Hoagy Carmichael biography

(1899 - 1981)

Hoagy Carmichael is remembered today as one of America's great composers of popular songs. Several of his tunes, like "Star Dust" ,"Georgia on My Mind" ,"Up The Lazy River", "Lazybones", and "Skylark" "Heart and Soul" have become standards which are still widely performed.

While studying to be a lawyer at Indiana University, Hoagy Carmichael wrote a couple tunes for a band called Curtis Hitch's Happy Harmonists. The songs were "Washboard Blues" and "Boneyard Shuffle" and they were recorded in 1924 for Gennett records with Carmichael on piano. Through his association with this band he meet Bix Beiderbecke, who was a member of the Wolverine Orchestra at that time. The two became close friends and the Wolverines went on to record Carmichael's "Riverboat Shuffle". Music publisher Irving Mills heard the Wolverine's record and wrote Hoagy Carmichael asking if his company could publish the song, to which Hoagy agreed. Hoagy Carmichael, himself lead several other sessions at Gennett, where he recorded the first version of "Stardust". But Carmichael took a job in Florida as a law clerk after graduating. While there, he unexpectedly heard a recording of his song, "Washboard Blues", by Red Nichols and his Five Pennies. He had been unaware that the song had been re-recorded. It was then that he decided to abandon law and become a musician. Hoagy Carmichael returned to Indiana and resumed his music career. Several of his friends, including Bix, were playing in Paul Whiteman's Orchestra by this time. Whiteman was familar with some of Hoagy Carmichael's Gennett recordings and also went on to record Hoagy's "Washboard Blues" in 1927.
Hoagy Carmichael sings and plays piano on the track and it holds up as one of the Whiteman Orchestra's best performances. In 1930 Isham Jones had a huge hit with a ballad version of Stardust.

By 1935 Hoagy Carmichael was working in Hollywood as a songwriter and he also became a character actor, appearing in 14 films. In 1941 he had a number one hit with his own song "Huggin' & Chalkin'". In 1951 he won an Oscar for his song "In the Cool Cool Cool of the Evening" that was performed by Bing Crosby in Paramount's "Here Comes the Groom". In the 1960s he composed two orchestral works, "Brown County In Autumn" and "Johnny Appleseed" which where unsuccessful. Hoagy Carmichael never resumed his song writing career after the failure of these two works.

Hoagy Carmichael -- Encyclopaedia Britannica
Carmichael, Hoagy. Hoagy Carmichael. Encyclopædia Britannica Article. Page 1 of 1. reference to this article on Hoagy Carmichael will enhance your website, blog.


The Official Hoagy Carmichael Site - Jazz Musician Songwriter.
The Official web site for jazz musician and songwriter Hoagy Carmichael . want to share information about Hoagy Carmichael, and keep you informed of coming events.


Hoagy Carmichael - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Hoagland Howard "Hoagy" Carmichael (November 22, 1899 - December 27, 1981) was. The Hoagy Carmichael Room, Archives of Traditional Music, Indiana University.


Hoagy Carmichael on Yahoo! Music
.of the American popular song, Hoagy Carmichael differed from most of the others. more Hoagy Carmichael similar artists >.


Indiana Historical Society
.to his death in 1981, Hoagy Carmichael fashioned a string of enduring songs. been collected in The Classic Hoagy Carmichael, copublished by the IHS and the.


Songwriters Hall of Fame
Mitchell Parish, Hoagy Carmichael. EMI Mills Music, Inc./Hoagy Publishing Co. GEORGIA ON MY MIND. Hoagy Carmichael, Stuart Gorrell. N/A View Full Discography.


Hoagy Carmichael at Reel Classics
The stardust road by Hoagy Carmichael (New York: Rinehart, 1946). melody: the life and music of Hoagy Carmichael by Richard M. Sudhalter