Horace Gerlach, known as Dutch, was a songwriter and musician, known for his work with

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

and the song "

Daddy's Little Girl "Daddy's Little Girl" is a classic song typically played at white weddings while a bride dances with her father. The song's lyrics and music were first written by Robert Harrison Burke and Horace Gerlach in 1949. Recordings The song was recorde ...

Early life

Gerlach was educated at

Upper Darby High School Upper Darby High School (UDHS) is a four-year public high school located in Upper Darby Township, Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States, as part of the Upper Darby School District. UDHS is also the oldest high school in Delaware County, ha ...

Music career

At 25 years old, Gerlach was working as a pianist and bandleader in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

. He became the

ghostwriter A ghostwriter is hired to write literary or journalistic works, speeches, or other texts that are officially credited to another person as the author. Celebrities, executives, participants in timely news stories, and political leaders often h ...

and principal arranger for

, and stayed in the position until 1940. However, trombonist

Jimmy Archey Jimmy Archey (12 October 1902 – 16 November 1967) was an American jazz trombonist born in Norfolk, Virginia, perhaps most noteworthy for his work in several prominent jazz orchestras and big bands of his time (including his own). He performed ...

criticised him as being "nothing much as an arranger". In 1949, Gerlach wrote the song "

" with Bobby Burke. It quickly became popular and was covered by several artists throughout its release year.

''Swing That Music''

Gerlach wrote sections of Armstrong's autobiography, ''Swing That Music'', namely the section on the history of swing music. He was the cowriter of the song "Swing That Music" with Armstrong, which was composed especially for the book. Gerlach was criticised by William Kenney for having "clumsy intrusions" within Armstrong's autobiographical voice and negotiation of the biracial jazz world. A focus of his analysis was the "ongoing rhetorical struggle" between Armstrong and Gerlach within the text. Scholars like Christopher Harlos have questioned the autobiographical authenticity of the text and the influence of Gerlach, especially in relation to the text's views on the relationship between jazz and conventional European music.

Discography

*"If We Never Meet Again" (1936) with Louis Armstrong *"Keep Away From My Doorstep" (1936) *"Swing That Music" (1936) with Louis Armstrong *"I've Got a Heart Full of Rhythm" (1937) with Louis Armstrong *"What is This Thing Called Swing?" (1939) with Louis Armstrong *"

" (1949) with Bobby Burke

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gerlach, Horace American lyricists American jazz songwriters Musicians from Philadelphia Louis Armstrong Jazz musicians from Pennsylvania