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 Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

and immigrated to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

as an infant. Bud Green (Buddy) grew up in Harlem at 108th & Madison Avenue at the turn of the 20th century, the eldest of seven. He dropped out of elementary school to sell newspapers and help the family. While selling papers, he decided to become a songwriter and started keeping a notebook of poems and rhymes that he thought would be useful someday. His sister, Hannah, was married to the lyricist Bob Russell (1914–1970), who wrote "

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

", " Frenesi", "

Don't Get Around Much Anymore "Don't Get Around Much Anymore" is a jazz standard written by composer Duke Ellington. The song was originally entitled "Never No Lament" and was first recorded by Duke Ellington and his orchestra on May 4, 1940. "Don't Get Around Much Anymore" ...

", " He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother" and many other songs.

Career

In his early career, he wrote material for

vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic composition ...

s. He was a staff writer for music publishers and wrote Broadway stage scores as well as songs for other musicals. By 1928, he had written " Alabamy Bound" and " That's My Weakness Now", which became a huge hit for Ukulele Ike and Helen Kane. Kane's version including the suggestive scat phrase "boop boop ba doo." This line and Kane's stage persona made the song synonymous with the flapper era. Kane and the song became the inspiration for the Betty Boop cartoons that debuted in 1930. The song was self-published by Green and

Sam H. Stept Samuel Howard Stept (aka Sammy Stept; 18 September 1897 – 1 December 1964) was an American songwriter who wrote for Broadway, Hollywood and the big bands. He became known simply as Sam Stept or Sam H. Stept – he rarely used his full middle n ...

. They were in the Brass Rail Building at 745, 7th Avenue. They then went to Hollywood to work for the movie industry. He and Stept eventually sold their company to Warner Bros. and returned to New York. He collaborated with many artists and fellow songwriters, including Les Brown, Buddy DeSylva,

Al Dubin Alexander Dubin (June 10, 1891 – February 11, 1945) was an American lyricist. He is best known for his collaborations with the composer Harry Warren. Life Al Dubin came from a Russian Jewish family that emigrated to the United States from Swit ...

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 ...

, Slim Gaillard, Ray Henderson, Ben Homer, Raymond Scott,

, and

Harry Warren Harry Warren (born Salvatore Antonio Guaragna; December 24, 1893 – September 22, 1981) was an American composer and the first major American songwriter to write primarily for film. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song ...

Personal life

At 21, Bud Green married a girl from the Ziegfeld Follies, Nan Hinken, they were together until her death in the early 1960s. After selling his company, Green moved his family to

Yonkers, New York Yonkers () is a city in Westchester County, New York, United States. Developed along the Hudson River, it is the third most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City and Buffalo. The population of Yonkers was 211,569 as en ...

, where he lived the rest of his life commuting to NYC every day. They had two sons, both now deceased.

Death and legacy

Green died in Yonkers, New York, in January 1981.

Songs

Bud Green wrote or co-wrote a number of songs, including: *" Alabamy Bound" (

Dean Martin Dean Martin (born Dino Paul Crocetti; June 7, 1917 – December 25, 1995) was an American singer, actor and comedian. One of the most popular and enduring American entertainers of the mid-20th century, Martin was nicknamed "The King of Cool". M ...

on ''

Swingin' Down Yonder ''Swingin' Down Yonder'' is the first full-length, 12-inch album recorded by Dean Martin for Capitol Records during three sessions in September and October 1954 and February 1955. According to the original sleeve notes, all the songs have a "comm ...

'', 1955;

Bing Crosby Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby Jr. (May 3, 1903 – October 14, 1977) was an American singer, musician and actor. The first multimedia star, he was one of the most popular and influential musical artists of the 20th century worldwide. He was a ...

on '' New Tricks'', 1957;

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 ...

on '' The Genius Hits the Road'', 1960; Van Morrison on '' The Skiffle Sessions - Live in Belfast 1998'', 2000) *" That's My Weakness Now" ( Helen Kane, 1928) *"I Love My Baby" (

Ottilie Patterson Anna Ottilie Patterson (31 January 1932 – 20 June 2011) was a Northern Irish blues singer best known for her performances and recordings with the Chris Barber Jazz Band in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Biography Anna Ottilie Patterson was ...

, 1957) *"Oh Boy, What a Girl" *"In My Gondola" *"Away Down South in Heaven" *" I'll Always Be In Love With You" (

on ''

Rhythm Is My Business ''Rhythm Is My Business'' is a 1962 studio album by the American jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald. The album was recorded with a big band and arranged and conducted by the American R&B organist Bill Doggett. ''DownBeat'' magazine gave this album 3� ...

'', 1962;) *"Do Something" *"Congratulations" *"Good Little, Bad Little You" *"My Mother's Evening Prayer" *"Simple and Sweet" *"Dream Sweetheart" *"Moonlight on the River" *"Swingy Little Thingy" *"Blue Fedora" *"More Than Ever" *"You Showed Me the Way" (Ella Fitzgerald;

Billie Holiday Billie Holiday (born Eleanora Fagan; April 7, 1915 – July 17, 1959) was an American jazz and swing music singer. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and music partner, Lester Young, Holiday had an innovative influence on jazz music and pop s ...

; Tony Bennett on '' Here's to the Ladies'', 1995) *"Tia Juana" *" Once in a While" *"The Man Who Comes Around" *" Flat Foot Floogie (with a Floy Floy)" ( Mills Brothers and

Louis Armstrong Louis Daniel Armstrong (August 4, 1901 – July 6, 1971), nicknamed "Satchmo", "Satch", and "Pops", was an American trumpeter and Singing, vocalist. He was among the most influential figures in jazz. His career spanned five decades and se ...

; Slam Stewart, 1938) *" Sentimental Journey" (

Doris Day Doris Day (born Doris Mary Kappelhoff; April 3, 1922 – May 13, 2019) was an American actress, singer, and activist. She began her career as a big band singer in 1939, achieving commercial success in 1945 with two No. 1 recordings, " Sent ...

and Les Brown's band, 1944) *"Speed Limit" *"Who Can Tell" *"All the Days of Our Years" *"My Number One Dream Came True" (Doris Day, 1946) *"On Account I Love You"

Awards

He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1975.

References

External links

* * Photo o
Bud Green

Bud Green recordings
at the

Discography of American Historical Recordings The Discography of American Historical Recordings (DAHR) is a database of master recordings made by American record companies during the 78rpm era. The DAHR provides some of these original recordings, free of charge, via audio streaming, along with ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Green, Bud 1890s births 1981 deaths Jewish American songwriters 20th-century American musicians 20th-century American Jews Austro-Hungarian emigrants to the United States