Wilbur H. "Will" Jennings (born June 27, 1944) is an American lyricist. He is popularly known for writing the lyrics for the songs "

Tears in Heaven "Tears in Heaven" is a song by English guitarist, singer, and songwriter Eric Clapton and Will Jennings, written about the death of Clapton's four-year-old son, Conor. It appeared on the 1991 ''Rush'' film soundtrack. In January 1992, Clapto ...

" and "

My Heart Will Go On "My Heart Will Go On" is a 1997 song recorded by Canadian singer Celine Dion. The song serves as the main theme to James Cameron's blockbuster film '' Titanic'', based on an account of the transatlantic ocean liner of the same name which san ...

". He has been inducted into the

Songwriter's Hall of Fame The Songwriters Hall of Fame (SHOF) is an American institution founded in 1969 by songwriter Johnny Mercer, music publisher/songwriter Abe Olman, and publisher/executive Howie Richmond to honor those whose work, represent, and maintain, the he ...

and has won several awards including three

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 pres ...

s, two

Golden Globe Awards The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of t ...

, and two

Academy Awards The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

Life and education

Jennings was born in

Kilgore, Texas Kilgore is a city in Gregg and Rusk counties in the eastern part of the U.S. state of Texas. Over three-fourths of the city limits is located in Gregg County, the remainder in Rusk County. The population was 12,975 at the 2010 census and 13,376 ...

. He attended school near

Tyler, Texas Tyler is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the largest city and county seat of Smith County, Texas, Smith County. It is also the largest city in Northeast Texas. With a 2020 census population of 105,995, Tyler was the List of cities in Texa ...

in the Chapel Hill Independent School District. He graduated from

Tyler Junior College Tyler Junior College (TJC) is a public community college in Tyler, Texas. It is one of the largest community colleges in Texas, with an enrollment of more than 12,500 credit students each year with an additional 20,000 continuing education enroll ...

and taught English at the college. In 1967, Jennings earned his B.A. from Stephen F. Austin State University, located in

Nacogdoches Nacogdoches ( ) is a small city in East Texas and the county seat of Nacogdoches County, Texas, United States. The 2020 U.S. census recorded the city's population at 32,147. Nacogdoches is a sister city of the smaller, similarly named Natchitoch ...

, Texas. He then taught at the

University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire The University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire (UW–Eau Claire, UWEC or simply Eau Claire) is a public university in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. It is part of the University of Wisconsin System and offers bachelor's and master's degrees. UW–Eau Claire h ...

for three years.

Career

Jennings has written for a variety of artists, including Steve Winwood,

Whitney Houston Whitney Elizabeth Houston (August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012) was an American singer and actress. Nicknamed "The Voice", she is one of the bestselling music artists of all time, with sales of over 200 million records worldwide. Houston in ...

Eric Clapton Eric Patrick Clapton (born 1945) is an English rock and blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is often regarded as one of the most successful and influential guitarists in rock music. Clapton ranked second in ''Rolling Stone''s list of ...

B.B. King Riley B. King (September 16, 1925 – May 14, 2015), known professionally as B.B. King, was an American blues singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer. He introduced a sophisticated style of soloing based on fluid string bending, shi ...

Joe Sample Joseph Leslie Sample (February 1, 1939 – September 12, 2014) was an American keyboardist and composer. He was one of the founding members of The Jazz Crusaders in 1960, the band which shortened its name to "The Crusaders" in 1971. He remained ...

Rodney Crowell Rodney Crowell (born August 7, 1950) is an American musician, known primarily for his work as a singer and songwriter in country music. Crowell has had five number one singles on Hot Country Songs, all from his 1988 album '' Diamonds & Dirt''. ...

Mariah Carey Mariah Carey (; born March 27, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and record producer. Referred to as the " Songbird Supreme", she is noted for her five-octave vocal range, melismatic singing style and signature use of the whi ...

, Jimmy Buffett,

Barry Manilow Barry Manilow (born Barry Alan Pincus; June 17, 1943) is an American singer and songwriter with a career that spans seven decades. His hit recordings include "Could It Be Magic", " Somewhere Down the Road", " Mandy", "I Write the Songs", " Can ...

and Roy Orbison. With Steve Winwood, Jennings wrote a series of albums including ''

Arc of a Diver ''Arc of a Diver'' is the second solo studio album by singer/multi-instrumentalist Steve Winwood. Released in 1980, Winwood played all of the instruments on the album. Featuring his first solo hit, "While You See a Chance" (which peaked at numbe ...

'', ''

Talking Back to the Night ''Talking Back to the Night'' is the third solo studio album by English recording artist Steve Winwood. Released less than two years after the top 3 hit ''Arc of a Diver'', it failed to see as much success as its predecessor, reaching #28 on the ...

'' and ''

Back in the High Life ''Back in the High Life'' is the fourth solo album by English singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist Steve Winwood, released on 30 June 1986. The album proved to be Winwood's biggest success to that date, certified Gold in the UK and 3� ...

'', an album that contained the hits "

Higher Love "Higher Love" is a 1986 song by English singer Steve Winwood. It was the first single released from his fourth solo LP, ''Back in the High Life'' (1986). It was written by Winwood and Will Jennings and produced by Russ Titelman and Winwood. The ...

", "

The Finer Things ''The Finer Things'' is a compilation album box set of recordings by Steve Winwood. It includes songs from his early days with The Spencer Davis Group through Traffic and Blind Faith and into his work during his solo career. Track listing Dis ...

", and "

Back in the High Life Again "Back in the High Life Again" is a song with music by English artist Steve Winwood and lyrics by American songwriter Will Jennings. It was performed by Winwood, and included backing vocals by James Taylor and a prominent mandolin played by Winwo ...

". Winwood won the

Record Of The Year The Grammy Award for Record of the Year is presented by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to "honor artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in the recording industry, without reg ...

and Outstanding Male Vocal Performance. Both Jennings and Winwood were nominated for the Song of the Year award for "Higher Love." With Joe Sample, Jennings wrote " Street Life" (a world-wide hit for the Crusaders with singer

Randy Crawford Veronica "Randy" Crawford (born February 18, 1952) is an American jazz and R&B singer. She has been more successful in Europe than in the United States, where she has not entered the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 as a solo artist. However, she has ap ...

) and several songs for various albums by the Crusaders for guest vocalists, including Joe Cocker ("I'm So Glad I'm Standing Here Today"), and

Bill Withers William Harrison Withers Jr. (July 4, 1938 – March 30, 2020) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. He had several hits over a career spanning 18 years, including " Ain't No Sunshine" (1971), " Grandma's Hands" (1971), " Use Me" (197 ...

("Soul Shadows"). Jennings and Sample also wrote the better part of three albums for

, ''

Midnight Believer ''Midnight Believer'' is the twenty-fifth studio blues album by B.B. King, released in 1978 on ABC Records. The album reached No. 27 on the '' Billboard'' Top Soul Albums chart. Overview ''Midnight Believer'' was produced by Stewart Levine. Ar ...

'' in 1978, '' Take It Home'' in 1979, and '' There is Always One More Time'' in 1991. Richard Kerr and Jennings wrote " Somewhere in the Night" and "

Looks Like We Made It "Looks Like We Made It" is a song by American singer Barry Manilow, from his 1976 album '' This One's for You'', composed by Richard Kerr with lyrics by Will Jennings. The single was released April 20, 1977. Overview The song was first released ...

" for

and "

I'll Never Love This Way Again "I'll Never Love This Way Again" is a song written and composed by English musician Richard Kerr and American lyricist Will Jennings, and first recorded by Kerr himself for his album ''Welcome to the Club'' as "I Know I'll Never Love This Way A ...

" for

Dionne Warwick Marie Dionne Warwick (; born December 12, 1940) is an American singer, actress, and television host. Warwick ranks among the 40 biggest U.S. hit makers between 1955 and 1999, based on her chart history on ''Billboards Hot 100 pop singles cha ...

Deana Martin Deana Martin is an American singer and actress. She is the daughter of singer Dean Martin. Film and television Martin was born in Manhattan to Dean Martin and his first wife, Elizabeth Anne "Betty" McDonald. She moved to Beverly Hills, Californ ...

recorded one of Jennings’ songs, "

I Know Who You Are I, or i, is the ninth letter and the third vowel letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''i'' (pronounced ), plural ...

", on her 2016 album ''Swing Street''. Jennings has collaborated on many songs for films, the most notable songs being "

Up Where We Belong "Up Where We Belong" is a song written by Jack Nitzsche, Buffy Sainte-Marie and Will Jennings that was recorded by Joe Cocker and Jennifer Warnes for the 1982 film '' An Officer and a Gentleman''. Warnes was recommended to sing a song from the f ...

" for '' An Officer and a Gentleman'', a song that won the Academy Award in America and the BAFTA ( British Academy Award) in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

and was a number one hit for Joe Cocker and

Jennifer Warnes Jennifer Jean Warnes (born March 3, 1947) is an American singer and songwriter. She has performed as a vocalist on a number of film soundtracks. She has won two Grammy Awards, in 1983 for the Joe Cocker duet "Up Where We Belong" and in 1987 for ...

. In 1997, Jennings wrote the world-wide number one

Céline Dion Céline Marie Claudette Dion ( ; born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. Noted for her powerful and technically skilled vocals, Dion is the best-selling Canadian recording artist, and the best-selling French-language artist of all time. Her ...

hit "

" for the film ''Titanic'' with his collaborator

James Horner James Roy Horner (August 14, 1953 – June 22, 2015) was an American composer. He was known for the integration of choral and electronic elements, and for his frequent use of motifs associated with Celtic music. Horner's first film score was in ...

. They won the

Golden Globe Award The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of t ...

and the Academy Award for Best Song from a Motion Picture. Among his other collaborations were two albums written with Jimmy Buffett and

Michael Utley Michael Edward Utley is an American musician, songwriter, and record producer for Jimmy Buffett's Coral Reefer Band. He is the musical director of the band. Born in Blytheville in Mississippi County, Arkansas, he graduated from the Univer ...

, '' Riddles in the Sand'' and '' The Last Mango in Paris''. Jennings also wrote several songs for Roy Orbison's ''

King of Hearts The king of hearts is a playing card in the standard 52-card deck. King of Hearts may also refer to: Games * The King of Hearts Has Five Sons, card game that may have been a precursor to Cluedo Books * King of Hearts (''Alice's Adventures ...

'' album. In

Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and the ...

, Jennings wrote hits with

, including " Many a Long & Lonesome Highway", " What Kind of Love" and " Please Remember Me", a number one country hit for

Tim McGraw Samuel Timothy McGraw (born May 1, 1967) is an American country singer, songwriter, record producer, and actor. He has released 16 studio albums (11 for Curb Records, four for Big Machine Records and one for Arista Nashville). 10 of those album ...

. Jennings also wrote "

" with Eric Clapton, which won song of the Year and also won the

Ivor Novello award The Ivor Novello Awards, named after the entertainer Ivor Novello, are awards for songwriting and composing. They have been presented annually in London by the Ivors Academy (formerly the BASCA) since 1956, and over 1,000 statuettes have been a ...

for best song from a film. Teaming with James Horner and

, Jennings wrote the lyrics for the central song in ''

How The Grinch Stole Christmas ''How the Grinch Stole Christmas!'' is a Christmas children's story by Theodor "Dr. Seuss" Geisel written in rhymed verse with illustrations by the author. It follows the Grinch, a grouchy, solitary creature who tries to cancel Christmas by st ...

'', "

Where Are You Christmas? "Christmas, Why Can't I Find You?" is a song written by Mariah Carey, James Horner and Will Jennings for the movie '' How the Grinch Stole Christmas'' in 2000. In the film, it is first sung by Taylor Momsen, who played Cindy Lou Who. Mariah Carey ...

", sung by a character within the film and by

Faith Hill Audrey Faith McGraw (; born September 21, 1967), known professionally as Faith Hill, is an American singer and actress. She is one of the most successful country music artists of all time, having sold more than 40 million albums worldwide. Hill' ...

at the end of the film. In 2002, Horner and Jennings contributed a song for the Oscar-winning film '' A Beautiful Mind''. In 2002, Peter Wolf's new album, '' Sleepless'', appeared with positive reviews. The album featured six songs written by Jennings and Wolf, who collaborated previously on ''Fool's Parade'' (1999) on

Mercury Records Mercury Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It had significant success as an independent operation in the 1940s and 1950s. Smash Records and Fontana Records were sub labels of Mercury. In the United States, it is ...

. Jennings and Joe Sample, the keyboard player for the Crusaders, go back to 1978 and began by writing the ''

'' album for B.B. King and then wrote the hit " Street Life" for the Crusaders album of the same name. Jennings and Sample also wrote "

One Day I'll Fly Away "One Day I'll Fly Away" is a song performed by American jazz singer Randy Crawford, from her fourth studio album, '' Now We May Begin'' (1980). The song was written by Joe Sample and Will Jennings and produced by Sample, Wilton Felder and Stix ...

", originally sung by Crawford, which was featured in the film ''

Moulin Rouge! ''Moulin Rouge!'' (, ) is a 2001 jukebox musical romantic drama film directed, co-produced, and co-written by Baz Luhrmann. It follows a young English poet, Christian, who falls in love with the star of the Moulin Rouge, cabaret actress and cour ...

'', along with another of Jennings's songs, "

". In the film "One Day I'll Fly Away" was sung by

Nicole Kidman Nicole Mary Kidman (born 20 June 1967) is an American and Australian actress and producer. Known for her work across various film and television productions from several genres, she has consistently ranked among the world's highest-paid act ...

and, in March 2002, was released as a single in the UK from the second soundtrack album to emerge from ''Moulin Rouge''.

Albums

*With Steve Winwood: ''

, Roll With It, Chronicles, Refugees Of The Heart'' *With

, for

: ''

, Take It Home, There is Always One More Time'' *With Joe Sample, for various artists: ''The Crusaders Vocal Album'' *With Joe Sample, for

: ''Now We May Begin'' *With Jimmy Buffett: '' Riddles in the Sand'', '' The Last Mango In Paris'' *With Timothy B. Schmit and

Bruce Gaitsch Bruce R. Gaitsch (; born February 7, 1953) is an American guitarist, composer, and producer. He is best known for working with notable bands and musicians such Chicago, Peter Cetera, Madonna, and Agnetha Fältskog as a session musician and songwri ...

: ''Timothy B.'' *With Richard Kerr: ''Welcome To The Club'' *With Roy Orbison: ''King Of Hearts'' *With Peter Wolf: ''Fool's Parade, Sleepless'', and ''Midnight Souvenirs''

Hits

* Steve Winwood: **"

While You See A Chance "While You See a Chance" is a song performed by Steve Winwood in 1980, written by Winwood and Will Jennings. It was released on his album '' Arc of a Diver'' and peaked at number 7 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in April 1981 and number 68 on the ' ...

" **"Still In The Game" **"

" (#1, nominated for

Grammy Award for Song of the Year The Grammy Award for Song of the Year is an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. The Song of the Year award is one of the four most prestigious categories at ...

1987) **"

" **"

Valerie Valerie may refer to: People *Saint Valerie (disambiguation), a number of saints went by the name Valerie *Valerie (given name), a feminine given name Songs *"Valerie", a 1981 song by Quarterflash, from ''Quarterflash'' *"Valerie", a 1982 son ...

" **" Roll With It" (#1 US) ** Don't You Know What the Night Can Do? (#6 US) *

: **"

" (#2, nominated for a Golden Globe award, 1993 Grammy for Song of the Year, 1993 Ivor Novello award from British Academy of Songwriters, Composers, and Authors) *

: **"

" **" No Night So Long" *

/ The Crusaders: **" Street Life" **"

" *

: **" Somewhere in the Night" **"

" (#1) *

: **"

Didn't We Almost Have It All "Didn't We Almost Have It All" is a song recorded by American singer Whitney Houston for her second studio album, ''Whitney'' (1987). The song was written by Michael Masser and Will Jennings and produced by Masser. Initially, Houston's cover vers ...

" (#1) *

: **" Many a Long and Lonesome Highway" **"What Kind Of Love" * Jimmy Buffett: **"Who's The Blonde Stranger?" **"If The Phone Doesn't Ring, It's Me" * Joe Cocker and

: **"

" (#1, American Academy Award, British Academy Award, Winner Tokyo Song Festival) *

Celine Dion Céline Marie Claudette Dion ( ; born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. Noted for her powerful and technically skilled vocals, Dion is the best-selling Canadian recording artist, and the best-selling French-language artist of all time. Her ...

: **"

" (#1, American Academy Award, Golden Globe Award, Grammy for Song of the Year) *

: **" Please Remember Me" (#1 Country) * Diana Ross: **" If We Hold on Together"

Awards

He has received the following major awards: *

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

(1997),

for writing the lyrics to "

" performed by Céline Dion for the motion picture ''

Titanic RMS ''Titanic'' was a British passenger liner, operated by the White Star Line, which sank in the North Atlantic Ocean on 15 April 1912 after striking an iceberg during her maiden voyage from Southampton, England, to New York City, Unit ...

''. *

(1991) for writing the lyrics for "

" by

for the film '' Rush'' and also in 1991 for writing the song "Dreams To Dream" for the motion picture '' An American Tail: Fievel Goes West''. *

(1983),

(1983) along with

Jack Nitzsche Bernard Alfred "Jack" Nitzsche ( '; April 22, 1937 – August 25, 2000) was an American musician, arranger, songwriter, composer, and record producer. He first came to prominence in the early 1960s as the right-hand-man of producer Phil Spec ...

and

Buffy Sainte-Marie Buffy Sainte-Marie, (born Beverly Sainte-Marie, February 20, 1941) is an Indigenous Canadian-American ( Piapot Cree Nation) singer-songwriter, musician, composer, visual artist, educator, pacifist, and social activist. While working in these ...

for writing the song "

" performed by Joe Cocker and

from the motion picture '' An Officer and a Gentleman''. * BAFTA (

British Academy of Film and Television Arts British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

) award for "Up Where We Belong" with Jack Nitzsche and Buffy Sainte-Marie *Grammy Award (1993) — "Tears In Heaven" (shared with Eric Clapton) *Grammy Award (nomination) (1986) — "

" *Grammy Award to Dionne Warwick (1979) — "

" (co-written with Richard Kerr) *Academy Award (nomination) (1980) — for writing the song "People Alone" for the motion picture '' The Competition''.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Jennings, Will 1944 births Living people People from Kilgore, Texas Stephen F. Austin State University alumni Songwriters from Texas Best Original Song Academy Award-winning songwriters Golden Globe Award-winning musicians Grammy Award winners Tyler Junior College alumni University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire faculty