Jack K. Pleis (May 11, 1917 – December 5, 1990) was an American jazz pianist, arranger, conductor, composer and producer. He recorded on

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 ...

and

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis after his acquisition of a gramophone manufacturer, The Decca Gramophone Company. It set up an American subsidiary under the Decca name, which bec ...

in the 1950s, and

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American reco ...

in the 1960s. During the course of his career, Pleis worked with many artists, including

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

Harry Belafonte Harry Belafonte ( ; born Harold George Bellanfanti Jr.; March 1, 1927 – April 25, 2023) was an American singer, actor, and civil rights activist who popularized calypso music with international audiences in the 1950s and 1960s. Belafonte ...

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

, Sammy Davis Jr.,

Benny Goodman Benjamin David Goodman (May 30, 1909 – June 13, 1986) was an American clarinetist and bandleader, known as the "King of Swing". His orchestra did well commercially. From 1936 until the mid-1940s, Goodman led one of the most popular swing bi ...

, Earl Grant,

Brenda Lee Brenda Mae Tarpley (born December 11, 1944), known professionally as Brenda Lee, is an American singer. Primarily performing rockabilly, pop, country and Christmas music, she achieved her first ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' hit aged 12 i ...

, and Joe Williams. Between 1950 and 1976, more than 150 songs were arranged by Pleis. His surname is pronounced "Pleece" (to rhyme with "fleece").

Early life and education

Jack Pleis was born in

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

on May 11, 1917. Starting at the age of four, he began his training in classical piano. He first performed in concert when he was seven. By the time he was eleven, he appeared on radio programs for children. Pleis enrolled in college intending to study medicine. To support his studies, he played piano in jazz and popular music bands. Eventually he left school and moved 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 ...

, where he began his musical career.

Career

Early days

In New York, Pleis became successful as a pianist, arranger, conductor, and composer. He was one of

Jan Savitt Jan Savitt (born Jacob Savetnick; September 4, 1907 – October 4, 1948), known as "The Stokowski of Swing", from having played violin in Leopold Stokowski's orchestra, was an American bandleader, musical arranger, and violinist. Early life and ...

's ''Top Hatters'', playing piano and doing arrangements, a position he left in 1942 to enlist in the

Army An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...

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 ...

. In 1947, the Jack Pleis Trio provided instrumental support for Larry Laurence (with The Quintones providing vocal harmonies). By 1948, Pleis was working at the

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 ...

studios on 24th Street, appearing on the cover of the January 1, 1949, issue of ''

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 ...

'' playing piano at the studio's holiday party. His orchestra backed

Teresa Brewer Teresa Brewer (born Theresa Veronica Breuer; May 7, 1931 – October 17, 2007) was an American singer whose style incorporated pop, country, jazz, R&B, musicals, and novelty songs. She was one of the most prolific and popular female singers of th ...

and Bobby Wayne on their 1949 single "Copper Canyon"/"'Way Back Home". Pleis was also part of the Dixieland All-Stars group which backed Brewer's breakout hit (and signature song) " Music! Music! Music!" in late 1949.

London Records

Pleis joined the

American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers The American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP) () is an American not-for-profit performance-rights organization (PRO) that collectively licenses the public performance rights of its members' musical works to venues, broadc ...

(ASCAP) in 1950. He began work as arranger and composer at

London Records London Recordings (or London Records and London Music Stream) is a British record label that marketed records in the United States, Canada, and Latin America for Decca Records from 1947 to 1980 before becoming semi-independent. The London nam ...

under Tutti Camarata. The orchestra backed Ralph Young on his 1950 London single "Please Treat Her Nicer"/" I've Got the World on a String", and Pleis released his own single "Ragging the Scale"/"Story of the Stars", the B-side of which ranked at number 10 on "The Disk Jockeys Pick" in ''Billboard''. In early May 1950, he accompanied his future wife, London recording artist Eve Young, on a promotional tour prior to her opening show. Pleis released several more singles, "Time Alone (Can Heal a Broken Heart)"/"What is There to Say", "I'll Always Be in Love with You"/"

Caravan Caravan or caravans may refer to: Transport and travel *Campervan, a type of vehicle also known as a motor caravan *Caravan (travellers), a group of travellers journeying together **Caravanserai, a place where a caravan could stop *Caravan (trail ...

", and "Le Petite Valse"/"Ragamuffin", and the orchestra backed Snooky Lanson on his 1950 London single "You Wonderful You"/"Honestly I Love You". In June 1950, Pleis married Eve Young, and the March birth of their daughter Michelle was noted in an April 1951 ''Billboard''. The Orchestra backed Eve on her single "Just for Tonight"/"Would I Love You?" In 1952, Pleis and orchestra worked with

The Bell Sisters The Bell Sisters were an American singing duo, popular in the 1950s, consisting of the sisters Cynthia and Kay Strother, who adopted their mother's maiden name of Bell. History Cynthia Sue Strother was born in Harlan County, Kentucky, on October ...

and continued working with Teresa Brewer. Pleis left London Records, and Eve signed a new contract with

Coral Records Coral Records was a subsidiary of Decca Records that was formed in 1949. Coral released music by Patsy Cline, Buddy Holly, the McGuire Sisters and Teresa Brewer. Coral issued jazz and swing music in the 1940s, but after Bob Thiele became head ...

, recording under her new name, Karen Chandler. Her debut for Coral, backed by Pleis' orchestra, was the song "

Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me" is a song written by Harry Noble and originally performed by American singer Karen Chandler in 1952. It has been re-recorded several times since then, the most notable covers being by Mel Carter in 1965 and Glori ...

," and it became an enormous hit. Selling over a million copies, it peaked at No. 5 on the ''Billboard'' charts. In 1953, Pleis and orchestra backed her on her third Coral release, "I'd Love to Fall Asleep (And Wake Up in Your Arms)"/"Goodbye, Charlie, Goodbye".

Decca Records

In mid-1953 Pleis joined

under

Milt Gabler Milton Gabler (May 20, 1911 – July 20, 2001) was an American record producer, responsible for many innovations in the recording industry of the 20th century. These included being the first person to deal in record reissues, the first to sel ...

. Pleis and Orchestra released "The Eighteenth Variation"/"Mr. Peepers" under the Decca label. The orchestra backed Karen Chandler again on " Why?"/"Flash From the Blue". 1954 saw the release of the orchestra's Decca singles, "Frenchman in St. Louis"/"Pagan in Paris", "Ah Ri Rung", and "For Always"/" Beyond the Blue Horizon", and the orchestra backed the Dinning Sisters on "Steel Guitar Rag", Eileen Barton on "And Then", and

on her album ''A Bouquet of Hits''. 1955 saw Pleis scheduled to be profiled in the April issue of ''

The American Magazine ''The American Magazine'' was a periodical publication founded in June 1906, a continuation of failed publications purchased a few years earlier from publishing mogul Miriam Leslie. It succeeded '' Frank Leslie's Popular Monthly'' (1876–1904) ...

''. Pleis and His Orchestra began releasing singles of

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment industry, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios (Burbank), Walt Di ...

film songs (also collected and released on the album ''Music from Disneyland''), and also released " Lies"/" Hey There" and "Pauline"/"

The Trouble With Harry ''The Trouble with Harry'' is a 1955 American Technicolor black comedy film directed by Alfred Hitchcock. The screenplay by John Michael Hayes was based on the 1950 novel by Jack Trevor Story. It starred Edmund Gwenn, John Forsythe, Mildred Na ...

", the title tune for

Alfred Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English film director. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featu ...

's film, ''

The Trouble with Harry ''The Trouble with Harry'' is a 1955 American Technicolor black comedy film directed by Alfred Hitchcock. The screenplay by John Michael Hayes was based on the 1950 novel by Jack Trevor Story. It starred Edmund Gwenn, John Forsythe, Mildred Na ...

''. In 1956, Pleis and His Orchestra again backed Karen Chandler, this time on her first Decca release, and Pleis released another album, ''Strings and Things''. The orchestra backed Bobby Darrin on his single "

Rock Island Line "Rock Island Line" ( Roud 15211) was originally sung as a spiritual by slaves on the plantations of the Mississippi River Valley, and was first transcribed as a folk song in 1929. The first recording was made by John Lomax, who was traveling amo ...

"/"Timber". In October, Pleiss' song "Giant", theme of the film ''

Giant In folklore, giants (from Ancient Greek: ''wiktionary:gigas, gigas'', cognate wiktionary:giga-, giga-) are beings of humanoid appearance, but are at times prodigious in size and strength or bear an otherwise notable appearance. The word ''gia ...

'', debuted on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 at #93, peaking at #91 in December, and the song "I'll Always Be In Love With You" charted at #65, also in December. Pleis also produced

's album, '' Songs I Wish I Had Sung the First Time Around''. 1957 saw the release of singles "(But As They Say) That's Life"/"Goodnight Waltz", "Search for Paradise"/"Serenade to Michelle", and "The Carefree Heart"/"Serenade in Soft Shoe", and the Orchestra backed Georgie Shaw on " One More Sunrise", Sammy Davis Jr. on "The Golden Key", and

Merv Griffin Mervyn Edward Griffin Jr. (July 6, 1925 – August 12, 2007) was an American television show host and media mogul. He began his career as a radio and big band singer, later appearing in film and on Broadway theatre, Broadway. From 1962 to 1986, G ...

on "I'll Be Thinking of You". "(But As They Say) That's Life" charted at #69 in June 1957. In 1958, the Orchestra backed

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 interpretati ...

on her album '' Mad About the Man'', as well as Toni Arden and also backed

The Four Aces The Four Aces are an American male traditional pop quartet popular since the 1950s. Over the last half-century, the group amassed many gold records. Its million-selling songs include " Love is a Many-Splendored Thing", " Three Coins in the Foun ...

on their album ''Swingin Aces''. He produced the Kalin Twins song " When", which spent five weeks at No. 1 on the UK charts. In 1960, Pleis conducted for The Castilians' album, ''Valentino Tangos''. Pleis and Orchestra backed Sammy Davis Jr. on a dozen tracks for Decca, including " What Kind of Fool Am I?" (which won the

Grammy Award for Song of the Year The Grammy Award for Song of the Year is an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. The Song of the Year award is one of the four most prestigious categories at ...

in 1963), " The Lady Is a Tramp", " I Gotta Right to Sing the Blues", "

Do Nothin' Till You Hear From Me "Do Nothing till You Hear from Me" (also written as "Do Nothin' Til You Hear from Me") is a song with music by Duke Ellington and lyrics by Bob Russell. It originated as a 1940 instrumental ("Concerto for Cootie") that was designed to highlight t ...

", " I Got a Woman", " There Is No Greater Love", " Gee, Baby, Ain't I Good to You", " This Little Girl of Mine", " Till Then", and " Mess Around".

Columbia Records

The 1960s brought a move to

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American reco ...

. In 1961, Pleis and Orchestra backed Brazilian singer Maysa Matarazzo on her album '' Maysa Sings Songs Before Dawn'', he conducted for Billy Butterfield's album, ''The Golden Horn'', and arranged several of the tracks on

Lionel Hampton Lionel Leo Hampton (April 20, 1908 – August 31, 2002) was an American jazz vibraphonist, percussionist, and bandleader. He worked with jazz musicians from Teddy Wilson, Benny Goodman, and Buddy Rich, to Charlie Parker, Charles Mingus, an ...

's album, ''Soft Vibes Soaring Strings''. Pleis also produced Les Elgart's album, ''"It's De-Lovely" For Dancing and Listening'', and released an EP, ''Medley from The Musical "Through The Years"'', and an LP, ''Stage Left, Stage Right''. In 1963, he conducted for Peter Nero's album, ''Born Free'', and Pleis and Orchestra backed

Liza Minnelli Liza May Minnelli ( ; born March 12, 1946) is an American actress, singer, and dancer. Known for her commanding stage presence and powerful alto singing voice, Minnelli has received numerous accolades including an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, ...

on her single, "One Summer Love"/"How Much Do I Love You?".

Film and television scores

Pleis and His Orchestra performed the songs "Strange Feelings" and "The Blues I Got Comin' Tomorrow" for the soundtrack of the 1961 film, ''Force of Impulse''. Pleis composed and conducted the music for the 1964 film, '' Diary of a Bachelor''. He also composed music for the television shows ''

Family Affair ''Family Affair'' is an American sitcom starring Brian Keith and Sebastian Cabot that aired on CBS from September 12, 1966, to March 4, 1971. The series explored the trials of well-to-do engineer and bachelor Bill Davis (Keith) as he attempt ...

'' (1966), ''

Gunsmoke ''Gunsmoke'' is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman Macdonnell and writer John Meston. It centered on Dodge City, Kansas, in the 1870s, during the settlement of the American West. The central charact ...

'' (1967), ''

The Wild Wild West ''The Wild Wild West'' is an American Western (genre), Western, spy film, spy, and science fiction on television, science fiction television series that ran on the CBS television network for four seasons from September 17, 1965, to April 11, 19 ...

'' (1967–1969), and ''

Dusty's Trail ''Dusty's Trail'' is an American Western/ comedy series starring Bob Denver and Forrest Tucker that aired in syndication from September 1973 to March 1974. The series is a western-themed reworking of Denver's previous series '' Gilligan's Isl ...

'' (1973–1974).

Later career

Pleis arranged the songs on side one of Johnny Hartman's 1967 album, ''I Love Everybody'', including " If I Had You", " I Cover the Waterfront", and " For Once in My Life". Under the moniker The Sounds of Our Times, Pleis co-produced and penned two songs for the 1967 easy listening, psychedelic instrumental LP ''Music of the Flower Children''. Pleis produced several of

's albums, '' Belafonte by Request'' (1970), '' The Warm Touch'' (1971), and '' Calypso Carnival'' (1971). Pleis also produced several of Jack Jones' albums, ''A Jack Jones Christmas'' (1969), ''A Time for Us'' (1970), and ''Christmas With Jack Jones'' (1973). He produced

Hugo Montenegro Hugo Mario Montenegro (September 2, 1925 – February 6, 1981) was an American orchestra leader and composer of film soundtracks. His best-known work is interpretations of the music from Spaghetti Westerns, especially his cover version of Ennio M ...

's album, ''Colours Of Love'' (1970). In 1976, Pleis put out what would be the last album released under his own name, ''I Play the Songs the Whole World Sings'', on Ranwood Records.

Private life and death

Pleis was married to singer Karen Chandler. He died on December 5, 1990, in

Palm Springs, California Palm Springs (Cahuilla language, Cahuilla: ''Séc-he'') is a desert resort city in Riverside County, California, United States, within the Colorado Desert's Coachella Valley. The city covers approximately , making it the largest city in Rivers ...

, at the age of 73.

Charted hits

* "Giant", ''Billboard'' Hot 100, #93 (10/20/1956), #91 (12/29/1956) * "I'll Always Be In Love With You", ''Billboard'' Hot 100, #65 (12/08/1956) * "(But As They Say) That's Life", ''Billboard'' Hot 100, #69 (6/17/1957)

Selected discography

Albums

''Music from Disneyland''

;

''Broadway Goes Hollywood''

;

''Strings and Things''

;

''Serenades to Remember''

;

''50 Memorable Melodies In Hi-Fi''

;

''Music for Two Sleepy People''

;

''Medley from The Musical "Through The Years"''

;

''Stage Left, Stage Right''

;

''I Play the Songs the Whole World Sings''

;

With Jan Savitt & the Top Hatters

With the Henri René Orchestra

*'' RCA Victor Presents Eartha Kitt'' (RCA, 1953) *'' That Bad Eartha (EP)'' (RCA, 1954) *'' Down To Eartha'' (RCA, 1955) *'' That Bad Eartha (LP)'' (RCA, 1956) *'' Thursday's Child'' (RCA, 1957)

Notes

References

External links

Jack Pleis Orchestra Collection
at

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American 501(c)(3) organization, non-profit organization founded in 1996 by Brewster Kahle that runs a digital library website, archive.org. It provides free access to collections of digitized media including web ...

Jack Pleis - Discography
at 45cat.com * * * *
Jack Pleis 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 ...

. * ;Media * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Pleis, Jack 1917 births 1990 deaths 20th-century American businesspeople 20th-century American composers 20th-century American male musicians 20th-century American pianists American jazz pianists American male composers American male jazz pianists American pop pianists Columbia Records artists Decca Records artists London Records artists Jazz musicians from New York City Jazz musicians from Philadelphia Record producers from New York (state) Record producers from Pennsylvania