Paul Vance
Paul Vance | |
---|---|
Birth name | Joseph Paul Florio |
Born | Brooklyn, New York, U.S. | November 4, 1929
Died | May 30, 2022 West Palm Beach, Florida, U.S. | (aged 92)
Genres | Pop, novelty songs |
Occupation(s) | Songwriter, record producer |
Labels | Columbia Records |
Joseph Paul Florio (November 4, 1929 – May 30, 2022), known professionally as Paul Vance, was an American songwriter and record producer, primarily from the 1950s until the 1970s.
His most successful song compositions, all written with Lee Pockriss, included "Catch a Falling Star", "Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polkadot Bikini", and "Tracy".
Career
He was born Joseph Paul Florio in
After opening an
Another success, written with Pockriss, was "
In all, Vance wrote over 300 songs, including recordings by Johnny Mathis, Paul Anka, and Tommy James and the Shondells.[3] Pockriss and Vance released a single in 1959 for Columbia Records as 'Lee and Paul,' a novelty tune called "The Chick."[4] They also provided English lyrics for the song "Calcutta". "What Will Mary Say", a Top 10 hit for the singer Johnny Mathis in 1963, was written by Vance with Eddie Snyder.
Vance and Pockriss wrote a song entitled "Leader Of The Laundromat," in 1964, the song was a spoof of the then-popular "
Vance and Pockriss wrote "What's Going On in the Barn," in 1965, which Billy Thornhill recorded for Wand Records as the B-side to his recording of "The Key," written by Pockriss and Hal Hackady.[5] The following year, Vance had a minor hit as a singer when his recording of "Dommage, Dommage (Too Bad, Too Bad)", intended as a demo, was released by Scepter Records.[6]
Vance teamed up with Dante again in 1969 after the latter agreed to record a demo of the new Vance/Pockriss composition, "Tracy." Dante provided all the voices on the recording, both leads and backgrounds, and the single was released under the name The Cuff Links. Its success prompted Vance to bring Dante back into the recording studio to record an entire album's worth of songs, and the resultant LP, also entitled Tracy, was rush-released to capitalize on the popularity of the single. As with The Detergents' album, Vance produced the recording sessions and co-wrote all of the songs with Pockriss.
Vance and Pockriss penned "
On April 14, 1980, Vance produced Andy Williams' recording of Vance and Tina Kaplan's penned "Christine, She's a Woman Now". for Columbia Records. The track remained in the vaults until February 2024.
Through the years, Vance continued to produce various recording artists, including Kathy Keates, who recorded, among other songs on the RCA Records label, the hit single "I Think About You" with Al Martino.
In October 2009, Vance was nominated for induction into the Songwriters Hall of Fame.[7]
Vance was also a successful owner of harness racing horses. According to the United States Trotting Association he owned or leased 167 horses during his career, including record winner Secret Service, trained by his son Joseph Vance.[8]
Premature obituary
On September 6, 2006, a man named Paul van Valkenburgh of Ormond Beach, Florida, died from complications of lung cancer. An obituary published in The News-Times of Danbury, Connecticut repeated Van Valkenburgh's claim that he had written the song "Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weeny Yellow Polka-Dot Bikini" under the pen name of Paul Vance, but that he had sold his rights to the song decades earlier.[3] The report was picked up by the Associated Press, which ran a short obituary of Vance based on both the News-Times obituary and information received from Van Valkenburgh's widow. The AP obituary was picked up by newspapers and other media outlets worldwide.[3]
Vance contacted local media after viewing a report of his death on a local television news broadcast. He announced that he was still alive and was able to prove his identity to reporters with a stack of
Memoir
In September 2014, after eight years in the making, Vance published his memoir, titled Catch a Falling Star.
Personal life and death
Vance resided in Boca Raton, Florida. His son, Philip, who sang the chorus of "Playground in my Mind" with Clint Holmes, died on December 11, 2009, at age 44.[11]
Vance died in West Palm Beach, Florida on May 30, 2022, at the age of 92.[8][3]
References
- ^ "Paul Vance". iTunes.
- ^ a b Streeter, Leslie Gray (January 24, 2015). "'Itsy Bitsy' songwriter Paul Vance looking for another hit at 85". The Palm Beach Post. Retrieved January 23, 2022.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Sandomir, Richard (June 6, 2022). "Paul Vance, Lyricist Behind an 'Itsy Bitsy' Bikini, Dies at 92". The New York Times. Retrieved June 6, 2022.
- ^ "Lee And Paul Discography - All Countries". 45cat.com. Retrieved 6 June 2022.
- ^ "Oddball Psych 45 BILLY THORNHILL The Key What's Going On WAND VG hear garage". eBay.com. Retrieved May 31, 2021.
- ^ "For Hot Disk Singer Vance, It's Composing First, Last, Always". Billboard magazine. October 8, 1966. Retrieved June 7, 2015.
- ^ "John Mellencamp - Official Website". Mellencamp.com. Retrieved May 31, 2021.
- ^ a b "Paul Vance, songwriter and horse owner, dies at 92". Harnesslink.com. June 1, 2022. Retrieved June 1, 2022.
- ^ "'Itsy Bitsy' writer victim of itsy-bitsy imposter". CNN.com. September 27, 2006. Archived from the original on September 28, 2006. Retrieved 2006-09-27.
- ^ Leeds, Jeff (September 28, 2006). "Itsy-Bitsy Bikini, Big Mistake: Paul Vance Is Alive and Well". The New York Times. Retrieved 2006-12-01.
- ^ "The Dead Rock Stars Club 2009 July to December". Thedeadrockstarsclub.com. Retrieved May 31, 2021.
External links
- Paul Vance discography at Discogs
- Paul Vance at IMDb