Alfred James Walden (1 January 1867 – 20 April 1947), known professionally as Harry Wincott, was an English

songwriter A songwriter is a musician who professionally composes musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music gen ...

Biography

He was born in

Lambeth Lambeth () is a district in South London, England, in the London Borough of Lambeth, historically in the County of Surrey. It is situated south of Charing Cross. The population of the London Borough of Lambeth was 303,086 in 2011. The area expe ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, the eldest child of Charlotte and Alfred Walden, a

coach builder A coachbuilder or body-maker is someone who manufactures bodies for passenger-carrying vehicles.Construction has always been a skilled trade requiring a relatively lightweight product with sufficient strength. The manufacture of necessarily ...

. He started work as a clerk, but began writing songs and aged 16 sold one of his songs to

music hall Music hall is a type of British theatrical entertainment that was popular from the early Victorian era, beginning around 1850. It faded away after 1918 as the halls rebranded their entertainment as variety. Perceptions of a distinction in Bri ...

performer

Alfred Vance Alfred Peek Stevens (1839 – 26 December 1888), best known by his stage name of Alfred Vance, was a 19th-century English music hall singer. He was also known as ''The Great Vance'', and ''Alfred Grenville''. Early life Vance was born in L ...

, "The Great Vance". Eventually he became successful selling other songs to well-known singers including

Vesta Tilley Matilda Alice Powles, Lady de Frece (13May 186416September 1952) was an English music hall performer. She adopted the stage name Vesta Tilley and became one of the best-known male impersonators of her era. Her career lasted from 1869 until 192 ...

. Wincott was the writer of many popular

and

pub A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...

song 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 repetitio ...

s. His most prolific writing period was between 1890 and 1920 and he claimed to have produced more than 2000 songs in total. One of his earliest patrons was the father of

Charlie Chaplin Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin Jr. (16 April 188925 December 1977) was an English comic actor, filmmaker, and composer who rose to fame in the era of silent film. He became a worldwide icon through his screen persona, the Tramp, and is consider ...

, who predicted 'that child will be a great comedian one day'. His works included "The Old Dun Cow", "

Mademoiselle from Armentières "Mademoiselle from Armentières" is an English song that was particularly popular during World War I. It is also known by its ersatz French hook line, 'Inky Pinky Parlez Vous,' or the American variant 'Hinky Dinky Parlez-vous' (variant: ''Parlay ...

", "How's Your Father?", and "Father's Got ‘em", which was to be performed by

Debra Paget Debra Paget (born Debralee Griffin; August 19, 1933) is an American actress and entertainer. She is perhaps best known for her performances in Cecil B. DeMille's epic ''The Ten Commandments'' (1956) and in Elvis Presley's film debut, '' Love Me ...

in the 1952 movie, '' Stars and Stripes'', amongst many others. Wincott composed songs for

artists An artist is a person engaged in an activity related to creating art, practicing the arts, or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse refers to a practitioner in the visual arts only. However, the ...

such as:

Dan Leno George Wild Galvin (20 December 1860 – 31 October 1904), better known by the stage name Dan Leno, was a leading English music hall comedian and musical theatre actor during the late Victorian era. He was best known, aside from his music hall ...

Marie Lloyd Matilda Alice Victoria Wood (12 February 1870 – 7 October 1922), professionally known as Marie Lloyd (), was an English music hall singer, comedian and musical theatre actress. She was best known for her performances of songs such as " T ...

, Charles Austin,

The Great Vance Alfred Peek Stevens (1839 – 26 December 1888), best known by his stage name of Alfred Vance, was a 19th-century English music hall singer. He was also known as ''The Great Vance'', and ''Alfred Grenville''. Early life Vance was born in L ...

Florrie Forde Flora May Augusta Flannagan ( Flannagan; 16 August 187518 April 1940), known professionally as Florrie Forde, was an Australian popular singer and music hall entertainer. From 1897 she lived and worked in the United Kingdom. She was one of the ...

Harry Champion William Henry Crump (17 April 1865 – 14 January 1942), better known by the stage name Harry Champion, was an English music hall composer, singer and comedian, whose onstage persona appealed chiefly to the working class communities of Ea ...

and

Kate Carney Kate Carney (born Catherine Mary Pattinson; 15 August 1869 – 1 January 1950) was an English singer and comedian who played the music halls in London. Biography She was born in Southwark, London, in 1869 as Catherine Mary Pattinson.1901 c ...

. Possibly his most well known song is "The Little Shirt My Mother Made For Me", sung by Tom Wooton and subsequently recorded by the country singer

Marty Robbins Martin David Robinson (September 26, 1925 – December 8, 1982), known professionally as Marty Robbins, was an American singer, songwriter, actor, multi-instrumentalist, and NASCAR racing driver. Robbins was one of the most popular and suc ...

among others. He made relatively little money from his songs, as he sold the rights cheaply. On 23 March 1889, he married his cousin, Eliza Mary Ann Dyer, in

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...

. They moved back to London and there had eight children between 1892 and 1902. After her death in 1926, Wincott struggled financially, and a benefit concert was held to raise money for him and his family. On 6 March 1937, when he was 70 years-old, he married his second wife, Margaret 'Daisy' Pink at Lambeth Registry Office, and shortly afterwards they moved to live in

Yeovil Yeovil ( ) is a town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the district of South Somerset, England. The population of Yeovil at the last census (2011) was 45,784. More recent estimates show a population of 48,564. It is close to Somer ...

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

. He died of

gangrene Gangrene is a type of tissue death caused by a lack of blood supply. Symptoms may include a change in skin color to red or black, numbness, swelling, pain, skin breakdown, and coolness. The feet and hands are most commonly affected. If the ga ...

of the legs in Yeovil in 1947, aged 80. He had been admitted to the local

public assistance Welfare, or commonly social welfare, is a type of government support intended to ensure that members of a society can meet basic human needs such as food and shelter. Social security may either be synonymous with welfare, or refer specificall ...

institution a couple of weeks previously, there being no spare bed at the local hospital. One of his last requests to his wife was for a pint of beer.

References

External links

The Harry Wincott Biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wincott, Harry 1867 births 1947 deaths People from Lambeth English songwriters