Irwin Jesse Levine (March 23, 1938 – January 21, 1997)
- accessed April 11, 2012 was an American songwriter, who co-wrote the song "

Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree "Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree" is a song recorded by Tony Orlando and Dawn. It was written by Irwin Levine and L. Russell Brown and produced by Hank Medress and Dave Appell, with Motown/ Stax backing vocalist Telma Hopkins, J ...

" with L. Russell Brown. The song was a worldwide hit for

Tony Orlando and Dawn Tony Orlando and Dawn is an American pop music group that was popular in the 1970s, composed of singer Tony Orlando and the backing vocal group Dawn (Telma Hopkins and Joyce Vincent Wilson). Their signature hits include " Candida", " Knock Thre ...

as it reached number one on both the US and UK charts for four weeks in April 1973 and number one on the Australian charts for seven weeks from May to July 1973. It was the top-selling single in 1973 in both the US and UK. In 2008, ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' ranked the song as the 37th biggest song of all time in its issue celebrating the 50th anniversary of the

Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streaming ...

. Other popular songs written or co-written by Levine include "

This Diamond Ring "This Diamond Ring" is a 1965 song written by Al Kooper, Bob Brass and Irwin Levine. The original demo was sung by Jimmy Radcliffe. It was first released as a single by Sammy Ambrose on Musicor #1061, then by Gary Lewis & the Playboys on Liberty ...

", "

Black Pearl The ''Black Pearl'' (formerly known as the ''Wicked Wench'') is a fictional ship in the ''Pirates of the Caribbean'' film series. In the screenplay, the ''Black Pearl'' is easily recognized by her distinctive black hull and sails. Captained by ...

", I Woke Up In Love This Morning", "

Say, Has Anybody Seen My Sweet Gypsy Rose “Say, Has Anybody Seen My Sweet Gypsy Rose” is a 1973 song by the American pop music group Tony Orlando and Dawn. Written by Irwin Levine (lyrics) and L. Russell Brown (music), it was included on the group's 1973 album, '' Dawn's New Ragtime ...

", "

Knock Three Times "Knock Three Times" is a popular song credited simply to "Dawn". Tony Orlando was not named on the record. The actual singers were Tony Orlando, Toni Wine, and Linda November, prior to the creation of "Dawn" with Telma Hopkins and Joyce Vincent ...

", " Candida", and "

We're Free "We're Free" is a song written by Irwin Levine and L. Russell Brown and performed by Beverly Bremers. It reached No. 15 on the ''Billboard'' easy listening chart and No. 40 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in 1972. The song was featured on her 19 ...

".Allmusic.com
/ref> Levine died at the age of 58, in

Livingston, New Jersey Livingston is a township (New Jersey), township in Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, New Jersey. As of the 2010 United States census, 2010 U.S. census, the township's population was 29,366, reflecting an increase of 1,975 (+7.2%) from the ...

in January 1997, from either

heart The heart is a muscular organ in most animals. This organ pumps blood through the blood vessels of the circulatory system. The pumped blood carries oxygen and nutrients to the body, while carrying metabolic waste such as carbon dioxide t ...

kidney failure Kidney failure, also known as end-stage kidney disease, is a medical condition in which the kidneys can no longer adequately filter waste products from the blood, functioning at less than 15% of normal levels. Kidney failure is classified as eit ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Levine, Irwin 1938 births 1997 deaths American male songwriters 20th-century American musicians 20th-century American male musicians