Bert Lown


Bert Lown was an American violinist, orchestra leader, and songwriter.

Career

Lown was born in White Plains, New York. He began as a sideman playing the violin in Fred Hamm's band, and in the 1920s and 1930s he led a series of jazz-oriented dance bands, making a large number of recordings in that period for Victor Records. In 1925, he composed the well-known standard "Bye Bye Blues." He also wrote some other songs, including "You're The One I Care For" and "Tired." By the mid-1930s he quit leading the orchestras, becoming a booking agent and manager; eventually he left the music industry and moved on to executive positions in the television industry. He died of a heart attack in 1962 in Portland, Oregon.

Collaborators

The song writing, Lown's collaborators included Moe Jaffe, Jack O'Brien, and Fred Hamm.

Recording history

  • 1929 he recorded for Columbia's dime store labels
  • 1930 he recorded for the Plaza/ARC dime store labels
  • 1930 he also recorded two sessions for Hit of the Week
  • 1930 he also recorded two sessions for Columbia
  • 1930-1932 he recorded prolifically for Victor
  • 1933 while still signed to Victor, his records were assigned to the new Bluebird dime store label.

    Selected compositions

  • "Bye Bye Blues"
  • "You're the One I Care For"
  • "By My Side"
  • "Tired"
  • "I'm Disappointed in You"
  • "My Heart and I"
  • "Today and Tomorrow"
  • "Let Me Fill Your Day With Music"
  • "Thumbs Up," theme song in 1941 of the British War Relief Society

    Pseudonym

Bert Lown sometimes used the pseudonym "Bert Lee."