Johnny Mercer
Johnny Mercer's main claim to immortality is his incredible songwriting output, penning the lyrics or music and lyrics to roughly 1,500 songs. Marked by a sophisticated, occasionally whimsical mastery of language and rhymes, many of Mercer's songs have become standards regularly covered by jazz artists. Yet he was also a successful singer, with a relaxed, Southern-accented, jazzy, rhythmically agile delivery that resulted in several major hits in the 1940s. At first, he was torn between acting and songwriting, but having failed to land a part in Garrick Gaities in 1930, he ended up writing his first hit, "Out of Breath, Scared to Death of You," for the show. His first charted songwriting hit was Ted Lewis' 1933 recording of "Lazybones." By 1938, he was recording duets with Bing Crosby for Decca and the following year, he was on Benny Goodman's Camel Cavalcade radio program as a featured singer. In 1942, he, Glenn Wallichs, and Buddy DeSylva founded Capitol Records, which would eventually become an industry behemoth, and Mercer reeled off a string of hits for his label, including "Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe," "Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive," "Candy," and "Personality." "Atchison" is an especially good example of his flip, catchy, vocal style. While running Capitol, Mercer the talent scout attracted the likes of Nat King Cole, Stan Kenton, Jo Stafford, Peggy Lee, and Margaret Whiting to the label, where they had their greatest successes. Among Mercer's most durable lyrics -- a highly abbreviated list -- are those for "One for My Baby (And One More for the Road)," "Blues in the Night," "Come Rain or Come Shine," "My Shining Hour," and "Early Autumn," and his many collaborators have included Harold Arlen, Hoagy Carmichael, Duke Ellington, Jerome Kern, Gordon Jenkins, and Harry Warren. He also contributed to the scores of seven Broadway musicals and films. Following an album with Bobby Darin and collaborations with Henry Mancini in the early '60s, Mercer's career slowed down under the onslaught of rock & roll, but time has since reconfirmed his status as an American popular music giant.
© Richard S. Ginell /TiVo
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Discography
12 album(s) • Sorted by Bestseller
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Seven Brides For Seven Brothers (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (Deluxe Version)
Gene DePaul, Johnny Mercer, Seven Brides For Seven Brothers Motion Picture Cast
Film Soundtracks - Released by WaterTower Music on Aug 6, 1954
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Capitol Collectors Series
Pop - Released by Capitol Records on Jan 1, 1989
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Johnny Mercer Sings Johnny Mercer
Jazz - Released by Everest Records on Apr 22, 1965
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Accentuate The Positive!
Pop - Released by Blue Note Records on Jan 1, 1957
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Capitol Vaults Collection
Pop - Released by Capitol Records on Jan 1, 2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (2014 Studio Cast Recording)
Film Soundtracks - Released by Jay Records on Sep 4, 2014
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
They All Played: W. C. Handy's Memphis Blues (Recordings of 1936 - 1948)
Johnny Mercer, Milton Brown, Harry James
Jazz - Released by American Songbook Classics on Oct 31, 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Seven Brides For Seven Brothers (2015 Studio Cast of Regents Park Open Air Theatre)
Gene De Paul, Johnny Mercer, Al Kasha, Joel Hirschhorn
Film Soundtracks - Released by Jay Records on Jul 10, 2015
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
One More Rhyme
Classical - Released by Albany Records on Oct 1, 2000
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
P.S. I Love You
Jazz - Released by Transatlantica on Jul 28, 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Kirchner, Lisa: When Lights Are Low
Contemporary Jazz - Released by Albany on Jan 1, 2000
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo