1946 American comedy film directed by David Butler and starring Dennis Morgan, Jack Carson, and Joan Leslie. It was distributed by Warner Bros. The film is about a Balkan prince who ...

'' (lyrics: ''And Her Tears Flowed Like Wine'' - uncredited) * 1947 ''Stan Kenton and His Orchestra'' (Short) (writer: ''I Been Down in Texas'' - uncredited) * 1966 ''Psychedelic Sexualis'' (music) * 1975 ''

Black Lolita ''Black Lolita'' is a 3D blaxploitation film directed by Stephen Gibson. It was released in 1975 under that title. Some time later, new footage was added to create another film, which was released under the title of ''Wildcat Women''. It is about ...

'' (lyrics: "''Lolita''") / (music: ''Lolita'') * 1996 ''Bogart: The Untold Story'' (TV Movie documentary) (lyrics: ''And Her Tears Flowed Like Wine'' (1944) - uncredited) * 1999 '' Lansky'' (TV Movie) (writer: ''All About Ronnie'') * 2001 '' An American Rhapsody'' (writer: ''Don't Let the Sun Catch You Cryin (1946)) * 2003 '' A Guy Thing'' (writer: ''Across The Alley From The Alamo'')

Notes

Sources

* * * * * * *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Greene, Joe 1915 births 1986 deaths American male songwriters American male novelists 20th-century American novelists African-American songwriters African-American novelists Musicians from Spokane, Washington Songwriters from Washington (state) Deaths from kidney failure 20th-century American male writers Novelists from Washington (state) 20th-century male musicians 20th-century African-American writers