Mike Stoller, left, and Jerry Leiber at an event in 2009.

August 22, 2011

Pop music lyricist Jerry Leiber, whose partnership with Mike Stoller created such timeless hits as "Jailhouse Rock" and "There Goes My Baby," helping to shape the identity and commercial potential of early rock and roll, died Tuesday of cardio pulmonary failure, Rolling Stone is reporting. He was 78.

A dual member of the Songwriters Hall of Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the Baltimore native helped create the "crossover" phenomenon with mainstream hits for black artists like The Coasters ("Young Blood," "Yakety Yak," "Charlie Brown") and Ben E. King ("Stand By Me").

Other definitive songs include "Love Potion No. 9," "Kansas City" and a pair of songs that became eternally tied to Elvis Presley. In 1956, Presley snatched up their track "Hound Dog," written four years earlier for Big Mama Thornton. A year later, Presley growled to "Jailhouse Rock," a genre-defining song released alongside the film of the same name.

The 1960s were kind to Leiber/Stoller with a continued parade of hits including The Drifters' "On Broadway," The Shangri-Las' "Leader of the Pack" and the Dixie Cups' "Chapel of Love."

In 1969, they produced Peggy Lee's "Is That All There Is?"

Their songs are pop music standards and are regularly covered by other artists and featured on television shows such as "American Idol," which dedicated an entire episode in season 10 to their catalog.

Their legacy was further cemented in 1995 when "Smokey Joe's Cafe: The Songs of Leiber & Stoller" opened on Broadway. The show comprised of 40 songs from the duo and was nominated for seven Tony Awards before closing five years later.

Born less than a month apart in 1933, Mike Stoller still lives in Los Angeles.

Link

I didn't know they were still alive.

A wonderful rendition by Donald Fagen of...



...Ruby Baby






Music for adventurous listeners

tA

Tribal Records

Rest in power and thank you for the great music. You and Stoller were geniuses.

Poor Hound Dog, moving on to the pound in heaven. Thank you kind sir for your wealth of music, you've blessed us all.

Timmy84 said:

Rest in power and thank you for the great music. You and Stoller were geniuses.

Two great songwriters in one day?! Enough already! RIP Mr. Lieber.

As in Nick's thread, cry later. For now, celebrate their treasures.

[Edited 8/22/11 18:49pm]

i was reading on another thread about some quotes from lieber. elvis notwithstanding, most of their early songs were sung by black artists. lieber is quoted as saying he just wanted to be black, and that he really didn't like elvis' cover hound dog b/c he didn't understand the whole 'rabbit' part. apparently, that wasn't in the original song.

great, great songwriter. he and stoller wrote their stuff loooonnnnggg before i was born, but i know so many of their songs for word. test of time.

[Edited 8/22/11 18:54pm]

kibbles said:

i was reading on another thread about some quotes from lieber. elvis notwithstanding, most of their early songs were sung by black artists. lieber is quoted as saying he just wanted to be black, and that he really didn't like elvis' cover hound dog b/c he didn't understand the whole 'rabbit' part. apparently, that wasn't in the original song.

great, great songwriter. he and stoller wrote their stuff loooonnnnggg before i was born, but i know so many of their songs for word. test of time.

[Edited 8/22/11 18:54pm]

Didn't he have a song on Paula Abdul's debut? I'm a gonna have to google search.

Damn, and Ashford, too!

sosgemini said:

Didn't he have a song on Paula Abdul's debut? I'm a gonna have to google search.

That'd be Oliver, his son.

Music for adventurous listeners

tA

Tribal Records

theAudience said:

sosgemini said:

Didn't he have a song on Paula Abdul's debut? I'm a gonna have to google search.

That'd be Oliver, his son.

Music for adventurous listeners

tA

Tribal Records

Thanks! Just found it online.

Another great legendery songwriter gone...Rest.