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"Cy Coleman is a permanent gem in Broadway's musical crown." -- Clive Barnes, New York Post |
Pianist and composer Cy Coleman was born in 1929 in New York City and was raised in the Bronx. At age 6, he gave his first piano recitals in New York's Steinway and Town Halls, and by age 9, he had also performed at Carnegie Hall. He studied at the High School of Music and Art and the College of Music, and in addition to his classical successes, formed a jazz trio in 1947 and made several recordings and did many club performances.
In the 1950s, he branched off from his jazz and classical background to begin writing popular music. He collaborated with Joseph Allen McCarthy and Carolyn Leigh and wrote many hits that have since become standards, including "Witchcraft" and "The Best Is Yet To Come." Over the years, countless artists -- including Nat King Cole, Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett, Liza Minnelli, Barbra Streisand, Peggy Lee, Lena Horne and Ella Fitzgerald -- have performed his songs.
By the 1960s, Coleman stopped writing for the popular music market in order to focus on composing for Broadway, films and his Trio. Coleman's first full scores were Wildcat and Little Me followed by his first stage success in 1966, Sweet Charity. From 1964 to 1989, he wrote scores for eight films, including Father Goose, The Art of Love, The Heartbreak Kid, Garbo Talks and Family Business.
Coleman has received many awards and honors for his work including six Tony Awards, three Emmy Awards, and two Grammy Awards. He also received the ASCAP Foundation Richard Rodgers Award for Lifetime Achievement in the American Musical Theatre.
Coleman passed away on Nov. 18, 2004, at age 75. A revival of his show Sweet Charity opened in the spring of 2005 in his honor.
Set List for Cy Coleman on Piano Jazz:"City of Angels" (C. Coleman, D.J. Zippell)
"Double Talk" (C. Coleman)
"What You Don't Know About Women" (C. Coleman)
"With Every Breath You Take" (C. Coleman, D.J. Zippell)
"The Best Is Yet To Come" (C. Coleman, C. Leigh)
"Why Try To Change Me Now" (C. Coleman, J.A. McCarthy)
"Witchcraft" (C. Coleman, C. Leigh)
"Let Me Down Easy" (C. Coleman)
"Hey Look Me Over" (C. Coleman, C. Leigh)
Songwriters Hall of Fame on Cy Coleman
PBS 'Stars over Broadway' on Coleman
In the 1950s, he branched off from his jazz and classical background to begin writing popular music. He collaborated with Joseph Allen McCarthy and Carolyn Leigh and wrote many hits that have since become standards, including "Witchcraft" and "The Best Is Yet To Come." Over the years, countless artists -- including Nat King Cole, Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett, Liza Minnelli, Barbra Streisand, Peggy Lee, Lena Horne and Ella Fitzgerald -- have performed his songs.
By the 1960s, Coleman stopped writing for the popular music market in order to focus on composing for Broadway, films and his Trio. Coleman's first full scores were Wildcat and Little Me followed by his first stage success in 1966, Sweet Charity. From 1964 to 1989, he wrote scores for eight films, including Father Goose, The Art of Love, The Heartbreak Kid, Garbo Talks and Family Business.
Coleman has received many awards and honors for his work including six Tony Awards, three Emmy Awards, and two Grammy Awards. He also received the ASCAP Foundation Richard Rodgers Award for Lifetime Achievement in the American Musical Theatre.
Coleman passed away on Nov. 18, 2004, at age 75. A revival of his show Sweet Charity opened in the spring of 2005 in his honor.
Set List for Cy Coleman on Piano Jazz:
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