Buddy Kaye(1918-2002)
- Music Department
- Composer
- Soundtrack
Hit songwriter and lyricist ("Till the End of Time", "Full Moon and
Empty Arms"), author, musician and publisher who began his career as a
saxophonist aboard ships and at summer hotels. He made a number of
recordings with his own quintet, and wrote special material for
The Mills Brothers, Ted Lewis, and The McGuire Sisters. He wrote "Till the End of Time" (based
on a Frédéric Chopin polonaise) with Ted Mossman, which became the first big
Perry Como hit (selling two million copies) and a hit for Les Brown with the
voice of Doris Day. In 1946 he had another success with "Full Moon and
Empty Arms" (based on a Sergei Rachmaninoff theme, the 2nd Piano Concerto), a hit
for Frank Sinatra in 1946. His "'A' - You're Adorable" was a #1 hit for Como
and The Fontaine Sisters in 1949. Other Kaye songs became hits for
Sarah Vaughan, Dinah Washington, Ella Fitzgerald and Dusty Springfield, plus others. Joining ASCAP in
1941, he also collaborated musically with Jimmy McHugh, Jimmy Van Heusen, Philip Springer,
Jule Styne, Jerry Ross, and Hugo Montenegro. His other popular-song compositions
include "I'll Close My Eyes", "Don't Be a Baby, Baby", "This Is No
Laughing Matter", "It's Gonna Be a Long, Long Winter", "Banjo Boy", "A
Penny Kiss - A Penny Hug", "Christmas Alphabet", "Speedy Gonzales",
"Quiet Nights", "Little Boat", "O Barquino", "This Is My Prayer",
"Never Ending", "The Next Time", "Sweet William", "All Cried Out",
"Welcome Welcome Home" and "Her Little Heart Went to
Loveland".
