Ruth Poll


Ruth Poll was an American lyricist, music publishing executive, dramatist and author, best known for songs recorded by Nat King Cole, Tony Bennett Ella Fitzgerald, Billy Eckstine, and Eddie Fisher, such as "Those Things Money Can't Buy", "I'd Love to Make Love to You", " A New Shade of Blues", "Because of Rain" and "Bring Back the Thrill".

Early life and career

A lifelong Manhattanite, Poll was the first of two children born to Dr. Henry Heiman and Bertha Tannenbaum.
In 1939, Poll and artist Gar Gilbert collaborated on a children's book, The American Holiday Parade, published by New York's Elektra Press, providing a series of brief, brightly illustrated verses on every nationally observed holiday of note.
Poll's first publicized foray into songwriting was her 1941 collaboration with composer Henry Sylvern, "I'm a Military Man Now," which was unveiled, at Treasury Secretary Henry Morgenthau's request, on the premiere broadcast of a revamped version of the U.S. Treasury's wartime radio series, The Treasury Hour—Millions for Defense.
In September 1942, an Americanized version of Ivor Novello's play, On the House, was presented in Scarsdale, New York, with the adaptation credited to Ruth Poll. The following June, the New York Daily News reported that Poll and composer Bob Emmerich were providing "extra songs" for an upcoming musical revue entitled Bright Lights, to be produced by Alexander H. Cohen. In the end, however, Cohen passed on their contribution, hiring the team of Jerry Livingston and Mack David instead.
Aside from Emmerich, it appears that Poll's most frequent collaborators were Claude Demetrius and Al Goodhart. Others include Mercer Ellington, Alec Wilder, Charles Brown, Pete Rugolo and Larry Stock.
In February 1949, Billboard reported that Poll had formed Maypole Music. By October, due in large part to the great success of her song " A New Shade of Blues", Poll had been admitted to ASCAP.

Personal life and death

Ruth Poll was married to Dr. Daniel Poll from September 8, 1920, until his death on December 24, 1952. They had two daughters, both of whom predeceased their parents.
In her 1972 book, Nat King Cole, an Intimate Biography, Cole's widow Maria Cole recalls the wedding gift received from Poll on Easter Sunday, March 1948:
Moreover, Poll herself, during roughly that same period, hosted at least three interracial parties honoring African-American recording artists, two of them dedicated to singer Billy Eckstine. The latter of those two, held in May 1949, numbered among its musical "Who's Who" of guests Duke Ellington, Nat King Cole, and disc jockey Fred Robbins, while the former reportedly featured Cole playing piano behind both Eckstine and Mel Torme. By contrast, an earlier such Poll-sponsored event, honoring singer Nellie Lutcher in November 1947, appears to have been considerably less successful, receiving a scant one sentence of press coverage, informing readers that the putative guest of honor had failed to attend.
She and her husband had had two daughters. On Monday afternoon, March 14, 1955, Poll, at age 55 died following a heart attack.

Songs

1941:
  • "Weary Little Fellow"
  • "I'm a Military Man Now"
1947:
  • "I Owe This Dream to You"
  • "Ain't Nobody's Business What I Do"
  • "Two Poor Fools"
  • "I Don't Wanna Love You"
  • "Those Things Money Can't Buy"
  • "I'd Love to Make Love to You"
1948:
  • "If and When"
  • "I Found a New Love Song"
  • "Another November"
  • "I Dreamed This Waltz"
  • "If I Could Do What I'd Like to Do"
  • "Let's Pretend"
  • "I'm Looking for a Bluebird"
  • "If Yesterday Could Only Be Tomorrow"
  • "The Look In Your Eyes"
  • "There's a Little White Gate"
  • "Twenty-Four Hours a Day"
  • "Someone Stole My Heart Away"
  • "I'm Lookin' for Love"
1949:
  • "I Love You, I Told You So"
  • "I'm Just Thinking Out Loud"
  • "What Have You Got If You Haven't Got Love"
1950:
  • "Bring Back the Thrill"
  • "What Have You Got If You Haven't Got Love"
  • "The World Belongs to Me"
1951:
  • "Ain't Had No Lovin'"
  • "Hi-Ho for Holiday Land"
  • "How Could You Be So Dumb, My Little Darlin'"
  • "What Have You Got If You Haven't Got Love"
  • "You Learned a Lot About Love"
  • "You Weren't There"
1954:
  • "Love, Tears and Kisses"
  • "Slow Down, Baby, Slow Down"

    Notable performers of her songs

Except where otherwise indicated, credits derived from Discogs.
  • "Because of Rain"
  • "Bring Back the Thrill"
  • "Corner to Corner"
  • "I Owe This Dream to You"
  • "I'd Love to Make Love to You"
  • "If Yesterday Could Only Be Tomorrow"
  • "It Was So Good While It Lasted"
  • "Love, Tears and Kisses"
  • "A New Shade of Blues"
  • "Those Things Money Can't Buy"
  • "What Have You Got If You Haven't Got Love?"
  • "You Weren't There"