Johnny Brandon (16 July 1925 – 26 July 2017) was an English singer and songwriter, popular during the 1950s, who recorded for a number of labels. His perennial backing group was known as The Phantoms. His early hits included "Tomorrow" and "Don't Worry". He also recorded versions of "
Slow Poke" (re-titled as "Slow Coach") and "
Painting the Clouds with Sunshine
"Painting the Clouds with Sunshine" is a popular song published in 1929. The music was written by Joe Burke and the lyrics by Al Dubin for the 1929 musical film '' Gold Diggers of Broadway'' when it was sung by Nick Lucas. ''Gold Diggers of Br ...
".
Brandon later composed several
Off-Broadway
An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer th ...
musicals, including ''
Cindy'' (1964) and ''
Billy Noname
''Billy Noname'' is an Off-Broadway musical with music and lyrics by Johnny Brandon and a book by William Wellington Mackey. It ran for 48 performances at the Truck and Warehouse Theater, from March 2, 1970, to April 12, 1970. Lucia Victor Lucia ...
'' (1970). In 1979, he was jointly nominated for a
Tony Award
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ce ...
for
Best Original Score for his work on ''
Eubie!
''Eubie!'' Is a revue featuring the music of jazz/swing composer Eubie Blake, with lyrics by Noble Sissle, Andy Razaf, Johnny Brandon, F. E. Miller, and Jim Europe. As with most revues, the show features no book, but instead showcases 23 of ...
''. Brandon is also known for his involvement in the musicals ''Ain't Doin' Nothin' But Singin' My Song'' (1982) and ''Oh, Diahne!'' (1997).
He released his first
solo
Solo or SOLO may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Comics
* ''Solo'' (DC Comics), a DC comics series
* Solo, a 1996 mini-series from Dark Horse Comics
Characters
* Han Solo, a ''Star Wars'' character
* Jacen Solo, a Jedi in the non-canonical ' ...
album
An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...
, ''Then and Now'', in 2005 (albeit as a compilation of his old recordings combined with several that were new). Brandon died in July 2017 at the age of 92.
Chart single discography
*"Tomorrow" (1955) (
Polygon
In geometry, a polygon () is a plane figure that is described by a finite number of straight line segments connected to form a closed '' polygonal chain'' (or ''polygonal circuit''). The bounded plane region, the bounding circuit, or the two t ...
) -
UK number 8
†
*"Don't Worry" (1955) (Polygon) - UK number 18
‡
† Credited as Johnny Brandon with The Phantoms and The Norman Warren Music
‡ Credited as Johnny Brandon with The Phantoms
Selected filmography
* ''
Fun at St. Fanny's
''Fun at St. Fanny's'' is a 1955 British comedy film directed by Maurice Elvey and starring Fred Emney, Cardew Robinson and Vera Day. The film revolves around the teachers and students of St Fanny's private school, particularly the pupil Cardew ...
'' (1956)
See also
*
Polygon Records discography
*
List of gay, lesbian or bisexual people: Bi-Bz
References
External links
*
*
The Villager article
1925 births
2017 deaths
British rock and roll musicians
English male singers
English pop singers
English LGBT musicians
{{Songwriter-stub