Claude Demetrius (August 3, 1916 – May 1, 1988) was an American songwriter. He was known for his

rockabilly Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the Southern United States, South. As a genre it blends the sound of Western music (North America), Western music ...

songs, some of which were made famous by singers such as

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...

Biography

Demetrius was born in

Bath, Maine Bath is a city in Sagadahoc County, Maine, in the United States. The population was 8,766 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Sagadahoc County, which includes one city and 10 towns. The city is popular with tourists, many drawn by its 1 ...

, United States. By his early twenties he was in New York City writing music for and/or with Louis Armstrong. Demetrius wrote the 1945 musical comedy

short film A short film is any motion picture that is short enough in running time not to be considered a feature film. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes ...

'' Open the Door, Richard''. During the 1940s, he was closely associated with

Louis Jordan Louis Thomas Jordan (July 8, 1908 – February 4, 1975) was an American saxophonist, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and bandleader who was popular from the late 1930s to the early 1950s. Known as " the King of the Jukebox", he earned his high ...

. He wrote songs with Jordan that included material for the 1946

Black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ha ...

musical film '' Beware'' in which Jordan had the starring role. Some of Demetrius' best-known compositions from that era were co-written with Jordan's wife, Fleecie Moore, including the song " Ain't That Just Like a Woman (They'll Do It Every Time)." For two decades, Claude Demetrius made a reasonably good living but in 1956 his income would change dramatically after he began writing for Gladys Music, Inc. Newly formed by Jean and Julian Aberbach, the company owned the exclusive publishing rights to the music of

. Working for Gladys Music, Demetrius co-wrote a song called "I Was The One" that was the B-side to Presley's first RCA single, "

Heartbreak Hotel "Heartbreak Hotel" is a song recorded by American singer Elvis Presley. It was released as a single on January 27, 1956, Presley's first on his new record label RCA Victor. It was written by Mae Boren Axton and Tommy Durden, with credit being g ...

." In 1957 he composed " Mean Woman Blues" for Presley's 1957

motion picture A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmospher ...

soundtrack A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying and synchronised to the images of a motion picture, drama, book, television program, radio program, or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack o ...

, '' Loving You'' that was released on the

record album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records c ...

of the same name as well as on Side 2 of a four-song EP record. The song was also the B-side of the European release of

Jerry Lee Lewis Jerry Lee Lewis (September 29, 1935October 28, 2022) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Nicknamed "The Killer", he was described as " rock & roll's first great wild man". A pioneer of rock and roll and rockabilly music, Lewis mad ...

' hit "

Great Balls of Fire "Great Balls of Fire" is a 1957 popular song recorded by American rock and roll musician Jerry Lee Lewis on Sun Records and featured in the 1957 movie ''Jamboree''. It was written by Otis Blackwell and Jack Hammer. The Jerry Lee Lewis 1957 reco ...

" on London Records. Demetrius topped off a successful year when he co-wrote with Aaron Schroeder the song "Santa, Bring My Baby Back (To Me)" which appeared on the 1957 '' Elvis' Christmas Album''. In 1958, Demetrius scored his biggest success of all with his composition of " Hard Headed Woman." The song became the first

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It originated from African-American music such as jazz, rhythm an ...

single to earn the

RIAA The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/ ...

designation, gold record. Demetrius wrote it alone for Presley's 1958 film ''

King Creole ''King Creole'' is a 1958 American musical drama film directed by Michael Curtiz and based on the 1952 novel ''A Stone for Danny Fisher'' by Harold Robbins. Produced by Hal B. Wallis, the film stars Elvis Presley, Carolyn Jones, Walter Matthau ...

''. Both songs were part of the

but "Hard Headed Woman" was also released as a 45rpm single that went to No. 1 on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' charts. In 1963, " Mean Woman Blues" was recorded again, this time by

Roy Orbison Roy Kelton Orbison (April 23, 1936 – December 6, 1988) was an American singer, songwriter, and musician known for his impassioned singing style, complex song structures, and dark, emotional ballads. His music was described by critics as ...

on a 45rpm single that went to No. 5 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart and was part of Orbison's 1964 album, '' More of Roy Orbison's Greatest Hits''. The timeless rock song was also sung by him on the 1989 HBO television special called '' Roy Orbison and Friends, A Black and White Night''. Claude Demetrius died in 1988 in New York City.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Demetrius, Claude 1916 births 1988 deaths Songwriters from Maine African-American songwriters People from Bath, Maine 20th-century American musicians 20th-century African-American musicians