Don Costa

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Don Costa
Background information
Birth nameDominick P. Costa
Born(1925-06-10)June 10, 1925
Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
DiedJanuary 19, 1983(1983-01-19) (aged 57)
New York, U.S.
GenresPop, jazz
Occupation(s)Conductor, arranger, record producer, musician
Instrument(s)Guitar

Dominick P. "Don" Costa (June 10, 1925 – January 19, 1983)[1] was an American conductor and record producer.[2] He discovered singer Paul Anka and worked on several hit albums by Frank Sinatra, including Sinatra and Strings and My Way.

Career

Costa was born in

Italian American family.[3] As a child, he took a keen interest in learning the guitar, and he became a member of the CBS Radio Orchestra by the time he was in his teens. In the late 1940s, Costa moved to New York City to further his career by becoming a session musician. He played guitar with Bucky Pizzarelli on Vaughn Monroe's hit record "Ghost Riders in the Sky
". It was around this time that Costa started experimenting with combinations of instruments, producing musical arrangements, and selling them to big bands.

A&R man as well as chief arranger and producer.[3] Many hits were to follow, not only with Lawrence and Gormé, but with Lloyd Price, George Hamilton IV, and Paul Anka.[4] Apart from his arranging skills, Costa was a guitarist. Between 1956 and 1957, he released two 45s on ABC-Paramount using the alias Muvva "Guitar" Hubbard. He wrote the first, "Ponytail", as an R&B instrumental. The second was a cover version of "Raunchy" by Bill Justis
.

In 1957, he signed 15-year-old Carole King to her first recording contract on the strength of her performance after talking her way into an audition at his office. [5]

In

Hot 100.[8]

During this time,

Sony in 2001. Costa also arranged Tony Bennett's 1965 album If I Ruled the World: Songs for the Jet Set.[9]

In the mid-1960s, Costa moved from New York City to Hollywood and in 1964 formed DCP International through United Artists.[1] His label revived the career of popular 1950s act Little Anthony and the Imperials. Working with producer Teddy Randazzo, Little Anthony had a fresh string of hits, including "Goin' Out of My Head" and "Hurt So Bad". In 1963, Costa discovered Trini Lopez working at PJ's, a Hollywood nightclub. Later in the decade, Sinatra again called on Costa to become his arranger, and Costa's work with Lawrence and Gormé abated. During this period, Sinatra scored one of his biggest hits, the Paul Anka adaptation of "My Way" (from the French "Comme d'habitude").[1] UA Records acquired DCP International in 1966 and renamed the label Veep Records.[10]

Later years and death

Costa was conducting for Sinatra in

Steve & Eydie featuring the Osmonds (1972), and Petula Clark's cover of "My Guy
" (1971).

In 1980, Costa received his fourth

signature song for Sinatra, "Theme from New York, New York".[11] Costa then scored a hit in 1981 with his 10-year-old daughter Nikka, titled "Out Here on My Own". The two were planning a follow-up when Costa died of a heart attack on January 19, 1983, in New York.[4]

Selected discography

  • Music to Break a Sub-Lease (1958)
  • The Theme from "The Unforgiven" (1960)
  • Magnificent Motion Picture Music (1961)
  • Hollywood Premiere! (1962)
  • Days of Wine and Roses (1966)
  • Modern Delights (1967)
  • The Don Costa Concept (1969)

See also

References

  1. ^
    ISBN 0-85112-939-0
    .
  2. ^ "Paul Anka Interview: So Square That He's Hip (at 80)". Best Classic Bands. 2021-07-30. Archived from the original on 2021-07-30. Retrieved 2021-08-16.
  3. ^
    ISBN 0-214-20512-6
    .
  4. ^ a b c "Don Costa, Musician-Conductor". The New York Times. United Press International. January 21, 1983.
  5. ISBN 978-1-4555-1261-4
    .
  6. ^ "Don Costa Biography". Space Age Musicmaker. Retrieved February 2, 2015.
  7. ISBN 1-904994-10-5
    .
  8. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2013). Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles: 1955–2012 (14th ed.). Record Research. p. 195.
  9. ISBN 978-0879307172
    .
  10. ^ https://www.bsnpubs.com/ua/DCP-Veep.pdf [bare URL PDF]
  11. ^ "Don Costa". Grammy Awards. Recording Academy. Retrieved December 26, 2021.

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Don_Costa&oldid=1217036782"