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| Denny Randell - 2009 Nominee Into the Songwriter's Hall of Fame Legendary songwriter, performer, producer and arranger Denny Randell has written songs that have contributed to the sales of over 200 million records. The New York-born Randell began composing in the early 1960s - first rising to fame for penning now-immortal tunes including many recorded by Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons - and his songwriting magic has delivered chart hits in every decade since. For his enduring and prolific body of work, Randell has just been honored with a nomination for 2009 induction into the prestigious Songwriter's Hall of Fame (SHOF). Voting is underway now through December 12, and inductees will be announced at SHOF's 40th Anniversary Gala next year. Among the songs cited in SHOF's nomination of Randell are three of his hits for Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons that are featured in the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical Jersey Boys as well as on its GRAMMY-winning soundtrack: "Let's Hang On (To What We Got)" (with Bob Crewe and Sandy Linzer), "Opus 17" and "Workin' My Way Back To You" (with Linzer). The latter was just recognized by BMI for surpassing the astonishing 6 million performance mark in the U.S. alone, one of the only songs ever to amass that many spins. Randell's classic songs also include: "A Lover's Concerto, " originally recorded by The Toys (and now a worldwide standard covered by artists including Diana Ross & The Supremes, Sarah Vaughan, Quincy Jones and Kelly Chen, who recently made it a hit throughout Southeast Asia); the Odyssey smash "Native New Yorker"; the Smash Mouth hit "Can't Get Enough Of You Baby" (with Linzer); and the Frankie Valli solo smash "Swearin' To God" (with Crewe). Among Randell's other hit songs are: The Toys' "Attack"; "Keep The Ball Rollin" and "Baby Make Your Own Sweet Music" by Jay and The Techniques; "The Mouse" by TV legend Soupy Sales; songs for The Monkees and their hit sit-com including "I'll Be Back Upon My Feet"; and "I Wanna Dance Wit'choo" by Disco Tex and the Sex-o-Lettes. Inventive sampling of Randell's catalogue has yielded hits including "Pass The Courvoisier" by Busta Rhymes and P. Diddy, and other diverse highlights include his work (with Maury Yeston) on The Star Wars Christmas Album: Christmas In The Stars (story by George Lucas), the Tommy Tune-directed Off Broadway hit show Cloud 9 and four songs for the American Werewolf In London soundtrack album. Denny Randell's latest hit is the recurrent dance chart and club favorite "Alice In Wonderland, " a fractured post-modern spin-off of the classic fable that's an inspired collaboration with his writing, performing and producing partner Biddy Schippers. The animated five-minute video companion that they created for it reached the Top 10 on Yahoo's video charts in 2007, and the track is one of what Allmusic.com has called Randell & Schippers', "electronic dance songs that have since become club staples." Their previous dance hits include "Let's Got For It" and "Love Jam, " which the U.K.'s Blues and Soul Magazine called, "quite simply, a modern masterpiece." Currently, Randell is developing a musical revue featuring songs he's written throughout his career that he plans to premiere in early 2009. With Schippers, he's also writing an original musical titled Posthumously Yours, with plans for it to be Broadway bound. write your comments about the article :: © 2008 Jazz News :: home page |