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Sony/ATV’s "Musical Notes" #38 - Buddy Kaye
Jul 10, 2009

Sony/ATV’s "Musical Notes" #38 - Buddy Kaye

Sony/ATV’s "Musical Notes" #38 - Buddy Kaye

A newsletter highlighting some of the many classic songs in the Sony/ATV Music Publishing catalog.

From Alan Warner, Creative Consultant

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HAVE GUITAR…WILL RIFF!

Unforgettable Guitar Riffs

Among the memorable components of many rock ‘n’ roll songs is the opening guitar riff; here are a few standout examples from Sony/ATV classics…

DAY TRIPPER (Lennon/McCartney)
By The Beatles (UK Parlophone/Capitol: 1965)


GODZILLA (Roeser)
By Blue Oyster Cult (Columbia/Sony: 1977)


I FEEL FINE (Lennon/McCartney)
By The Beatles (UK Parlophone/Capitol: 1964)


LE FREAK (Rodgers/Edwards)
By Chic (Atlantic/WMG: 1978)


LOVE SPREADS (Squire)
By Stone Roses (Geffen/Universal: 1994)


OH PRETTY WOMAN (Orbison/Dees)
By Roy Orbison (Monument/Sony: 1964)


THE PRICE OF LOVE (Everly/Everly)
By The Everly Brothers (Warner Bros/WMG: 1965)


RHIANNON (Will You Ever Win) (Nicks)
By Fleetwood Mac (Reprise/WMG: 1976)


WOODSTOCK (Mitchell)
By Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young (Atlantic/WMG: 1970)


YOU REALLY GOT ME (Davies)
By The Kinks (Reprise: 1964)


And there are certainly others. The Beatles had a series of them…
Besides DAY TRIPPER and I FEEL FINE, Paul’s intro on TICKET TO RIDE is another of his riveting licks that refuses to let you go!

Our list includes some other well-loved favorites including Lindsey Buckingham’s rousing opener for RHIANNON and Nile Rodgers’ scene-setting funk-filled guitar opus in LE FREAK.

It’s entirely appropriate that Dave Davies (of The Kinks) be mentioned, on YOU REALLY GOT ME, his powerful 5-note guitar figure sets up the attitude for brother Ray’s incomparable statement of teen lust.


Songs by BUDDY KAYE

Buddy Kaye (1918-2002) was a saxophone player who became a successful lyric writer. His big royalty-earners included two hits based on classical themes (namely TILL THE END OF TIME and FULL MOON AND EMPTY ARMS) plus novelty songs built around individual letters of the alphabet (‘A’ YOU’RE ADORABLE and CHRISTMAS ALPHABET). Buddy’s hits stretched from the mid-1940’s through to 1981 and here are the highlights of his Sony/ATV titles:

‘A’ YOU’RE ADORABLE (THE ALPHABET SONG)(Buddy Kaye/Fred Wise/Sidney Lippman)
“A, You're adorable, B, You're so beautiful . . .
C, You're a cutie full of charms . . .
D, You're a darling and . . . E, You're exciting . . .
F, You're a feather in my arms . . . "

By Perry Como & The Fontane Sisters (RCA/Sony: 1949) US #1 Pop
By Jo Stafford & Gordon MacRay (Capitol/EMI: 1949) US #4 Pop
By Tony Pastor & His Orchestra/Vocal by The Clooney Sisters*(Columbia/Sony: 1949) US #12 Pop
By The Buddy Kaye Quintet/Vocal by Artie Malvin (MGM/Universal: 1949) US #27 Pop

Other versions incl: Larry Fontine & His Orch. (Decca/Universal), Josephine Bradley & Her Ballroom Orchestra (UK Decca/Universal), Edd Byrnes (Warner Bros/WMG)

ALL CRIED OUT (Buddy Kaye/Philip Springer)
By Dusty Springfield (Philips/Universal: 1964) US #41 Pop

Other versions incl: The Fortunes (UK Decca/Universal)
Sara Lee (Righteous Babe)

BANJO BOY (Buddy Kaye/Charly Niessen)
By Dorothy Collins (Top Rank: 1960) US #79 Pop


CHRISTMAS ALPHABET (Buddy Kaye/Jules Loman)
“C is for the candy trimmed around the Christmas tree,
H is for the happiness with all the family”

Original version by The McGuire Sisters (Coral/Universal: 1954)
By Dickie Valentine (UK Decca/Universal: 1955) UK #1

Other versions incl: Shirley Abicair (UK Parlophone/EMI)

DON’T BE A BABY, BABY (Buddy Kaye/Howard Steiner)
By The Mills Brothers (Decca/Universal: 1946) US #12 Pop
By The Benny Goodman Sextet/Vocal by Art Lund (Columbia/Sony: 1946) US #11 Pop


FULL MOON AND EMPTY ARMS (Buddy Kaye/Ted Mossman)
Based on Rachmaninoff’s Second Piano Concerto
“Full Moon And Empty Arms,
The moon is there for us to share,
But where are you?
A night like this could weave a memory,
And every kiss could start a dream for two”

By Frank Sinatra (Columbia/Sony: 1946) US #17 Pop
By Ray Noble & His Orchestra/Vocal by Snooky Lanson (Columbia/Sony: 1946) US #18 Pop

Other versions incl: Robert Goulet (Columbia/Sony), Freddie Hubbard (Blue Note/EMI), Eddie Fisher (RCA/Sony), Sarah Vaughan, Gordon MacRae, J.J. Johnson Quartet

IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE (Buddy Kaye/Beatrice Verdi)
“Where does our love lie? In The Middle Of Nowhere/
Will it soon pass me by? In the middle of nowhere”

By Dusty Springfield (Philips/Universal: 1965) UK #8

LITTLE BY LITTLE (Buddy Kaye/Beatrice Verdi)
“Little By Little, bit by bit, I’m going crazy and you’re causing it
Little by little, bit by bit, I should stop caring but my love won’t quit”

By Dusty Springfield (Philips/Universal: 1966) UK #17

THE NEXT TIME (Buddy Kaye/Philip Springer)
“They say I’ll love again someday
A truer love will come my way The Next Time”

Performed by Cliff Richard in his pop musical movie “Summer Holiday” (Warner-Pathe: 1963)
By Cliff Richard & The Shadows (UK Columbia/EMI: 1962) UK #1


THE OLD SONGS (Buddy Kaye/David Pomeranz)
“Maybe the old songs will bring back the old times,
Maybe the old lines will sound new,
Maybe she’ll lay her head on my shoulder,
Maybe old feelings will come through”

By Barry Manilow (Arista/Sony: 1981) US #15 Pop, #1 AC, UK #48

A PENNY A KISS
Aka A PENNY A KISS - A PENNY A HUG
(Buddy Kaye/Ralph Care)

“A Penny A Kiss, A Penny A Hug.
We're gonna save our pennies in a big round jug.
A penny a kiss, a penny a hug, oh how rich we're gonna be”

By Tony Martin & Dinah Shore (RCA/Sony: 1951) US #8 Pop
By Eddy Howard & His Orchestra/Vocal by Eddy Howard
(Mercury/Universal: 1951) US #14 Pop
By The Andrews Sisters (Decca/Universal: 1951) US #17 Pop

Other versions incl: Teresa Brewer & Snooky Lanson (London/Universal), Dick Lee (MGM/Universal), Mary Mayo with The Four Chicks & A Chuck (Capitol/EMI)

SPEEDY GONZALES (Buddy Kaye/David Hess/Ethel Lee)
“You better come home, Speedy Gonzales, away from tannery row
Stop all-a your a-drinkin' with that floozy named Flo
Come on home to your adobe and slap some mud on the wall
The roof is leakin' like a strainer, there's loads of roaches in the hall”

By Pat Boone (Dot/Universal: 1962) US #6 Pop, UK #2
Other versions incl: John Leyton (UK Columbia/EMI),
Brian Poole (UK Decca/Universal), Charo & The Salsoul Orchestra (Salsoul), A.B. Quintanilla III & Kumbia Kings (EMI Latin)


SWEET WILLIAM (Buddy Kaye/Philip Springer)
By Millie Small (Fontana/Universal: 1964) UK #30, US #40


THIS IS NO LAUGHING MATTER (Buddy Kaye/Al Frisch)
“This Is No Laughing Matter
Somehow I want to cry
I know your sweet and idle chatter
Really means goodbye”

By Charlie Spivak & His Orchestra/Vocal by Garry Stevens (OKeh/Sony: 1942) US #8 Pop
By Glenn Miller & His Orchestra/Vocal by Ray Eberle (Victor/Sony: 1942) US #17 Pop
By Jimmy Dorsey & His Orchestra/Vocal by Bob Eberly (Decca/Universal: 1942) US #20 Pop

Other versions incl: Eddy Duchin & His Orchestra/Vocal by
Jimmy Blair (Columbia/Sony), Lita Roza (UK Pye/Universal), Stan Kenton & His Orchestra (Capitol/EMI)

TILL THE END OF TIME (Buddy Kaye/Ted Mossman)
Steeped in nostalgia and based on Chopin’s Polonaise in A Flat, this is the kind of eternal love song that resonated so strongly with audiences in the 1940’s. A massive million-seller for Perry Como who started out as a band singer and ended up a major TV star in the 1960’s.
“Till The End Of Time,
Long as stars are in the blue,
Long as there's a spring, a bird to sing,
I'll go on loving you”

By Perry Como (Victor/Sony: 1945) US #1 Pop
By Les Brown & His Orchestra/Vocal by Doris Day (Columbia/Sony: 1945) US #3 Pop
By Dick Haymes (Decca/Universal: 1945) US #3 Pop
By The Ray Charles Singers (Command/Universal: 1964) US #18 AC, #83 Pop

Other versions incl: Florian Zabach (Mercury/Universal),
Jerry Vale (Columbia/Sony), The Nobles (ABC-Paramount/Universal), Kathy Kirby (Parrot/Universal), Nelson Riddle & His Orchestra (Capitol/EMI), Caterina Valente (RCA/Sony)


R.I.P.: VERN GOSDIN (1934-2009)

Country singer/songwriter Vern Gosdin died last week. Known affectionately as ‘The Voice”, he was born in Woodland, Alabama, and before going solo, was a member of The Hillmen, a bluegrass group led by Chris Hillman, later of The Byrds. Below is a list of outstanding songs with which Vern charted including his composition CHISELED IN STONE which the CMA named Song Of The Year in
1989. Another standout ballad is the poignant IS IT RAINING AT YOUR HOUSE which Brad Paisley revived on his ‘Mud On The Tires’ album in 2003. (We’ve included both Vern & Brad’s versions on the accompanying playlist)

BREAK MY MIND (Loudermilk)
By Vern Gosdin (Elektra/WMG: 1978) US #13 Country


CHISELED IN STONE (Gosdin/Barnes)
By Vern Gosdin (Columbia/Sony: 1988) US #6 Country


DO YOU BELIEVE ME NOW (Gosdin/Barnes)
By Vern Gosdin (Columbia/Sony: 1988) US #4 Country


IF YOU’RE GONNA DO ME WRONG (DO IT RIGHT)(Gosdin/Barnes)
By Vern Gosdin (Compleat: 1983) US #5 Country


IS IT RAINING AT YOUR HOUSE (Gosdin/Dillon/Cochran)
By Vern Gosdin (Columbia/Sony: 1991) US #10 Country
By Brad Paisley (Arista Nashville/Sony: 2003)


RIGHT IN THE WRONG DIRECTION (Gosdin/Vickery/Cochran)
By Vern Gosdin (Columbia/Sony: 1990) US #10 Country


SET ‘EM UP JOE (Gosdin/Dillon/Cochran/Cannon)
By Vern Gosdin (Columbia/Sony: 1988) US #1 Country


SLOW BURNIN’ MEMORY (Gosdin/Barnes)
By Vern Gosdin (Compleat: 1985) US #10 Country


THAT JUST ABOUT DOES IT (Gosdin/Barnes)
By Vern Gosdin (Columbia/Sony: 1990) US #4 Country


THIS AIN’T MY FIRST RODEO (Gosdin/Barnes/Cochran)
By Vern Gosdin (Columbia/Sony: 1990) US #14 Country


WAY DOWN DEEP (Barnes/Barnes)
By Vern Gosdin (Compleat: 1983) US #5 Country


WHAT WOULD YOUR MEMORIES DO (Dillon/Cochran)
By Vern Gosdin (Compleat: 1984) US #10 Country


WHO YOU GONNA BLAME IT ON THIS TIME (Gosdin/Cochran)
By Vern Gosdin (Columbia/Sony: 1989) US #2 Country



Click HERE for Associated Playlist.


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US chart positions courtesy of Joel Whitburn & Billboard Magazine

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5/09



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