James Royce Shannon (May 13, 1881 – May 19, 1946), born James Royce, was a nationally prominent Irish-American composer and lyricist. He was active at the time of

Tin Pan Alley Tin Pan Alley was a collection of music publishers and songwriters in New York City that dominated the popular music of the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It originally referred to a specific place: West 28th Street ...

Biography

He was born in Adrian, Michigan. He is known chiefly for writing the lyrics to " The Missouri Waltz" (the state song of Missouri) and for composing the song "

Too Ra Loo Ra Loo Ral "Too-Ra-Loo-Ra-Loo-Ral (That's an Irish Lullaby)" is a classic Irish-American song that was written in 1913 by composer James Royce Shannon (1881–1946) for the Tin Pan Alley musical '' Shameen Dhu''. The original recording of the song, by Chaunc ...

" ("Irish Lullaby"). He began his musical writing career in collaboration with his mother, Eliza Shannon. His first significant composition was "Too Ra Loo Ra Loo Ral" which was one of the songs composed by Shannon for

Chauncey Olcott Chauncey Olcott, born John Chancellor Olcott and often spelled Chauncey Alcott, (July 21, 1858 – March 18, 1932) was an American stage actor, songwriter and singer of Irish descent. Biography He was born in Buffalo, New York. His mother, Mar ...

's musical ''

Shameen Dhu Shameen may refer to: * Shamian Island Shamian (also romanized as Shameen or Shamin, both from its Cantonese pronunciation) is a sandbank island in the Liwan District of Guangzhou, Guangdong, China. The island's name literally means "san ...

'' that successfully debuted in New York City in February 1914. The "Irish Lullaby" became more famous decades later when it was included in the movie ''

Going My Way ''Going My Way'' is a 1944 American musical comedy drama film directed by Leo McCarey and starring Bing Crosby and Barry Fitzgerald. Written by Frank Butler and Frank Cavett based on a story by McCarey, the film is about a new young priest ta ...

''. It reached # 4 on the

Billboard charts The ''Billboard'' charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs and albums in the United States and elsewhere. The results are published in '' Billboard'' magazine. ''Billboard'' biz, the online extension of the ''Billboard'' charts, p ...

, sold over a million copies, and was included in one of

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 ...

's albums. Residing primarily in Detroit during his career, he owned and operated a theatrical company that toured both in the U.S. and in Europe. He was the manager for a chain of music stores in Michigan, the assistant manager for Detroit's

Majestic Theatre Majestic Theatre or Majestic Theater may refer to: Australia * Majestic Theatre, Adelaide, former name of a theatre in King William Street, Adelaide, built 1916, now demolished * Majestic Theatre, Launceston, a former cinema in Tasmania designed b ...

, and served as a drama critic for the ''

Detroit Free Press The ''Detroit Free Press'' is the largest daily newspaper in Detroit, Michigan, US. The Sunday edition is titled the ''Sunday Free Press''. It is sometimes referred to as the Freep (reflected in the paper's web address, www.freep.com). It primari ...

''.

Selected works

*Shannon, J. R. ''Dixie Lou''. Detroit: Grinnell Bros. Music Pub, 1913. *Shannon, J. R., and Frederic Knight Logan. ''Hush-a-Bye, Ma Baby: The Missouri Waltz''. Chicago: Forster Music, 1916. *Shannon, J. R., and Charles L. Johnson. ''I'll Be Waiting for You''. Chicago: F.J.A. Forster, 1915. *Shannon, J. R., and Fred Ziemer. ''There's a Red Bordered Flag in the Window''. Vandersloot Music Pub. Co., 1918. *Shannon, J. R. ''Too-Ra-Loo-Ra-Loo-Ral: That's an Irish Lullaby: Sung by Bing Crosby in the Paramount Picture Going My Way''. New York: Witmark, 1944. *Shannon, J. R. ''Where That Ragtime River Flows''. Detroit: Grinnell Bros, 1912. *Shannon, J. R., and Fred Ziemer. ''Yankee Boy''. Williamsport, Pa: Vandersloot Music Pub. Co, 1918.

References

External links

*
List of Works by James Royce Shannon
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shannon, James Royce 1881 births 1946 suicides American male composers American lyricists American people of Irish descent Musicians from Michigan 20th-century American composers People from Adrian, Michigan Suicides in Michigan American theater critics Songwriters from Michigan 20th-century American male musicians American male songwriters