Harry Revel
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Harry Revel ( Glaser; 21 December 1905 – 3 November 1958) was a British-born American
composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and def ...
, mostly of
musical theatre Musical theatre is a form of theatre, theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical â€“ humor, pathos, love, anger â€“ are communicated through words, music, ...
, working with various lyricists, notably
Mack Gordon Mack Gordon (born Morris Gittler; June 21, 1904 – February 28, 1959) was an American lyricist for the stage and film. He was nominated for the best original song Oscar nine times in 11 years, including five consecutive years between 1940 and 1 ...
. He is also seen as a pioneer of "
space age pop Space age pop or bachelor pad music is a subgenre of easy listening or lounge music associated with American and Mexican composers, songwriters, and bandleaders in the Space Age of the 1950s and 1960s.''Pulse'' (Monthly music digest of Tower Rec ...
".


Early life and career

Revel was born Harry Glaser in
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
,
England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
. He was the son of
Russian Russian(s) may refer to: *Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *A citizen of Russia *Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages *''The Russians'', a b ...
emigrants of Jewish heritage, Jacob Glaser and his wife, from Schrunden in
Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south. It borders Russia to the east and Belarus to t ...
, who had settled in England. Harry was the second born of four children. His older brother William Revel was a dancer, his younger sister Rene was a singer, and his youngest brother Sam was a concierge in London who later became a travel agent in the United States. They took the last name "Revel" to honor the French soldier of that name who helped them to flee Europe. Harry Revel learned piano as a child, and studied at the
Guildhall School of Music The Guildhall School of Music and Drama is a music and drama school located in the City of London, England. Established in 1880, the school offers undergraduate and postgraduate training in all aspects of classical music and jazz along with dram ...
in London. He left around 1922 to go to Paris, where he joined a so-called Hawaiian Band, and toured Europe. He also had his first song, "Oriental Eyes", published in Italy. He then joined a dance band, the New York Jazz Band, and while touring with the group in
Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...
was commissioned to write the music for an
operetta Operetta is a form of theatre and a genre of light opera. It includes spoken dialogue, songs and including dances. It is lighter than opera in terms of its music, orchestral size, and length of the work. Apart from its shorter length, the oper ...
, ''Was Frauen Traumen''. Its success led to further commissions in Paris, Vienna and London. Biography by Steve Huey, ''Allmusic.com''
Retrieved 15 January 2021


Musical theatre and films

After returning to England, he decided in 1928 to move to
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
and become a professional songwriter. There, he teamed up with lyricist
Mack Gordon Mack Gordon (born Morris Gittler; June 21, 1904 – February 28, 1959) was an American lyricist for the stage and film. He was nominated for the best original song Oscar nine times in 11 years, including five consecutive years between 1940 and 1 ...
to work on Broadway, writing songs for '' Ziegfeld Follies of 1931'', ''Fast and Furious'', '' Everybody's Welcome'' and ''
Smiling Faces ''Smiling Faces'' is an American musical theatre, musical with music by Harry Revel, lyrics by Mack Gordon (and addditionally, for the song "Do Say You Do", by Harold Adamson), and a Musical theatre#Book musicals, musical book by Harry Clarke. Pr ...
''. Among their songs was the popular "Underneath the Harlem Moon" (1932), which was recorded by several
jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...
performers. He and Gordon moved to
Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...
in 1932 and signed as a team for
Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation, commonly known as Paramount Pictures or simply Paramount, is an American film production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the flagship namesake subsidiary of Paramount ...
. There, Revel wrote scores for the films '' Sitting Pretty'', '' Broadway Through a Keyhole'', '' We're Not Dressing'', '' She Loves Me Not'', '' Shoot the Works'', '' College Rhythm'', '' Love in Bloom'', '' Paris in the Spring'', '' Stolen Harmony'', '' Two for Tonight'', and '' Collegiate''. In 1936, they moved to
Twentieth Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc., formerly 20th Century Fox, is an American film studio, film production and Film distributor, distribution company owned by the Walt Disney Studios (division), Walt Disney Studios, the film studios division of the ...
, and continued to have success with films including ''
Stowaway A stowaway or clandestine traveller is a person who secretly boards a vehicle, such as a ship, an aircraft, a train, cargo truck or bus. Sometimes, the purpose is to get from one place to another without paying for transportation. In other c ...
'', '' Poor Little Rich Girl'', '' Ali Baba Goes to Town'', '' Wake Up and Live'', '' You Can't Have Everything'', '' Head Over Heels'', and '' Love Finds Andy Hardy''. Harry Revel, ''Songwriters Hall of Fame''
Retrieved 15 January 2021
In 1934, he appeared in ''Hollywood Rhythm'', a short film purporting to show the songwriting team of Gordon and Revel brainstorming the score for ''College Rhythm''. Revel's partnership with Mack Gordon ended in 1939. Revel remained a British citizen; on two occasions, he and his brother Billy Revel were found guilty of entering the United States with false
passport A passport is an official travel document issued by a government that certifies a person's identity and nationality for international travel. A passport allows its bearer to enter and temporarily reside in a foreign country, access local aid ...
s, and were fined. During
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, Revel organized
variety show Variety show, also known as variety arts or variety entertainment, is entertainment made up of a variety of acts including musical performances, sketch comedy, magic, acrobatics, juggling, and ventriloquism. It is normally introduced by a compà ...
s for the
USO The United Service Organizations Inc. (USO) is an American nonprofit-charitable corporation that provides live entertainment, such as comedians, actors and musicians, social facilities, and other programs to members of the United States Armed F ...
, and continued to write music for films. He was nominated for an
Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...
in 1942 for "There's a Breeze on Lake Louise", from '' The Mayor of 44th Street'', written with Mort Greene; and again for "Remember Me to Carolina", from '' Minstrel Man'', written with
Paul Francis Webster Paul Francis Webster (December 20, 1907 – March 18, 1984) was an American lyricist who won three Academy Awards for Best Original Song, and was nominated sixteen times for the award. Life and career Webster was born in New York City, United S ...
. The latter score was nominated for an Academy Award, a first for low-budget studio
Producers Releasing Corporation Producers Releasing Corporation (generally known as PRC) was the smallest and least prestigious of the 11 Hollywood film companies of the 1940s. It was considered a prime example of what was called " Poverty Row": a low-rent stretch of Gower St ...
. He also wrote the score for the 1945 Broadway musical '' Are You With It?'', with lyrics by Arnold Horwitt.


Space age pop

In the late 1940s, Revel became interested in using the
theremin The theremin (; originally known as the ætherphone, etherphone, thereminophone or termenvox/thereminvox) is an electronic musical instrument controlled without physical contact by the performer (who is known as a thereminist). It is named aft ...
to create electronic
mood music Mood music is easy listening music. Mood music may also refer to: * Beautiful music * Exotica * Light music * Lounge music * Elevator music * Music provided by Mood Media, Corporation * ''Mood Music'' (play), a 2018 play by Joe Penhall See ...
, which he termed "therapeutical music". Liner notes, ''Harry Revel's Music from Out of Space''
Retrieved 15 January 2021
He worked with arranger and conductor Les Baxter and theremin player Samuel Hoffman to create the 1947 album '' Music Out of the Moon'', released by
Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007), and simply known as Capitol, is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-base ...
, and ''Perfume Set to Music'' on
RCA Victor RCA Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Group Corporation. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside Columbia Records (its former longtime rival), Arista Records and Epic ...
the following year. In 1950, he wrote the music for ''Music for Peace of Mind'', again with Hoffman but this time with
Billy May Edward William May Jr. (November 10, 1916 – January 22, 2004) was an American composer, arranger and trumpeter. He composed film and television music for ''The Green Hornet (TV series), The Green Hornet'' (1966), ''The Mod Squad (TV series), T ...
's orchestra; and in 1955 released ''Harry Revel's Music from Out of Space'', with the Stuart Phillips orchestra and chorus, rather than theremin. Revel has subsequently been seen as a pioneer of "
space age pop Space age pop or bachelor pad music is a subgenre of easy listening or lounge music associated with American and Mexican composers, songwriters, and bandleaders in the Space Age of the 1950s and 1960s.''Pulse'' (Monthly music digest of Tower Rec ...
".


Later activities and death

Revel set up his own publishing company, Realm Music Inc., in the 1950s, and continued to compose until his death. He died from a
cerebral hemorrhage Intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH), also known as hemorrhagic stroke, is a sudden bleeding into the tissues of the brain (i.e. the parenchyma), into its ventricles, or into both. An ICH is a type of bleeding within the skull and one kind of stro ...
in
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
in 1958, aged 52. He was posthumously inducted into the
Songwriters Hall of Fame The Songwriters Hall of Fame (SHOF) is an American institution founded in 1969 by songwriter Johnny Mercer, music publisher/songwriter Abe Olman, and publisher/executive Howie Richmond to honor those whose work represent and maintain the heri ...
in 1970.


Musical productions

*''
Blues in the Night "Blues in the Night" is a popular blues song which has become a pop standard and is generally considered to be part of the Great American Songbook. The music was written by Harold Arlen, the lyrics by Johnny Mercer, for a 1941 film begun wi ...
'' usical, RevueFeaturing songs by Harry Revel June 2, 1982 – July 18, 1982 *'' Music Out of the Moon'' Themes by Harry Revel 1947 *'' Are You With It?'' usicalMusic by Harry Revel November 10, 1945 – June 29, 1946 *''
Smiling Faces ''Smiling Faces'' is an American musical theatre, musical with music by Harry Revel, lyrics by Mack Gordon (and addditionally, for the song "Do Say You Do", by Harold Adamson), and a Musical theatre#Book musicals, musical book by Harry Clarke. Pr ...
'' riginal, Musical, ComedyMusic by Harry Revel August 30, 1932 – September 24, 1932 *''Marching By'' usicalMusic by Harry Revel March 3, 1932 – nknown*''Fast and Furious'' usical, RevueMusic mostly by Harry Revel September 15, 1931 – nknown*''Ziegfeld Follies of 1931'' usical, RevueMusic by Harry Revel July 1, 1931 – November 21, 1931


References


External links


Harry Revel
at ''Internet Broadway Database * *
Harry Revel recordings
at the
Discography of American Historical Recordings The Discography of American Historical Recordings (DAHR) is a database catalog of master recordings made by American record companies during the 78rpm era. The 78rpm era was the time period in which any flat disc records were being played at ...
. {{DEFAULTSORT:Revel, Harry Jewish composers 1905 births 1958 deaths English composers Jewish English musicians 20th-century British composers British emigrants to the United States