Louis Jacob Preager (12 January 1906 – 14 November 1978), known as Lou Preager, was an English pianist, dance band leader, disc jockey and businessman. He was active from the 1930s to the 1950s; with his band he made many recordings. They also appeared on radio and television.

Early career

Louis Jacob Preager was born in Poplar, London, in 1906, and came from a Jewish background. He was the son of Louis Preager, a tailor, and his wife Rebecca (née Cohen De Murcia). While at school, the younger Louis he played the piano in dance bands, and from age 19 he was a full-time musician. He played in fashionable London clubs and restaurants; in 1931 he joined "Eugene Pini and his Tango Orchestra" at the Monseigneur, and later joined the Billy Reid Accordion Band. In 1933, Preager led an 11-piece band, playing at Ciro's and later at Romano's in the Strand. His first recordings were released in 1935. Retrieved 26 August 2018.Lou Preager
Masters of Melody. Retrieved 26 August 2018.

Second World War and later

Preager joined the Intelligence Corps in 1941. His right arm was seriously injured in a motor accident, and he received hospital treatment for eight months. He was invalided out of the army in 1942, and he formed a 14-piece orchestra to play at the Hammersmith Palais in London; it was the resident band there for 18 years. It made frequent radio broadcasts, including, from 1942, 96 editions of ''

Music While You Work ''Music While You Work'' was a daytime radio programme of continuous live popular music broadcast in the United Kingdom twice daily on workdays from 23 June 1940 until 29 September 1967 by the BBC. Initially, the morning edition was generally ...

''. The band later appeared on television. A number of vocalists sang with the band, including Paul Rich, Edna Kaye, Rita Williams and Elisabeth Welch. Preager's radio broadcasts, ''Write a Tune for £1000'', a songwriting contest broadcast in 1945, 1947 and 1950, were very popular, and produced the hit song "

Cruising Down the River "Cruising Down the River" is a 1946 popular recording song, which became the winner of a public songwriting competition held in the UK. Words and music were entered by two middle-aged women named Eily Beadell and Nell Tollerton. The words had been ...

". During the 1950s, Preager presented '' Housewives' Choice'' on the BBC Light Programme and, at the time was a well-known disc jockey. In 1959, his orchestra moved to the

Lyceum Ballroom The Lyceum Theatre ( ) is a West End theatre located in the City of Westminster, on Wellington Street, just off the Strand in central London. It has a seating capacity of 2,100. The origins of the theatre date to 1765. Managed by Samuel Arnol ...

, where he was often seen in the TV programme '' Come Dancing''.

Awards, recordings and other interests

During his career he made recordings for Regal Zonophone Records and the Columbia Graphophone Company. He won three Carl Alan Awards for the best Palais Band. Preager had several business interests. He was owner of a book publishing company, founder of a record company, and also had interests in film and television.

Personal life and death

In 1958, Preager married Rose Sharp in Marylebone, where the couple lived. London Metropolitan Archives; London, England; ''Electoral Registers'' From the 1960s, Preager suffered from persistent ill health and retired from music, aged 56, in 1962. He moved to

Slough Slough () is a town and unparished area in the unitary authority of the same name in Berkshire, England, bordering west London. It lies in the Thames Valley, west of central London and north-east of Reading, at the intersection of the M4 ...

and bought the Carlton Ballroom in the town; it was sold after he suffered a heart attack in 1967. He died on 14 November 1978 in

Mallorca Mallorca, or Majorca, is the largest island in the Balearic Islands, which are part of Spain and located in the Mediterranean. The capital of the island, Palma, is also the capital of the autonomous community of the Balearic Islands. The Bal ...

, aged 72.

References

External links

*
Lou Preager – 78RPM – discography
at 45worlds.com
Lou Preager and His Orchestra
at BBC {{DEFAULTSORT:Preager, Lou 1906 births 1978 deaths English bandleaders Dance band bandleaders People from Maida Vale People from Poplar, London Jewish English musicians People from Marylebone