Ervin Drake

Ervin Drake
Songwriter Ervin Drake. Photo by Robert Armin.
Background information
Born	April 3, 1919 (1919-04-03) (age 90)
Origin	New York City, United States
Occupations	Songwriter
Years active	1940's – Present

Ervin Drake (April 3, 1919) is an American songwriter. Born in New York City, he was active in the United States with his first song published at age 12 in 1931. He continues to write presently at the age of 90. He has written in a variety of styles and his work has been recorded by musicians from all over the world in a multitude of styles. Besides composing music and lyrics for dozens of pieces he was also a television producer and worked with great like Jackie Gleason and Milton Berle. Among his best known songs are "I Believe", introduced by Jane Froman which became a number one hit for Frankie Laine in 1953 (and holds the record for number of non-consecutive weeks spent at number one. It has also been recorded by over a dozen other artists including Barbra Streisand. He penned "It Was a Very Good Year", in under an hour at the request of The Weavers. They, of course recorded this number. When Frank Sinatra heard their recording on the radio as he was traveling through the desert to Las Vegas, he pulled over at the nearest phone booth and called his producer and said, " I want to record this song now." He did record it with an arrangement by Nelson Riddle and it became one of the best selling records in his portfolio. Frank included this piece in his act almost every night. One night, he was performing with Dean Martin and they were surreptitiously recorded joking around; what was caught on tape will live on forever: "When I was seventeen you were a pain in my ass." The Sinatra recording is played regularly today and at one point hit the top ten on the charts for 1966. This piece has been recorded in over ten languages and more than 25 artists on many major labels. One of his most famous lyrics, introduced by Billie Holiday, was recorded in one take while he was present with Irene Higgenbothom the composer as they sent there mesmerized within inches of the great artist. That piece lives on today as a jazz standard: Good Morning Heartache. It has been recorded by somewhere between 65-75 artists. Ervin Drake has received several honorary doctorates, achievement awards , as well as being inducted into the songwriter's hall of fame. He was president of AGAC for many years, testified before Congress, and is responsible for several laws that have since been enacted that protect songwriters and composers rights. He is alive and kicking and is working on several projects at the moment. A biography is presently in the works. Other works: Tico-Tico, Perdido, Now I Have Everything, A Room without Windows, Bachelor Girl, I Believe, Good Morning Heartache, It Was A Very Good Year, I Wuv A Rabbit,AL DI LA, Quando Quando, Who Are These Strangers, I am A Card Carrying Bleeding Heart Liberal, etc etc

Work on Broadway

• Heads or Tails (1947) - play - co-playwright
• What Makes Sammy Run? (1964) - musical - composer and lyricist
• Her First Roman (1968) - composer, lyricist, and bookwriter
• Sophisticated Ladies (1981) - revue - featured songwriter for "Perdido"

External links

• Interview with Ervin Drake
• [1]
• Friedwald, Will (April 2, 2009). "When He Was 46 it Was a Very Good Year". Wall Street Journal. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123862611987180187.html. Retrieved 2009-04-13.