Stephen Hartley Dorff (born April 21, 1949) is an American songwriter and composer whose work is mainly in the field of

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, o ...

Career

Dorff has written several songs for other artists, including " Hypnotize the Moon" and "

My Heart Will Never Know "My Heart Will Never Know" is a song written by Steve Dorff and Billy Kirsch, and recorded by American country music artist Clay Walker. It was released in May 1995 as the third and final single from his album ''If I Could Make a Living''. It pe ...

" for

Clay Walker Ernest Clayton Walker Jr. (born August 19, 1969) is an American country music artist. He made his debut in 1993 with the single "What's It to You", which reached Number One on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Singles & Tracks (now Hot Country Son ...

, "

The Man in Love with You "The Man in Love with You" is a song written by Steve Dorff and Gary Harju, and recorded by American country music artist George Strait. It was released in June 1994 as the fourth and final single from his album '' Easy Come Easy Go''. It peaked ...

" and "

I Cross My Heart "I Cross My Heart" is a song written by Steve Dorff and Eric Kaz, and performed by American country music artist George Strait. It was released in September 1992 as the first single to his album ''Pure Country'', which is also the soundtrack to ...

" by

George Strait George Harvey Strait Sr. (born May 18, 1952) is an American country music singer, songwriter, actor, and music producer. Strait is considered one of the most influential and popular recording artists of all time. In the 1980s, he was credited fo ...

, "

Don't Underestimate My Love for You "Don't Underestimate My Love for You" is a song written by Dave Loggins, Steve Dorff and Steve Diamond, and recorded by American country music artist Lee Greenwood. It was released in November 1985 as the second single from the album ''Streamlin ...

" by

Lee Greenwood Melvin Lee Greenwood (born October 27, 1942) is an American country music singer-songwriter. He also plays the saxophone. Active since 1962, he has released more than 20 major-label albums and has charted more than 35 singles on the '' Billbo ...

, "

Every Which Way but Loose ''Every Which Way but Loose'' is a 1978 American action comedy film released by Warner Bros., produced by Robert Daley and directed by James Fargo. It stars Clint Eastwood in an uncharacteristic and offbeat comedy role as Philo Beddoe, a tru ...

" by

Eddie Rabbitt Edward Thomas Rabbitt (November 27, 1941 – May 7, 1998) was an American country music singer and songwriter. His career began as a songwriter in the late 1960s, springboarding to a recording career after composing hits such as " Kentucky Rain ...

and " Through the Years" by

Kenny Rogers Kenneth Ray Rogers (August 21, 1938 – March 20, 2020) was an American singer, songwriter, and actor. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2013. Rogers was particularly popular with country audiences but also charted m ...

. He also composed the themes for '' Spenser: For Hire'', ''

Murphy Brown ''Murphy Brown'' is an American television sitcom created by Diane English that premiered on November 14, 1988, on CBS. The series stars Candice Bergen as the eponymous Murphy Brown, a famous investigative journalist and news anchor for ''FYI'', ...

'', '' The Singing Bee'', ''

Just the Ten of Us ''Just the Ten of Us'' is an American sitcom starring stand-up comedian Bill Kirchenbauer as Coach Graham Lubbock, a teacher and the head of a large Catholic family with eight children living in Eureka, California. The series is a spin-off of ...

'' and others. In addition, Dorff was a co-writer of the song " I Just Fall in Love Again" with composers Larry Herbstritt, Harry Lloyd, and Gloria Sklerov. " I Just Fall in Love Again", originally recorded by

The Carpenters The Carpenters (officially known as Carpenters) were an American vocal and instrumental duo consisting of siblings Karen (1950–1983) and Richard Carpenter (born 1946). They produced a distinct, soft, musical style, combining Karen's contr ...

but not released as a single, became a major pop hit for

Anne Murray Morna Anne Murray (born June 20, 1945) is a retired Canadian singer. Her albums, consisting primarily of pop, country, and adult contemporary music, have sold over 55 million copies worldwide during her over 40-year career. Murray was the firs ...

, peaking at #12 on the Billboard Top 100 in 1979. Steve Dorff also wrote the music score for the song "As Long As We Got Each Other" from the popular family TV sitcom

Growing Pains ''Growing Pains'' is an American television sitcom created by Neal Marlens that aired on ABC from September 24, 1985, to April 25, 1992. The show ran for seven seasons, consisting of 166 episodes. The series followed the misadventures of the ...

, with

John Bettis John Gregory Bettis (born October 24, 1946) is an American lyricist. He was originally part of the band Spectrum, which also featured Richard and Karen Carpenter. He wrote the lyrics for " Top of the World", a hit for both Lynn Anderson and T ...

writing the lyrics. He collaborated with Bettis again on ''Josephine'', a

musical Musical is the adjective of music Music is generally defined as the The arts, art of arranging sound to create some combination of Musical form, form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise Musical expression, expressive content. Exact def ...

about singer

Josephine Baker Josephine Baker (born Freda Josephine McDonald; naturalised French Joséphine Baker; 3 June 1906 – 12 April 1975) was an American-born French dancer, singer and actress. Her career was centered primarily in Europe, mostly in her adopted Fran ...

. Dorff was the music supervisor for '' Pure Country'' (1992) and '' Pure Country 2: The Gift'' (2010). Since 2009, he has been the bandleader on the CMT revival of '' The Singing Bee'', for which he also composed the theme music. Dorff has been nominated for three

Grammy Awards The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

and five

Emmy Awards The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

. He was inducted into the

Songwriters Hall of Fame The Songwriters Hall of Fame (SHOF) is an American institution founded in 1969 by songwriter Johnny Mercer, music publisher/songwriter Abe Olman, and publisher/executive Howie Richmond to honor those whose work, represent, and maintain, the he ...

in 2018.

Personal life and family

Dorff is the father of actor

Stephen Dorff Stephen Hartley Dorff Jr. (born July 29, 1973) is an American actor. He is known for portraying Roland West in the third season of HBO's crime drama anthology series ''True Detective'', PK in '' The Power of One'', Stuart Sutcliffe in '' Bac ...

and songwriter Andrew Dorff, who died at age 40 on December 19, 2016.

Filmography

*1982 '' Waltz Across Texas'' *1982 ''

Honkytonk Man ''Honkytonk Man'' is a 1982 American comedy-drama musical western film set in the Great Depression. Clint Eastwood, who produced and directed, stars with his son, Kyle Eastwood. Clancy Carlile's screenplay is based on his 1980 novel of the same n ...

'' *1985 ''

Rustlers' Rhapsody ''Rustlers' Rhapsody'' is a 1985 American comedy– Western film. It is a parody of many Western conventions, most visibly of the singing cowboy films that were prominent in the 1930s and the 1940s. The film was written and directed by Hugh Wi ...

'' *1987 ''

Back to the Beach ''Back to the Beach'' is a 1987 American comedy film starring Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello, directed by Lyndall Hobbs. The original music score is composed by Steve Dorff. The film generated a total domestic gross of $13,110,903. It r ...

'' *1987 '' My Best Friend Is a Vampire'' *1989 '' Pink Cadillac'' *1992 '' Pure Country'' *1995 ''Breaking Free'' *1996 ''Coyote Summer'' *1996 ''The Undercover Kid'' *1997 '' Lunker Lake'' *1998 '' Dancer, Texas Pop. 81'' *1999 '' Blast from the Past'' *1999 '' Dudley Do-Right'' *2000 ''The Cactus Kid'' *2002 ''Mi Amigo'' *2008 '' Jake's Corner'' *2010 '' Pure Country 2: The Gift'' *2017 '' The Meanest Man in Texas''

References

External links

* 1949 births 20th-century American composers 20th-century American Jews 20th-century American male musicians 20th-century American pianists 21st-century American composers 21st-century American Jews 21st-century American male musicians 21st-century American pianists American country pianists American country songwriters American film score composers American male composers American male film score composers American male pianists American male songwriters Composers from New York City Country musicians from New York (state) Jewish American film score composers Living people Musicians from New York City Songwriters from New York (state) {{US-songwriter-stub