Matthew Loveland Dennis (February 11, 1914 – June 21, 2002) was an American singer, pianist, band leader, arranger, and writer of music for popular songs.

Biography

Dennis was born in Seattle, Washington, United States. His mother was a violinist and his father a singer, and the family was in

vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment which began in France in the middle of the 19th century. A ''vaudeville'' was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a drama ...

, so he was exposed to music early. In 1933 he joined

Horace Heidt Horace Heidt (May 21, 1901 – December 1, 1986) was an American pianist, big band leader, and radio and television personality. His band, Horace Heidt and his Musical Knights, toured vaudeville and performed on radio and television during the 19 ...

's orchestra as a vocalist and pianist. Later on, he formed his own band, with

Dick Haymes Richard Benjamin Haymes (September 13, 1918 – March 28, 1980) was an Argentine singer, songwriter and actor. He was one of the most popular male vocalists of the 1940s and early 1950s. He was the older brother of Bob Haymes, an actor, televi ...

as vocalist. He became vocal coach, arranger, and accompanist for

Martha Tilton Martha Tilton (November 14, 1915 – December 8, 2006) was an American popular singer during America's swing era and traditional pop period. She is best known for her 1939 recording of " And the Angels Sing" with Benny Goodman. Tilton was born ...

, and worked with a new vocal group, The Stafford Sisters.

Jo Stafford Jo Elizabeth Stafford (November 12, 1917July 16, 2008) was an American traditional pop singer, whose career spanned five decades from the late 1930s to the early 1980s. Admired for the purity of her voice, she originally underwent classical tr ...

, one of the sisters, joined the

Tommy Dorsey Thomas Francis Dorsey Jr. (November 19, 1905 – November 26, 1956) was an American jazz trombone, trombonist, composer, conductor and bandleader of the big band era. He was known as the "Sentimental Gentleman of Swing" because of his smooth-to ...

band in 1940 and persuaded Dorsey to hire Dennis as arranger and composer. Dennis wrote prolifically, with 14 of his songs recorded by the Dorsey band in one year alone, including " Everything Happens to Me", an early hit for

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Honorific nicknames in popular music, Nicknamed the "Chairman of the Board" and "Ol' Blue Eyes", he is regarded as one of the Time 100: The Most I ...

. After four years in the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...

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 ...

, Dennis returned to music writing and arranging, getting a boost from his old friend Dick Haymes, who hired him to be the music director for his radio program. With

lyricist A lyricist is a writer who writes lyrics (the spoken words), as opposed to a composer, who writes the song's music which may include but not limited to the melody, harmony, arrangement and accompaniment. Royalties A lyricist's income derives ...

Tom Adair Thomas Montgomery Adair (June 15, 1913 – May 24, 1988) was an American songwriter, composer, and screenwriter. Biography Adair was born on 15 June 1913, in Newton, Kansas, where his father owned a clothing store; he was the only child of Willia ...

he wrote songs for Haymes' program. Dennis made six albums, which were out of print for many years; however, his 1953 song " Angel Eyes" (with lyricist

Earl Brent Earl Karl Brent (June 21, 1914 in St. Louis, Missouri – July 8, 1977 in Hollywood, California)Earl K. Brent
Di ...

) has become a frequently recorded jazz standard; less frequently recorded, but notably by

Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th century music, 20th-century music. Davis ado ...

and

Sonny Rollins Walter Theodore "Sonny" Rollins (born September 7, 1930) is an American retired jazz tenor saxophonist who is widely recognized as one of the most important and influential jazz musicians. In a seven-decade career, Rollins recorded over sixt ...

is "Will You Still Be Mine". Pianist

Dave Brubeck David Warren Brubeck (; December 6, 1920 – December 5, 2012) was an American jazz pianist and composer. Often regarded as a foremost exponent of cool jazz, Brubeck's work is characterized by unusual time signatures and superimposing contrasti ...

and his quartet recorded an entire album of Dennis's compositions, released as '' Angel Eyes'' in 1965. In 2012,

Jasmine Records Jasmine Records is a London-based record label that specialises in jazz reissues. History The label was founded in 1982 as part of Hasmick Promotions, issuing LPs and cassettes of jazz and popular vocalists. Jasmine diversified into country mu ...

re-released four of Dennis' records as "Welcome Matt". The collection included "Plays and Sings Matt Dennis", a 1958 live performance by Dennis' piano trio, of twelve tunes that Dennis had co-authored. Dennis died in Riverside, California, at the age of 88.

Songs with music by Matt Dennis

* " Angel Eyes" * "Compared to You" * " Everything Happens to Me" * "It Wasn't the Stars" * "Junior and Julie" * " Let's Get Away from It All" * "Little Man with a Candy Cigar" * "Love Turns Winter to Spring" * "Show Me the Way to Get Out of This World" * " The Night We Called It a Day" * "

Violets for Your Furs "Violets for Your Furs" is a 1941 song written by Matt Dennis with words by Tom Adair, and first recorded in that year by Tommy Dorsey's orchestra with vocals by Frank Sinatra. The song describes the wearing of violets with furs on an evening in M ...

" * "Will You Still Be Mine"

References

External links

Biography of Matt Dennis

Matt Dennis and Angel Eyes
* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Dennis, Matt RCA Victor artists 1914 births 2002 deaths 20th-century American singers United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II American male songwriters Musicians from Seattle Songwriters from Washington (state) Singers from Washington (state) 20th-century American composers 20th-century American male musicians 20th-century American songwriters