Novello & Co

In Ivor Novello's The Dancing Years a touch of Spring, The First Music in May. Novello who still captures musical imaginations with the prestigious Ivor Novello Award. Wish we had more of his whirling waltzes: Waltz of My Heart, I Can Give You the Starlight, the still jubilant Someday My Heart Will Awake, and from his final stage success, effervescent Vitality!

That last was given airings, and space in current catalogues by the wonderful Cicely Courtneidge, who with co-star hubby Jack Hulbert sings I Was Anything But Sentimental, and introduced that riotous, rousing anthem.  We'll All Go Riding On a Rainbow (Sing Brothers and Sing Sisters). American tin­pan alleyite. Batty Woods wrote it for the film Aunt Sally: You Ought to see Sally on Sunday, helped to. top status by reliable AI Bowlly: two hat songs for Cis and Jack My Hat's on the Side of my Head and Keep It Under Your Hat.

Half a century ago with 25 weeks in the chart, nominated for an lvor Novello Award, the terrific You Need Hands brought into our lives by stalwart Max Bygraves, and also covered by erstwhile Edyie Gorme (both artists still very much with us, Max in Australia: Ms Gorme at home with hubby Steve Lawrence somewhere in the USA. The Novello award that year 1958, went to then piano wizard Joe Henderson serenading popular little lady: Trudie.

Plenty of British successes through the years, great when we beat the Americans and some of their artists so that we too can be world wide wonders. Mind you 80 years ago (1928) two Americans had a hand in a British popular song. Jimmy Dyrenforth and bandleader Carroll Gibbons gave us something to do with Spring .. and all summer come to that, soothing and beautiful A Garden In The Rain.

Thankfully too, Noel Coward was on hand with a score for the C.B. Cochran­ London Pavilion revue This Year of Grace: both Dance Little Lady and A Room With A View have stood the test of time. Another piano man, radio and recording favourite Billy Mayerl presented one of his many floral arrangements, Marigold. There too brightening up a show called Clowns in Clover, funny man Leslie Sarony with a plea: Don't Do That to the Poor Puss Cat; another song in the show: Forty­ Seven Ginger-Headed Sailors! Leslie it was who wrote many an amusing stanza for his creation Rhymes, look out for  that sung by Leslie with the Jack Hylton Orchestra.

From another show Vrrginia, rolling, rollicking spirit soarer: Roll Away Clouds while another British due:

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HoratioNicholls and Edgar Leslie penned the still enduring We All Make Mistakes, and We're Sorry, years later revived with glorious gusto by that now great British songbird, the really one-and-only - how we adore her - Dame Vera Lynn.

NeilStevens.