Dick James
Dick James | |
---|---|
Born | Reginald Isaac Leon Vapnick 12 December 1920 London, England |
Died | 1 February 1986 London, England | (aged 65)
Occupations |
|
Years active |
|
Military career | |
Allegiance | United Kingdom |
Service/ | British Army |
Years of service | 1942–1945 |
Unit | King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry Parachute Regiment |
Battles/wars | World War II |
Dick James (born Reginald Leon Isaac Vapnick; 12 December 1920 – 1 February 1986) was a British
Early life
This section needs additional citations for verification. (July 2023) |
James was born on 12 December 1920 in the East End of London, to Polish Jewish immigrants. His father was a kosher butcher.[1][2]
He sang with North London dance bands in his early teens, and was a regular vocalist at the Cricklewood Palais by the age of seventeen. James joined the
He was the singer of the
Switch to publishing
James entered the
What initially began as an amicable working relationship between the Beatles and James disintegrated by the late 1960s: the Beatles considered that James had betrayed and taken advantage of them when he sold Northern Songs in 1969 without offering the band an opportunity to buy control of the publishing company. James profited handsomely from the sale of Northern Songs, but the Beatles never again had the rights to their own songs.[8]
During the 1960s, James also handled Billy J. Kramer and Gerry and the Pacemakers. James lived in Anson Road, Cricklewood, north-west London, in the 1960s. He was involved, along with Brian Epstein, in offering Bobby Willis a singing contract which he turned down on his future wife, Cilla Black's, insistence. Willis was a backing singer on Cilla Black's "You're My World".[citation needed]
Later days
James signed Elton John (then known as Reginald Dwight) and his lyricist Bernie Taupin as untried unknowns in 1967 after his son, Stephen, who had been working with his father since 1963, found Dwight using their recording studios late at night without permission. Stephen, who had started the recording studios and opened a record production company called This Productions, formed DJM Records in 1969.[citation needed]
Stephen instigated Dwight's adoption of the stage name "Elton John" and oversaw his first recording contract. All of John's releases up to 1976 were issued on the DJM record label. The label also carried Jasper Carrott, RAH Band, Danny Kirwan, and John Inman.[citation needed]
John formed his own
In June 1985, the British music magazine NME reported that John was suing James over the rights to his earlier material – a case which John lost.[10]
Death
James died in London of a heart attack on 1 February 1986, at the age of 65. Dick James Music was acquired by PolyGram which was, in turn, bought by Universal Music Group. The Dick James catalog is currently part of Universal Music Publishing Group.
UK chart hits
- "Robin Hood" / "The Ballad of Davy Crockett" (1956) – number 14
- "Garden of Eden" (1957) – number 18[11]
Notes
- ISBN 9780857121172. Retrieved 1 August 2020 – via Google Books.
- ISBN 9781440674075. Retrieved 1 August 2020 – via Google Books.
- ^ "Stargazers". CHARTWATCH. Archived from the original on 18 April 2005.
- ^ Tobler, John (1992). NME Rock 'N' Roll Years (1st ed.). London: Reed International Books Ltd. p. 23. CN 5585.
- ^ Coleman, Ray (1990). Brian Epstein – The Man Who Made The Beatles. London: Penguin. p. 118.
- ^ Tobler, John (1992). NME Rock 'N' Roll Years (1st ed.). London: Reed International Books Ltd. p. 117. CN 5585.
- ^ Spitz 2005. p. 365
- ^ Harry, Bill (2000). The Beatles Encyclopedia. p. 573
- ^ Schuster, Gary. "Songwriters and Music Publishers: Partners in Rhyme?". Jacobowitz and Gubits, LLP. Archived from the original on 20 March 2006.
- ^ Tobler, John (1992). NME Rock 'N' Roll Years (1st ed.). London: Reed International Books Ltd. p. 405. CN 5585.
- ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
References
- Harry, Bill (2000). The Beatles Encyclopedia: Revised and Updated. Virgin Publishing London. ISBN 0-7535-0481-2.
- Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
- Spitz, Bob (2005). The Beatles: The Biography. ISBN 1-84513-160-6.