Ben Homer (born Benjamin Hozer, 27 June 1917,
Meriden, Connecticut – 12 February 1975,
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
) was an American songwriter, composer and
arranger.
Biography
He joined the Meriden Symphony Orchestra when he was eleven years old, and wrote a class song at Jefferson Junior High School in 1932. He became a member of the
American Federation of Musicians when he was fifteen. He later attended the
New England Conservatory of Music
The New England Conservatory of Music (NEC) is a private music school in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the oldest independent music conservatory in the United States and among the most prestigious in the world. The conservatory is located on H ...
on a scholarship, and returned there as a teacher in the 1940s.
He began his professional career by moving to
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
in 1938 and changing his name to Homer. He began composing for bandleader
Les Brown in 1940, writing some material with lyricist
Bud Green
Bud Green (19 November 1897 – 2 January 1981) was an American lyricist especially of Broadway musicals and show tunes
Early life and family
Green was born Moses David Green in the Austro-Hungarian Empire and immigrated to the United Stat ...
.
His most popular works are "
Sentimental Journey" (1944), "Bizet Has His Day" (1945) (a jazz arrangement of
Georges Bizet's "
Farandole
The Farandole is an open-chain community dance popular in Provence, France. The Farandole bears similarities to the gavotte, jig, and tarantella. The carmagnole of the French Revolution is a derivative.
Traditional dance
The farandole is consi ...
" from
L’Arlésienne-Suite), "Shoot the Sherbet to Me Herbert" (1939), and "Joltin' Joe Di Maggio" (1941).
References
1917 births
1975 deaths
American male composers
Songwriters from New York (state)
People from Meriden, Connecticut
20th-century American composers
20th-century American male musicians
American male songwriters
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