American songwriter
Sherman Edwards
|
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Birth name
| Sherman Edwards
|
---|
Born
| (
1919-04-03
)
April 3, 1919
New York City
, U.S.
|
---|
Died
| March 30, 1981
(1981-03-30)
(aged 61)
New York City, U.S.
|
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Occupation(s)
| Composer
,
pianist
,
songwriter
|
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Instrument(s)
| Piano
|
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Musical artist
Sherman Edwards
(April 3, 1919 ? March 30, 1981) was an American composer, jazz pianist, and songwriter, best known for his songs from the 1969
Broadway
musical
1776
and the 1972
film adaptation
.
Early life
[
edit
]
Edwards was born in the
East Harlem
neighborhood of
New York City
and was raised in the
Weequahic
section of
Newark, New Jersey
, where he attended
Weequahic High School
.
[1]
He attended
New York University
, where he majored in history.
[2]
Throughout college, Edwards moonlighted, playing
jazz piano
for late night radio and music shows. After serving in
World War II
, Edwards taught high school history for a brief period before continuing his career as a pianist, playing with some of history's most famous
swing bands
and artists, including
Louis Armstrong
,
Tommy Dorsey
and
Benny Goodman
.
[3]
He lived in
Parsippany, New Jersey
, from 1958 to 1981.
[4]
[5]
Early music career
[
edit
]
After a few years as a band leader and arranger for artist
Mindy Carson
, Edwards started writing pop songs at the famous
Brill Building
with writers including
Hal David
,
Burt Bacharach
,
Sid Wayne
, Earl Shuman and others.
[
citation needed
]
He turned out numerous hits in the late 1950s and early 1960s. As
Rock n' Roll
caught on, he found himself still at the Brill Building writing songs for
Elvis Presley
, including the Presley number
Flaming Star
. However, working with Presley's manager
"The Colonel"
proved to be Edwards' impetus to leave pop and rock songwriting; Presley's songwriters were forced to make huge monetary concessions in order to have their songs recorded by the great artist.
[
citation needed
]
According to collaborator Earl Shuman, one day while collaborating with Edwards in the Brill building, where publishers provided music rooms for the songwriters, Edwards left mid-song saying something to the effect that he "wasn't into the rock songs any more" and that he had an idea for a show and was going home to write it.
[
citation needed
]
This began the evolution of
1776
.
[
citation needed
]
Prior to
1776
, Edwards had written the incidental music for the stage comedy
A Mighty Man is He
, which opened on
Broadway
at the
Cort Theatre
on January 6, 1960, and closed January 9 after five performances.
[6]
Edwards also wrote the score for a children’s musical “Who’s Afraid of Mother Goose?” With lyrics by Ruth Batchelor, this one-hour show was broadcast on
ABC-TV
on October 13, 1967. It starred
Maureen O'Hara
and featured
Peter Gennaro
,
Frankie Avalon
,
Nancy Sinatra
,
Margaret Hamilton
,
Dick Shawn
,
Dan Rowan
, and
Dick Martin
.
[7]
Popular songs written by Edwards
[
edit
]
1776
[
edit
]
Edwards' crowning achievement was, arguably, the musical
1776
, for which he wrote the original book, lyrics and music. Peter Stone re-wrote the book. The show depicts the meeting of the
Continental Congress
in
Philadelphia
, culminating with the signing of the
Declaration of Independence
. It opened at the
46th Street Theatre
on March 16, 1969, and ran for 1,217 performances. It won the
Tony Award for Best Musical
.
[9]
Musical numbers
[
edit
]
- Overture
- "Sit Down, John" ? Adams, Congress
- "Piddle, Twiddle and Resolve"/"Till Then" ? Adams
- "Till Then" ? Adams, Abigail
- "The Lees of Old Virginia" ? Lee, Franklin, Adams
- "But, Mr. Adams" ? Adams, Franklin, Jefferson, Sherman, Livingston
- "Yours, Yours, Yours" ? John, Abigail
- "He Plays the Violin" ? Martha Jefferson, Franklin, Adams
- "Cool, Cool, Considerate Men" ? Dickinson, The Conservatives
- "Mama Look Sharp" ? Courier, McNair, Leather Apron
- "The Egg" ? Franklin, Adams, Jefferson
- "Molasses to Rum" ? Rutledge
- "Compliments" ? Abigail
- "Is Anybody There?" ? Adams
- Finale
Film version
[
edit
]
The musical's 1972 film
1776
retained all of Edwards' songs. "Cool, Cool, Considerate Men" was edited out of the film after its initial reserved-seat road showings. The song ? about the right-leaning South facing the left-leaning North ? was also left off of the first VHS release. The number was restored for cable TV viewings and DVD release. It is one of the more stirring numbers in the movie.
Personal life
[
edit
]
Edwards was married to Ingrid (Secretan) Edwards, a dancer who was a member of the original
Ed Sullivan
dancers and danced on Broadway in
Sweethearts
,
Annie Get Your Gun
, and
Kiss Me, Kate
.
Death
[
edit
]
The grave of Sherman Edwards
Edwards died of a heart attack in
Manhattan
at age 61 in 1981 and was interred at
Kensico Cemetery
in
Valhalla, New York
. He was survived by his wife, Ingrid; his son, Keith; his daughter, Valerie, and his mother, Rae Edwards.
[3]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"Creator of Show
1776
Working on New Musical"
,
The News
, September 20, 1969. Accessed November 18, 2021, via
Newspapers.com
. "He was born in Harlem in the vicinity of 116th Street and Madison Avenue and began his education at the Hecksher Foundation for underprivileged children and attended PS III. Eventually he graduated from Weequahic High School in Newark, then worked his way through New York University by playing in the top bands of the day and often appeared in the 9 a.m. history class in a tuxedo."
- ^
[1]
[
dead link
]
- ^
a
b
"Sherman Edwards, 61, Composer And Lyricist for '1776,' Is Dead (Published 1981)"
.
The New York Times
. April 1, 1981 – via NYTimes.com.
- ^
Wallace, Ken.
"He wrote the play courageously and he won with
1776
"
,
The Record
, May 21, 1972. Accessed November 18, 2021, via
Newspapers.com
. "Edwards, who makes his home in Parsippany, with his wife, Ingrid, son, Keith, 15, and daughter, Valerie, 18, sincerely believes that America's forefathers were great men and the Declaration of Independence is 'one of the greatest documents ever conceived by man.'"
- ^
"Sherman Edwards, Composer Of
1776
"
,
Daily Record
, April 1, 1981. Accessed November 18, 2021, via
Newspapers.com
. "Parsippany - Sherman Edwards, who conceived, composed, and wrote the lyrics of the Broadway hit
1776,
died Monday afternoon of a heart attack in a friend's home In New York City. He was 62, and lived on North Beverwyck Road, Boonton Manor."
- ^
"A Mighty Man Is He ? Broadway Play ? Original"
.
IBDb.com
. Retrieved
July 1,
2023
.
- ^
"Musicals on Television: 1966-1969"
.
Musicals101.com
. Retrieved
July 1,
2023
.
- ^
"Artist: Sherman Edwards"
.
Secondhand Songs
.
- ^
"
1776
"
.
IBDb.com
.
External links
[
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]
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International
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Artists
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Other
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