Edward William May Jr. (November 10, 1916 – January 22, 2004) was an American composer, arranger and trumpeter. He composed film and television music for ''

The Green Hornet The Green Hornet is a superhero created in 1936 by George W. Trendle and Fran Striker, with input from radio director James Jewell. Since his 1930s radio debut, the character has appeared in numerous serialized dramas in a wide variety of med ...

'' (1966), ''

The Mod Squad ''The Mod Squad'' is an American crime drama series, originally broadcast for five seasons on ABC from September 24, 1968, to March 1, 1973. It starred Michael Cole as Peter "Pete" Cochran, Peggy Lipton as Julie Barnes, Clarence Williams III ...

'' (1968), ''

Batman Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on March 30, 1939. I ...

'' (with ''

Batgirl Batgirl is the name of several superheroines appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, depicted as female counterparts and allies to the superhero Batman. Although the character Betty Kane was introduced into publication in ...

'' theme, 1967), and '' Naked City'' (1960). He collaborated on films such as '' Pennies from Heaven'' (1981), and orchestrated '' Cocoon'', and '' Cocoon: The Return'', among others. May wrote arrangements for many top singers, including

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Nicknamed the " Chairman of the Board" and later called "Ol' Blue Eyes", Sinatra was one of the most popular entertainers of the 1940s, 1950s, and ...

Yma Sumac Zoila Augusta Emperatriz Chávarri del Castillo (September 13, 1922 (birth certificate) or September 10, 1922 (later documents) – November 1, 2008), known professionally as Yma Sumac (), was a Peruvian-American coloratura soprano. She was one ...

Nat King Cole Nathaniel Adams Coles (March 17, 1919 – February 15, 1965), known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American singer, jazz pianist, and actor. Cole's music career began after he dropped out of school at the age of 15, and continued f ...

Anita O'Day Anita Belle Colton (October 18, 1919 – November 23, 2006), known professionally as Anita O'Day, was an American jazz singer and self proclaimed “song stylist” widely admired for her sense of rhythm and dynamics, and her early big band app ...

Peggy Lee Norma Deloris Egstrom (May 26, 1920 – January 21, 2002), known professionally as Peggy Lee, was an American jazz and popular music singer, songwriter, composer, and actress, over a career spanning seven decades. From her beginning as a vocalis ...

Vic Damone Vic Damone (born Vito Rocco Farinola; June 12, 1928 – February 11, 2018) was an American traditional pop and big band singer and actor. He was best known for his performances of songs such as the number one hit "You're Breaking My Heart", and ...

Bobby Darin Bobby Darin (born Walden Robert Cassotto; May 14, 1936 – December 20, 1973) was an American musician and actor. He performed jazz, pop, rock and roll, folk, swing, and country music. He started his career as a songwriter for Connie ...

Johnny Mercer John Herndon Mercer (November 18, 1909 – June 25, 1976) was an American lyricist, songwriter, and singer, as well as a record label executive who co-founded Capitol Records with music industry businessmen Buddy DeSylva and Glenn E. Wallic ...

Ella Fitzgerald Ella Jane Fitzgerald (April 25, 1917June 15, 1996) was an American jazz singer, sometimes referred to as the "First Lady of Song", "Queen of Jazz", and "Lady Ella". She was noted for her purity of tone, impeccable diction, phrasing, timing, in ...

Louis Prima Louis Leo Prima (December 7, 1910 – August 24, 1978) was an American singer, songwriter, bandleader, and trumpeter. While rooted in New Orleans jazz, swing music, and jump blues, Prima touched on various genres throughout his career: he forme ...

Keely Smith Dorothy Jacqueline Keely (March 9, 1928The reference work ''The Encyclopedia of Native Music: More Than a Century of Recordings from Wax Cylinder to the Internet'' gives Smith's date of birth as March 9, 1932. – December 16, 2017), profession ...

Jack Jones Jack Jones may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music *Jack Jones (American singer) (born 1938), American jazz and pop singer *Jack Jones, stage name of Australian singer Irwin Thomas (born 1971) *Jack Jones (Welsh musician) (born 1992), Welsh mu ...

Bing Crosby Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby Jr. (May 3, 1903 – October 14, 1977) was an American singer, musician and actor. The first multimedia star, he was one of the most popular and influential musical artists of the 20th century worldwide. He was a ...

Sandler and Young Sandler and Young were an American musical duo from the 1960s through the 1980s, composed of Belgian singer Tony Sandler and native New Yorker Ralph Young. First success Sandler and Young appeared with Polly Bergen in her show at the Las Vegas ...

, Nancy Wilson,

Rosemary Clooney Rosemary Clooney (May 23, 1928 – June 29, 2002) was an American singer and actress. She came to prominence in the early 1950s with the song " Come On-a My House", which was followed by other pop numbers such as " Botch-a-Me", " Mambo Italiano" ...

The Andrews Sisters The Andrews Sisters were an American close harmony singing group of the swing and boogie-woogie eras. The group consisted of three sisters: contralto LaVerne Sophia Andrews (July 6, 1911 – May 8, 1967), soprano Maxene Anglyn Andrews (January ...

and Ella Mae Morse. He also collaborated with satirist

Stan Freberg Stan Freberg (born Stanley Friberg; August 7, 1926 – April 7, 2015) was an American actor, author, comedian, musician, radio personality, puppeteer and advertising creative director. His best-known works include "St. George and the Dragonet" ...

on several classic 1950s and 1960s comedy music albums. As a trumpet player in the 1940s

Big Band era A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s and ...

, May recorded such songs as "Measure for Measure", "Long Tall Mama", and "

Boom Shot Boom Shot is a 1942 song composed by Glenn Miller and Billy May for the 20th Century Fox movie '' Orchestra Wives'' starring George Montgomery and Ann Rutherford. Billy May is credited as his first wife, Arletta May, because he had signed an exc ...

", with Glenn Miller and His Orchestra, and "The Wrong Idea", "Lumby", and "Wings Over Manhattan" with

Charlie Barnet Charles Daly Barnet (October 26, 1913 – September 4, 1991) was an American jazz saxophonist, composer, and bandleader. His major recordings were "Skyliner", " Cherokee", "The Wrong Idea", "Scotch and Soda", "In a Mizz", and "Southland Shuffl ...

and His Orchestra. With his own band, he had a hit single, " Charmaine". In the 1950s he released several successful albums of his unique orchestral arrangements and compositions, including ''Sorta-May'' and ''Sorta-Dixie.''

Early life and music

May was born in

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

. He started out playing the tuba in the high school band. "I sat in the rear of the stand," he said. "I didn't realize it at the time, but I was intrigued with becoming an arranger and an orchestrator." At the age of 17, he began playing with Gene Olsen's Polish-American Orchestra.

Swing Era, Big Bands

After playing with a few local bands, May heard

's band on the radio in his hometown of Pittsburgh. In the summer of 1938, he approached Barnet and asked if he could write arrangements for him. From 1938 to 1940, when swing music was taking off, he arranged and played trumpet for Barnet's big band. His arrangement of the Ray Noble composition "

Cherokee The Cherokee (; chr, ᎠᏂᏴᏫᏯᎢ, translit=Aniyvwiyaʔi or Anigiduwagi, or chr, ᏣᎳᎩ, links=no, translit=Tsalagi) are one of the indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, th ...

" became a major hit of the

swing music Swing music is a style of jazz that developed in the United States during the late 1920s and early 1930s. It became nationally popular from the mid-1930s. The name derived from its emphasis on the off-beat, or nominally weaker beat. Swing bands ...

era. During the Barnet days, May revealed a significant flair for satire on his composition "The Wrong Idea", composed with Barnet, ridiculing the bland "Mickey Mouse" style of "safe" big-band music, with specific aim at bandleader

Sammy Kaye Sammy Kaye (born Samuel Zarnocay Jr.; March 13, 1910 – June 2, 1987) was an American bandleader and songwriter, whose tag line, "Swing and Sway with Sammy Kaye", became one of the most famous of the Big Band Era. The expression springs fr ...

, known for his "swing and sway" trademark (which May's tongue-in-cheek lyrics referenced as "swing and sweat with Charlie Barnet"). Bandleader

Glenn Miller Alton Glen Miller (March 1, 1904 – December 15, 1944) was an American big band founder, owner, conductor, composer, arranger, trombone player and recording artist before and during World War II, when he was an officer in the US Army Air Forc ...

hired May away from Barnet in 1940. "May points out that he was not responsible for any of the lenn Millerband's signature hits, but he did write the beautiful left-field introduction to

ill ILL may refer to: * ''I Love Lucy'', a landmark American television sitcom * Illorsuit Heliport (location identifier: ILL), a heliport in Illorsuit, Greenland * Institut Laue–Langevin, an internationally financed scientific facility * Interlibrar ...

Finegan's rrangement of'Serenade In Blue'". Miller and May had a wary relationship. According to Will Friedwald, by 1942 May was ready to resign from the Miller band. Miller refused to record half of May's arrangements, and May objected to Miller's regimented style. But since Miller was joining the military, he convinced May to stay on until the band broke up. May finally said around 1995, after a life of heavy drinking and rehabilitation for alcoholism, that working with Miller "helped me immensely. I learned a lot from Glenn. He was a good musician and an excellent arranger."

Later career

When the Big Bands ended in the late 1940s, May relocated to Los Angeles, where he became a much-coveted arranger and studio orchestra leader, working for top recording stars of the day including Frank Sinatra, Rosemary Clooney, Anita O'Day and Bing Crosby.

With Capitol Records

At Capitol, May wrote arrangements for many top artists. These included

on the albums '' Come Fly with Me'' (1958), '' Come Dance with Me!'' (1959) and ''

Come Swing with Me! ''Come Swing with Me!'' is an album by American singer Frank Sinatra, released in 1961. The album is Sinatra's final swing session with Capitol Records, as his next album, ''Point of No Return'', would be composed mainly of torch songs. In 197 ...

'' (1961);

on the albums '' Just One of Those Things'' and ''

Let's Face the Music! ''Let's Face the Music!'' is a 1964 studio album by Nat King Cole, arranged by Billy May. It was recorded in November 1961, and released three years later. The initial ''Billboard'' review from February 29, 1964 commented that "The fine blend of ...

'', as well as numerous singles (all his work with Cole being packaged later on the 2-CD set ''The Billy May Sessions'');

on the albums '' Pretty Eyes'' and '' Christmas Carousel''; Sue Raney on her second album ''Songs for a Raney Day'';

on the albums ''

The Lively Ones The Lively Ones were an instrumental surf rock band from USA, active in Southern California in the 1960s. They played live mostly in California and Arizona. They recorded for Del-Fi records with production from Bob Keane. They recorded mostly cov ...

'' and ''Strange Enchantment'';

Jeri Southern Jeri Southern (born Genevieve Lillian Hering, August 5, 1926 – August 4, 1991) was an American jazz singer and pianist. Early years Born Genevieve Lillian Hering in Royal, Nebraska, United States, Southern was the granddaughter of a German pig ...

on the album ''Jeri Southern Meets Cole Porter'';

on the album ''Politely'' and on a duet single, "Nothing In Common"/"How Are Ya Fixed For Love?", with Sinatra;

on the album '' Oh! Look at Me Now''; Nancy Wilson on the albums ''Like In Love'', '' Something Wonderful'', ''Tender Loving Care'', ''Nancy - Naturally!'' and various tracks from the albums ''Just For Now'' and '' Lush Life''; Matt Monro on several tracks from the albums ''Invitation to the Movies'', ''Invitation to Broadway'', and ''These Years'';

and

on the albums ''

That Travelin' Two-Beat ''That Travelin' Two-Beat'' is a duet album by Bing Crosby and Rosemary Clooney recorded in 1964 and released on Capitol Records in 1965. With its world tour theme, it was a revisitation of the concept explored in the duo's acclaimed RCA Victor ...

'' and ''Fancy Meeting You Here''; and Sir

George Shearing Sir George Albert Shearing, (13 August 1919 14 February 2011) was a British jazz pianist who for many years led a popular jazz group that recorded for Discovery Records, MGM Records and Capitol Records. Shearing was the composer of over 300 ...

on the albums ''Satin Affair'' and ''Burnished Brass'', co-arranged with Shearing (May also conducted Shearing's album ''Concerto for My Love'', on which Shearing had sole credit for the arrangements). May's orchestra was featured on many Capitol Records children's projects, including cowboy star,

Hopalong Cassidy Hopalong Cassidy is a fictional cowboy hero created in 1904 by the author Clarence E. Mulford, who wrote a series of short stories and novels based on the character. Mulford portrayed the character as rude, dangerous, and rough-talking. He wa ...

. He worked closely with early 1950s satirist

, using his arranging skills to help Freberg create his spoofs of current hits by creating musical backing often stunningly close to the original hit single. On Freberg's ''Wun'erful, Wun'erful!'' a lacerating spoof of bandleader

Lawrence Welk Lawrence Welk (March 11, 1903 – May 17, 1992) was an American accordionist, bandleader, and television impresario, who hosted the '' The Lawrence Welk Show'' from 1951 to 1982. His style came to be known as "champagne music" to his radio, te ...

, May hired some of Hollywood's best jazz musicians, who relished the idea of mocking the financially successful Welk sound, which they considered the routine of "square". The result was a note-perfect recreation of Welk's sound as Freberg and a group of vocalists performed parodies of Welk's "musical family". Freberg recounted that Welk was less than amused by the recording. May also composed and conducted the music for Freberg's short-lived comedy radio series on

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

, which ran for 15 episodes in 1957. His sendup of trashy horror-film music ("Gray Flannel Hat Full of Teenage Werewolves") is notable. May won two

Grammy Award 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 pr ...

s, including Best Performance by an Orchestra in 1958 and Best Arrangement in 1959. Much of his work for Capitol has been reissued on the

Ultra-Lounge ''Ultra-Lounge'' is a series of compilation CDs released by Capitol Records, featuring music predominantly from the 1950s and 1960s in genres such as exotica, space age pop, mambo, television theme songs, and lounge. Many of the volumes have sin ...

CD series. In the late 1960's into the early 1970's, May conducted many recreations of big band era classics, recorded by Capitol. May transcribed note for note from the original recordings of big band legends such as Charlie Barnet, Glenn Miller, Benny Goodman and others and then conducted a group of all-star veteran musicians on the sessions, including some of the original performers such as singers Helen Forrest, Helen Ward and Tex Beneke. The Time-Life label released these as boxed sets titled as "The Swing Era," whose marketing was focused on the fact that these high-fidelity stereo recordings allowed listeners to enjoy the music with a depth and realism that the 78 rpm recordings of that era had never been able to fully capture.

Other record labels

The Crosby-Clooney collaboration was a sequel to their earlier, more successful album on RCA Victor, ''

Fancy Meeting You Here ''Fancy Meeting You Here'' is a 1958 RCA Victor studio album of duets by the American singers Bing Crosby and Rosemary Clooney, arranged by Billy May, who also conducted the orchestra. The album was originally issued in both mono and stereo, cat ...

'', also arranged by May, whose other non-Capitol work included another Bing Crosby duet album, this time with

Louis Armstrong Louis Daniel Armstrong (August 4, 1901 – July 6, 1971), nicknamed "Satchmo", "Satch", and "Pops", was an American trumpeter and Singing, vocalist. He was among the most influential figures in jazz. His career spanned five decades and se ...

, entitled ''

Bing & Satchmo ''Bing & Satchmo'' is a 1960 studio album by Bing Crosby and Louis Armstrong that was arranged and conducted by Billy May. The album was recorded for Crosby's label, Project Records, and released by MGM. Crosby and Armstrong worked together many ...

''; a further duet album twinning

with

(''Two of a Kind''); the sixth in

's acclaimed series of ''

Song Books A song is a musical composition intended to be performed by the human voice. This is often done at distinct and fixed pitches (melodies) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs contain various forms, such as those including the repetition ...

'' for

Verve Records Verve Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group (UMG). Founded in 1956 by Norman Granz, the label is home to the world's largest jazz catalogue, which includes recordings by artists such as Ella Fitzgerald, Nina Simon ...

, ''

Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Harold Arlen Songbook ''Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Harold Arlen Song Book'' is a 1961 (see 1961 in music) album by the American jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald, with a studio orchestra conducted and arranged by Billy May. This album marked the only time that Fitzgerald w ...

''; similar dips into

Cole Porter Cole Albert Porter (June 9, 1891 – October 15, 1964) was an American composer and songwriter. Many of his songs became standards noted for their witty, urbane lyrics, and many of his scores found success on Broadway and in film. Born to ...

and

Rodgers and Hart Rodgers and Hart were an American songwriting partnership between composer Richard Rodgers (1902–1979) and the lyricist Lorenz Hart (1895–1943). They worked together on 28 stage musicals and more than 500 songs from 1919 until Hart' ...

with

(''

Anita O'Day Swings Cole Porter with Billy May ''Anita O'Day Swings Cole Porter with Billy May'' is a 1959 studio album by Anita O'Day, of songs written by Cole Porter arranged by Billy May. O'Day and May recorded another album dedicated to a single composer, Richard Rodgers, in 1960. Tra ...

'' and ''

Anita O'Day and Billy May Swing Rodgers and Hart ''Anita O'Day and Billy May Swing Rodgers and Hart'' is a 1960 studio album by Anita O'Day, arranged by Billy May. O'Day and May had previously recorded an album dedicated to a single composer, Cole Porter, in 1959. Reception In a review for Al ...

''; both on Verve);

Mel Tormé Melvin Howard Tormé (September 13, 1925 – June 5, 1999), nicknamed "The Velvet Fog", was an American musician, singer, composer, arranger, drummer, actor, and author. He composed the music for " The Christmas Song" ("Chestnuts Roasting on an ...

's Latin-flavoured album ('' ¡Olé Tormé!: Mel Tormé Goes South of the Border with Billy May'');

Jane Russell Ernestine Jane Geraldine Russell (June 21, 1921 – February 28, 2011) was an American actress, singer, and model. She was one of Hollywood's leading sex symbols in the 1940s and 1950s. She starred in more than 20 films. Russell moved from th ...

's self-titled album on

MGM Records MGM Records was a record label founded by the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film studio in 1946 for the purpose of releasing soundtrack recordings (later LP albums) of their musical films. It transitioned into a pop music label that continued into the ...

in 1958; early albums by

(''Shall We Dance?'') and

Petula Clark Petula Sally Olwen Clark, CBE (born 15 November 1932) is an English singer, actress, and composer. She has one of the longest serving careers of a British singer, spanning more than seven decades. Clark's professional career began during the ...

(''In Hollywood''); one solitary session with

Sarah Vaughan Sarah Lois Vaughan (March 27, 1924 – April 3, 1990) was an American jazz singer. Nicknamed "Sassy" and " The Divine One", she won two Grammy Awards, including the Lifetime Achievement Award, and was nominated for a total of nine Grammy Award ...

for

Roulette Records Roulette Records was an American record company and label founded in 1957 by George Goldner, Joe Kolsky, Morris Levy and Phil Kahl, with creative control given to producers and songwriters Hugo Peretti and Luigi Creatore. Levy was appointed ...

in 1960, to record the single "

The Green Leaves of Summer "The Green Leaves of Summer" is a song by Paul Francis Webster, with music by Dimitri Tiomkin, written for the 1960 film '' The Alamo''. It was performed in the film's score by the vocal group The Brothers Four. In 1961, the song was nominated for ...

" and three other tracks. May arranged and conducted '' Once More with Feeling'', a 1960 studio album by singer

Billy Eckstine William Clarence Eckstine (July 8, 1914 – March 8, 1993) was an American jazz and pop singer and a bandleader during the swing and bebop eras. He was noted for his rich, almost operatic bass-baritone voice. In 2019, Eckstine was posthumously ...

on Roulette. May also arranged and recorded one album in Cleveland with Cosmic Records; ''Guess Who'' for artist Jerry Lee (Jerry Principe) at the Golden Key Club; and two more albums with

, recorded nearly 40 years apart: ''CheroKeely Swings'' from 1962; and ''Keely Sings Sinatra'', one of May's last projects, from 2001. After Sinatra left Capitol to start his own label,

Reprise Records Reprise Records is an American record label founded in 1960 by Frank Sinatra. It is owned by Warner Music Group, and operates through Warner Records, one of its flagship labels. Artists currently signed to Reprise Records include Enya, Michael ...

, May continued to provide arrangements for him, off and on, for nearly thirty more years, working on the albums '' Sinatra Swings'', '' Francis A. & Edward K.'' (with

Duke Ellington Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and leader of his eponymous jazz orchestra from 1923 through the rest of his life. Born and raised in Washington, D.C., Ellington was bas ...

) and '' Trilogy 1: The Past'', as well as the chart for one of Sinatra's last ever solo recordings, " Cry Me a River" (1988). May arranged Sinatra's knockabout duet with Sammy Davis Jr., " Me and My Shadow", which was a hit single on both sides of the Atlantic in 1962, while he contributed to Sinatra's ambitious "

Reprise Musical Repertory Theatre ''Reprise Musical Repertory Theatre'' is a series of four 12" long playing vinyl albums recorded in Los Angeles in 1963. The four albums were sold through mail order as a box set in 1963, then released separately to retail in 1964. They were con ...

" project, providing a few arrangements for three of its four albums, ''

South Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

'', ''

Kiss Me, Kate ''Kiss Me, Kate'' is a musical written by Bella and Samuel Spewack with music and lyrics by Cole Porter. The story involves the production of a musical version of William Shakespeare's ''The Taming of the Shrew'' and the conflict on and off-stag ...

'' and ''

Guys and Dolls ''Guys and Dolls'' is a musical with music and lyrics by Frank Loesser and book by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows. It is based on " The Idyll of Miss Sarah Brown" (1933) and "Blood Pressure", which are two short stories by Damon Runyon, and also b ...

'', May's charts being variously performed by Sinatra, Davis, Crosby,

Dean Martin Dean Martin (born Dino Paul Crocetti; June 7, 1917 – December 25, 1995) was an American singer, actor and comedian. One of the most popular and enduring American entertainers of the mid-20th century, Martin was nicknamed "The King of Cool". M ...

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

and

Lou Monte Lou Monte (born Louis Scaglione; April 2, 1917 – June 12, 1989) was an Italian American singer best known for a number of best-selling, Italian-themed novelty records which he recorded for both RCA Victor and Reprise Records in the late 195 ...

and yielding a perennial Sinatra concert favourite, " Luck Be a Lady" from ''Guys and Dolls''. In 1958, May arranged a Christmas album on Warner Bros. Records featuring the

Jimmy Joyce Jimmy Joyce (27 May 1907 – 8 October 1980) was a former Australian rules footballer who played with Footscray in the Victorian Football League The Victorian Football League (VFL) is an Australian rules football league in Australi ...

Singers, titled ''A Christmas to Remember''. In 1983, May arranged the song "He Came Here For Me" for

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 ...

' ''

An Old-Fashioned Christmas ''An Old-Fashioned Christmas'' is the second Christmas album and posthumous twelfth studio album by American music duo Carpenters, released on October 26, 1984, and after the death of singer and drummer Karen Carpenter. Background The album pr ...

'' album on A&M Records.

Musical style

May's charts often featured brisk tempos and intricate brass parts. One distinctive feature is his frequent use of trumpet mute devices. Another was a saxophone glissando, widely known as his "slurping saxes". In slower tempos, he sometimes utilized string sections; good examples of this aspect of his work include his brass chart for "

These Foolish Things (Remind Me of You) "These Foolish Things (Remind Me of You)" is a standard with lyrics by Eric Maschwitz, writing under the pseudonym Holt Marvell, and music by Jack Strachey, both Englishmen. Harry Link, an American, sometimes appears as a co-writer; his input ...

" on the Cole album ''Just One of Those Things''; his string arrangement of " April in Paris" on Sinatra's ''Come Fly With Me'' album; and his arrangement of "

I Can't Get Started "I Can't Get Started", also known as "I Can't Get Started with You" or "I Can't Get Started (with You)", is a popular song. It was written in 1936 by Vernon Duke (music) and Ira Gershwin (lyrics) and introduced that year in the film ''Ziegfeld Fo ...

" on Keely Smith's ''Politely'', which includes a nod to May in the lyrics ("Billy May arranged this for me").

Film and television

May can be seen on trumpet with the Glenn Miller Orchestra in '' Sun Valley Serenade'' (1941), including a solo in ''

In the Mood "In the Mood" is a popular big band-era jazz standard recorded by American bandleader Glenn Miller. "In the Mood" is based on the composition " Tar Paper Stomp" by Wingy Manone. The first recording under the name "In the Mood" was released by ...

'', and ''

Orchestra Wives ''Orchestra Wives'' is a 1942 American musical film by 20th Century Fox starring Ann Rutherford, George Montgomery, and Glenn Miller. The film was the second (and last) film to feature The Glenn Miller Orchestra, and is notable among the many sw ...

'' (1942). In 1957, May made his debut as film composer with

's ''

The Fuzzy Pink Nightgown ''The Fuzzy Pink Nightgown'' is a 1957 American romantic comedy film made by Russ-Field Productions and released by United Artists. It was directed by Norman Taurog from a screenplay by Richard Alan Simmons, based on a novel of the same name by ...

'' and the soundtrack was released on Imperial Records. His film scores include the

Rat Pack The Rat Pack was an informal group of entertainers, the second iteration of which ultimately made films and appeared together in Las Vegas casino venues. They originated in the late 1940s and early 1950s as a group of A-list show business frie ...

film ''

Sergeants 3 ''Sergeants 3'' is a 1962 American comedy/Western film directed by John Sturges and starring Rat Pack icons Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr., Peter Lawford and Joey Bishop. It was the last film to feature all five members of the Rat ...

'' (1962), '' Johnny Cool'' (1963), ''

Tony Rome ''Tony Rome'' is a 1967 American neo-noir mystery crime thriller film directed by Gordon Douglas and starring Frank Sinatra in the title role, alongside Jill St. John, Sue Lyon and Gena Rowlands. It was adapted from Marvin H. Albert's novel ' ...

'' (1967), '' The Secret Life of an American Wife'' (1968), '' The Ballad of Andy Crocker'' (1969), and '' The Front Page'' (1974) and several big band arrangements used in the 1991 Disney film, " The Rocketeer." His compositions for television include "Somewhere in the Night", the theme for '' Naked City'' (1960), and his jazzy arrangement of '' Flight of the Bumblebee'' for ''

'' (1966) with trumpet by

Al Hirt Alois Maxwell "Al" Hirt (November 7, 1922 – April 27, 1999) was an American trumpeter and bandleader. He is best remembered for his million-selling recordings of "Java" and the accompanying album ''Honey in the Horn'' (1963), and for the theme ...

. He composed the Batgirl theme for ''

'' (1966). He and Nelson Riddle wrote music for episodes of ''Naked City'' (1960), ''Batman'' (1966), ''The Green Hornet'' (1966), ''

Emergency! ''Emergency!'' is an American action-adventure medical drama television series jointly produced by Mark VII Limited and Universal Television. Debuting on NBC as a midseason replacement on January 15, 1972, replacing the two short-lived situa ...

'' (1972), and ''

CHiPs ''CHiPs'' is an American crime drama television series created by Rick Rosner and originally aired on NBC from September 15, 1977, to May 1, 1983. It follows the lives of two motorcycle officers of the California Highway Patrol (CHP). The seri ...

'' (1977). May also arranged and produced the song "River of No Return" for

Tennessee Ernie Ford Ernest Jennings Ford (February 13, 1919 – October 17, 1991), known professionally as Tennessee Ernie Ford, was an American singer and television host who enjoyed success in the country and western, pop, and gospel musical genres. Noted for h ...

for the 1954 film of the same name starring

Marilyn Monroe Marilyn Monroe (; born Norma Jeane Mortenson; 1 June 1926 4 August 1962) was an American actress. Famous for playing comedic " blonde bombshell" characters, she became one of the most popular sex symbols of the 1950s and early 1960s, as wel ...

and

Robert Mitchum Robert Charles Durman Mitchum (August 6, 1917 – July 1, 1997) was an American actor. He rose to prominence with an Academy Award nomination for the Best Supporting Actor for ''The Story of G.I. Joe'' (1945), followed by his starring in ...

. Billy May and His Orchestra is also credited as playing themselves in the fil
''Nightmare''
(1956), starring

Edward G. Robinson Edward G. Robinson (born Emanuel Goldenberg; December 12, 1893January 26, 1973) was a Romanian-American actor of stage and screen, who was popular during the Hollywood's Golden Age. He appeared in 30 Broadway plays and more than 100 films duri ...

, and May as music and vocal arranger of music by Herschel Burke Gilbert, who was the musical director.

Compositions

May's compositions included "Long Tall Mama" and "Measure for Measure", recorded with the Glenn Miller Orchestra, "

", written with Miller (May's wife Arletta originally received credit as co-author in his place) for the soundtrack of the 1942 movie ''

'', "Harlem Chapel Bells", which was performed with Glenn Miller and his Orchestra on April 2, 1941 and broadcast on the Chesterfield ''Moonlight Serenade'' radio program, "Lean Baby", "Fat Man Boogie", "Ping Pong", "Jooms Jones", "Gabby Goose", "Lumby", "Daisy Mae" and "Friday Afternoon" with

Hal McIntyre Hal McIntyre (born Harold William McIntyre; November 29, 1914, Cromwell, Connecticut – May 5, 1959 Los Angeles, California) was an American saxophonist, clarinetist, and bandleader. McIntyre played extensively as a teenager and led his ow ...

, "Miles Behind", "The Wrong Idea" with Charlie Barnet, "Wings Over Manhattan", "Filet of Soul", "Mayhem", "Gin and Tonic", and "Solving the Riddle". But his biggest hit as a composer was the children's song "

I Tawt I Taw a Puddy Tat ''I Tawt I Taw a Puddy Tat'' is a 2011 American 3D computer-animated ''Looney Tunes'' short film featuring the characters Tweety, Sylvester, and Granny. It is an adaptation of the 1950 song " I Taut I Taw a Puddy Tat" sung by Mel Blanc. It fea ...

", which he recorded with

Mel Blanc Melvin Jerome Blanc (born Blank ; May 30, 1908July 10, 1989) was an American voice actor and radio personality whose career spanned over 60 years. During the Golden Age of Radio, he provided character voices and vocal sound effects for comedy r ...

in 1950. Another arrangement, "Be My Host", served as the winner's fanfare on ''

The Newlywed Game ''The Newlywed Game'' is an American television game show that puts newly married couples against each other in a series of revealing question rounds to determine how well the spouses know or do not know each other. The program, originally create ...

'' and was played after host Bob Eubanks announced the winning couple.

Selected recordings

May arranged and conducted for many prominent singers. This list highlights some of his recordings that focused on his own bands, compositions and arrangements.

Singles

*1952: "Charmaine" (Capitol 1919) charted for two weeks, peaked at No. 17 *1956: "Main title from ''The Man With the Golden Arm''" (Capitol 3372) charted for fourteen weeks, peaked at No. 49; and UK No. 9

Albums

* 1948 ''Join the Band'' * 1952 '' A Band Is Born'' * 1952 ''A Big Band Bash'' * 1953 ''Billy May's Bacchanalia'' * 1954 ''Sorta-Dixie'' * 1955 ''Sorta-May'' * 1955 ''Naughty Operetta'' * 1955 ''

Arthur Murray Cha Cha Mambos '' Arthur Murray Cha Cha Mambos '' is an album released by Billy May in 1955 on Capitol LP record T578 and 45rpm EP sets EAP-578 and ECF-578.Capitol Records advertisementCapitol Buyboard Billboard Magazine, May 19, 1955. Page 90 Background This a ...

'' * 1957 ''Jimmy Lunceford in Hi-Fi'' * 1957 ''Plays for Fancy Dancin' '' * 1958 ''Billy May's Big Fat Brass'' * 1960 ''Cha Cha! Billy May'' * 1960 ''The Girls and Boys on Broadway'' * 1962 ''The Sweetest Swingin' Sounds of Billy May'' * 1962 ''Process 70'' * 1963 ''Bill's Bag'' * 1966 ''Billy May Today!''

References

Bibliography

External links

Billy May profile Billy may refer to: * Billy (name), a name (and list of people with the name) Animals * Billy (dog), a dog breed * Billy (pigeon), awarded the Dickin Medal in 1945 * Billy (pygmy hippo), a pet of U.S. President Calvin Coolidge * Billy, a you ...

at Allmusic
National Association of Music Merchants Oral History Interview with Billy May
namm.org, April 4, 2002
Billy May arrangements, 1939-1995
at th
Library of Congress
{{DEFAULTSORT:May, Billy 1916 births 2004 deaths American male composers American music arrangers Big band bandleaders People from San Juan Capistrano, California Grammy Award winners Musicians from Pittsburgh Capitol Records artists Jazz arrangers 20th-century American composers 20th-century American male musicians Male jazz musicians Glenn Miller Orchestra members