Mel Henke (August 4, 1915 – March 31, 1979) was an American jazz pianist, Chicago

bandleader A bandleader is the leader of a music group such as a dance band, rock or pop band or jazz quartet. The term is most commonly used with a group that plays popular music as a small combo or a big band, such as one which plays jazz, blues, rhyth ...

, composer, arranger and

jingle A jingle is a short song or tune used in advertising and for other commercial uses. Jingles are a form of sound branding. A jingle contains one or more hooks and meanings that explicitly promote the product or service being advertised, usually ...

writer. Henke studied at the

Chicago College of Music Chicago is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 census, it is the third-most populous city in the United States after New York City and Lo ...

, then played with Chicago groups with Mitch Todd, Frank Snyder, Stephen Leonard and others. Henke recorded many jazz standards with his own arrangements, including a 1946 piano solo on

Bix Beiderbecke Leon Bismark "Bix" Beiderbecke ( ; March 10, 1903 – August 6, 1931) was an American jazz cornetist, pianist and composer. Beiderbecke was one of the most influential jazz soloists of the 1920s, a cornet player noted for an inventive lyrical a ...

's 1928 "

In a Mist "In a Mist" is a 1927 composition for piano by Bix Beiderbecke. Background "In a Mist" was first recorded by Beiderbecke as a piano solo on September 9, 1927, in New York and released as OKeh 40916 backed with "Wringin' an' Twistin'" which was r ...

". His best-known jingles included the

Ajax cleanser Ajax is an American brand of household cleaning products and detergents made by Colgate-Palmolive and Awesome Products Inc. History Colgate-Palmolive introduced Ajax Powdered Cleanser in 1947 as one of the company's first major brands. It ...

"stronger than dirt" jingle, for

Colgate-Palmolive The Colgate-Palmolive Company, commonly known as Colgate-Palmolive, is an American multinational corporation, multinational consumer products company headquartered on Park Avenue in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. The company specializes in ...

, and " See the USA in Your Chevrolet" jingle for

Chevrolet Chevrolet ( ) is an American automobile division of the manufacturer General Motors (GM). In North America, Chevrolet produces and sells a wide range of vehicles, from subcompact automobiles to medium-duty commercial trucks. Due to the promi ...

.''CMJ New Music Monthly'' January 1998, page 12 "... La Dolce Henke by '60s jingle writer Mel Henke ("He's the guy who wrote the famous Ajax, 'stronger-than-dirt' jingle and 'See-the-U.S.A.-in-your-Chevrolet, explains Warren),"

References

1915 births 1979 deaths 20th-century American musicians American jazz bandleaders American jazz pianists Contemporary Records artists Jazz musicians from Illinois Jingle writers Musicians from Chicago RCA Victor artists Tempo Records (US) artists Warner Records artists {{US-jazz-pianist-stub