Paul Francis Webster (December 20, 1907 – March 18, 1984)[1] was an American lyricist who won three Academy Awards for Best Original Song, and was nominated 16 times for the award.
Life and career
[edit]
Webster was born in New York City, United States,[1] the son of Myron Lawrence Webster and Blanche Pauline Stonehill Webster. His family was Jewish. His father was born in Augustów, Poland.[2] He attended the Horace Mann School (Riverdale, Bronx, New York), graduating in 1926, and then went to Cornell University from 1927 to 1928 and New York University from 1928 to 1930, leaving without receiving a degree.[1] He worked on ships throughout Asia and then became a dance instructor at an Arthur Murray studio in New York City.[3][4] After college, Webster served as an officer in the U.S. Navy.[5][6]
By 1931, however, he turned his career direction to writing song lyrics.[1] His first professional lyric was "Masquerade" (music by John Jacob Loeb) which became a hit in 1932, performed by Paul Whiteman.[1]
In 1935, Twentieth Century Fox signed him to a contract to write lyrics for Shirley Temple's films, but shortly afterward he went back to freelance writing. His first hit was a collaboration in 1941 with Duke Ellington on the song "I Got It Bad (And That Ain't Good)".[1]
After 1950, Webster worked mostly for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. He won two Academy Awards in collaboration with Sammy Fain, in 1953 and 1955, and another with Johnny Mandel in 1965.[1] Altogether, 16 of his songs received Academy Award nominations; among lyricists, he is third after Sammy Cahn with 26 and Johnny Mercer, who was nominated 18 times. In addition, a large number of his songs became major hits on the popular music charts.
Webster was the most successful songwriter of the 1950s on the UK Singles Chart. In 1967, he was asked to write the lyrics for the Spider-Man theme song[citation needed] for the television cartoon series of the same name. He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1972.[7] His papers are collected at Syracuse University Libraries.[8]
Webster's first born son, Guy Webster, was a prolific photographer of musicians and bands in the 1960s and 1970s.[9] His younger son, Mona Roger Webster, is a conceptual artist, a real estate investor and a longtime resident of Venice, California.[citation needed]
Webster continued writing up to 1983.[4] He died in 1984 in Beverly Hills, California, and is buried at Hillside Memorial Park in Culver City, California.
List of songs
[edit]
Here is a partial list of songs for which he wrote the lyrics:[1][4][10][11]
Songs by Paul Francis Webster that won the Academy Award for Best Original Song
[edit]
"Secret Love" (Calamity Jane, 1953)
"Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing" (Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing, 1955)
"The Shadow of Your Smile" (The Sandpiper, 1965)[12]
Nominated for the award
[edit]
"Remember Me to Carolina" (Minstrel Man, 1944)
"Friendly Persuasion (Thee I Love)" (Friendly Persuasion, 1956)
"April Love" (April Love, 1957)
"A Certain Smile" (A Certain Smile, 1958)
"A Very Precious Love" (Marjorie Morningstar, 1958)
"The Green Leaves of Summer" (The Alamo, 1960)
"Love Theme from El Cid (The Falcon and the Dove)" (El Cid, 1961)
"Tender Is the Night" (Tender Is the Night, 1962)
"Love Song From Mutiny on the Bounty (Follow Me)" (Mutiny on the Bounty, 1962)
"So Little Time" (55 Days at Peking, 1963)
"A Time for Love" (An American Dream, 1966)
"Strange Are the Ways of Love" from the film The Stepmother (1972)
"A World that Never Was" from the film Half a House (1976)
Songs winning Grammy Awards for best song of the year
[edit]
"The Shadow of Your Smile" (love theme from The Sandpiper, 1966)
Other songs with lyrics by Paul Francis Webster
[edit]
"Anastasia" (1956)
"Ballad of the Alamo" (1960)
"Baltimore Oriole"
"Beloved" (1954)
"Billy-A-Dick" (1945)
"Black Coffee"
"The Black Hills of Dakota"
"Blowing Wild (The Ballad of Black Gold)" (1953)
"Boy on a Dolphin"
"The Brown-Skin Gal in the Calico Gown" (1941)
"Chocolate Shake" (1941)
"Days of Love" (1967)
"The Deadwood Stage (Whip-Crack-Away!)"
"Doctor, Lawyer, Indian Chief"
"The First Snowfall" (1953) [music composed by Sonny Burke]
"Guns of Navarone" (1961)
"Honey-Babe" (1955)
"How Green Was My Valley" (1957)
"How It Lies, How It Lies, How It Lies!"
"I Got it Bad (And That Ain't Good)" (1941)
"I'll Remember Tonight"
"I'll Walk with God" (1954)
"Invitation" (1952)
"Jump for Joy"
"Just Blew in from the Windy City" (1953)
"The Lamplighter's Serenade" (1942)
"Like Young" (1958)
"The Loveliest Night of the Year" (1950)
"Man on Fire"
"Masquerade" (1931)
"Maverick"
"Memphis in June" (1945) for RKO's Johnny Angel, Music by Hoagy Carmichael
"The Mood I'm In" (co-written with Pete King)
"My Moonlight Madonna"
"Padre"
"Rainbow on the River" (1936)
"Rio Bravo" (1959)
"Somewhere My Love" (1966) (The lyrics, which are Webster's original work with Maurice Jarre, were sung to the melody of "Lara's Theme" from the film Doctor Zhivago).[12]
"The Song Angels Sing" (1951)
"Song of Green Mansions (1959)
"The Song of Raintree County" (1957)
"Spider-Man" (1967)
"Sugarfoot"
"Summertime in Heidelberg" (1954)
"There They Are"
"There's Never Been Anyone Else But You"
There's a Rising Moon (1954)
"Too Beautiful to Last" (1971)
"The Twelfth of Never"
"Two Cigarettes in the Dark" (1934)
"Veni Vidi Vici"
"Virgins Wrapped in Cellophane" (1932)
"Who Are We?"
"The Winds of Chance" (1969)
"A Woman's Touch" (1953)
"You Was"
Song compilation
[edit]
The Songs of Paul Francis Webster (ISBN 0-7935-0665-4)
Award-Winning Songs By Paul Francis Webster, Robbins Music Corporation, 1964
References
[edit]
^ abcdefghColin Larkin, ed. (1992). The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music (First ed.). Guinness Publishing. p. 2646/7. ISBN 0-85112-939-0.
^"Archived copy" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2018-05-03. Retrieved 2017-07-09.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
^"Potted biographies of musical theatre composers". Guidetomusicaltheatre.com. Archived from the original on 14 August 2017. Retrieved 3 May 2018.
^ abc"Paul Francis Webster". Michael Feinstein's American Songbook. Michael Feinstein Great American Songbook Initiative. Archived from the original on 2015-01-13. Retrieved 2015-01-12.
^Paul Francis Webster; His "Shadow of Your Smile" won both Grammy and Oscar for Best Song Songwriters Hall of Fame. Retrieved November 9, 2024.
^Paul Francis Webster; Lyricist (1907-1984) jazzstandards.com. Retrieved November 9, 2024.
^Paul Francis Webster at the Songwriters Hall of Fame
^"Paul Francis Webster Papers". Syracuse University Libraries. Syracuse University. Archived from the original on 2013-10-30. Retrieved 2015-01-12.
^Marinucci, Steve (February 7, 2019). "Guy Webster, Photographer of Album Covers by The Doors and Rolling Stones, Dies at 79". Variety. Retrieved February 8, 2019.
^"Paul Francis Webster Song Catalog". Songwriters Hall of Fame. Songwriters Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on 2015-01-12. Retrieved 2015-01-12.
^"Songs Written by Paul Francis Webster". MusicVF.com. VF Entertainment. Retrieved 2015-01-12.
^ abColin Larkin, ed. (2002). The Virgin Encyclopedia of Fifties Music (Third ed.). Virgin Books. pp. 481/2. ISBN 1-85227-937-0.
External links
[edit]
Paul Francis Webster at IMDb
Other sources
[edit]
Hill, Tony L. "Paul Francis Webster, 1907-1984", in Dictionary of Literary Biography 265. Detroit: Gale Research, 2002.
Sammy Lifetime Achievement Film Music Award for Paul Francis Webster
Awards for Paul Francis Webster
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Academy Award for Best Original Song
1934–1940
"The Continental"
Music: Con Conrad
Lyrics: Herb Magidson (1934)
"Lullaby of Broadway"
Music: Harry Warren
Lyrics: Al Dubin (1935)
"The Way You Look Tonight"
Music: Jerome Kern
Lyrics: Dorothy Fields (1936)
"Sweet Leilani"
Music and lyrics: Harry Owens (1937)
"Thanks for the Memory"
Music: Ralph Rainger
Lyrics: Leo Robin (1938)
"Over the Rainbow"
Music: Harold Arlen
Lyrics: E. Y. Harburg (1939)
"When You Wish Upon a Star"
Music: Leigh Harline
Lyrics: Ned Washington (1940)
1941–1950
"The Last Time I Saw Paris"
Music: Jerome Kern
Lyrics: Oscar Hammerstein II (1941)
"White Christmas"
Music and lyrics: Irving Berlin (1942)
"You'll Never Know"
Music: Harry Warren
Lyrics: Mack Gordon (1943)
"Swinging on a Star"
Music: Jimmy Van Heusen
Lyrics: Johnny Burke (1944)
"It Might as Well Be Spring"
Music: Richard Rodgers
Lyrics: Oscar Hammerstein II (1945)
"On the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe"
Music: Harry Warren
Lyrics: Johnny Mercer (1946)
"Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah"
Music: Allie Wrubel
Lyrics: Ray Gilbert (1947)
"Buttons and Bows"
Music: Jay Livingston
Lyrics: Ray Evans (1948)
"Baby, It's Cold Outside"
Music and lyrics: Frank Loesser (1949)
"Mona Lisa"
Music and lyrics: Ray Evans and Jay Livingston (1950)
1951–1960
"In the Cool, Cool, Cool of the Evening"
Music: Hoagy Carmichael
Lyrics: Johnny Mercer (1951)
"High Noon (Do Not Forsake Me, Oh My Darlin')"
Music: Dimitri Tiomkin
Lyrics: Ned Washington (1952)
"Secret Love"
Music: Sammy Fain
Lyrics: Paul Francis Webster (1953)
"Three Coins in the Fountain"
Music: Jule Styne
Lyrics: Sammy Cahn (1954)
"Love Is a Many Splendored Thing"
Music: Sammy Fain
Lyrics: Paul Francis Webster (1955)
"Que Sera, Sera (Whatever Will Be, Will Be)"
Music and lyrics: Jay Livingston and Ray Evans (1956)
"All the Way"
Music: Jimmy Van Heusen
Lyrics: Sammy Cahn (1957)
"Gigi"
Music: Frederick Loewe
Lyrics: Alan Jay Lerner (1958)
"High Hopes"
Music: Jimmy Van Heusen
Lyrics: Sammy Cahn (1959)
"Never on Sunday"
Music and lyrics: Manos Hatzidakis (1960)
1961–1970
"Moon River"
Music: Henry Mancini
Lyrics: Johnny Mercer (1961)
"Days of Wine and Roses"
Music: Henry Mancini
Lyrics: Johnny Mercer (1962)
"Call Me Irresponsible"
Music: Jimmy Van Heusen
Lyrics: Sammy Cahn (1963)
"Chim Chim Cher-ee"
Music and lyrics: Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman (1964)
"The Shadow of Your Smile"
Music: Johnny Mandel
Lyrics: Paul Francis Webster (1965)
"Born Free"
Music: John Barry
Lyrics: Don Black (1966)
"Talk to the Animals"
Music and lyrics: Leslie Bricusse (1967)
"The Windmills of Your Mind"
Music: Michel Legrand
Lyrics: Alan and Marilyn Bergman (1968)
"Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head"
Music: Burt Bacharach
Lyrics: Hal David (1969)
"For All We Know"
Music: Fred Karlin
Lyrics: Robb Royer and Jimmy Griffin (1970)
1971–1980
"Theme from Shaft"
Music and lyrics: Isaac Hayes (1971)
"The Morning After"
Music and lyrics: Al Kasha and Joel Hirschhorn (1972)
"The Way We Were"
Music: Marvin Hamlisch
Lyrics: Alan and Marilyn Bergman (1973)
"We May Never Love Like This Again"
Music and lyrics: Al Kasha and Joel Hirschhorn (1974)
"I'm Easy"
Music and lyrics: Keith Carradine (1975)
"Evergreen (Love Theme from A Star Is Born)"
Music: Barbra Streisand
Lyrics: Paul Williams (1976)
"You Light Up My Life"
Music and lyrics: Joseph Brooks (1977)
"Last Dance"
Music and lyrics: Paul Jabara (1978)
"It Goes Like It Goes"
Music: David Shire
Lyrics: Norman Gimbel (1979)
"Fame"
Music: Michael Gore
Lyrics: Dean Pitchford (1980)
1981–1990
"Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)"
Music and lyrics: Burt Bacharach, Carole Bayer Sager, Christopher Cross and Peter Allen (1981)
"Up Where We Belong"
Music: Jack Nitzsche and Buffy Sainte-Marie
Lyrics: Will Jennings (1982)
"Flashdance... What a Feeling"
Music: Giorgio Moroder
Lyrics: Keith Forsey and Irene Cara (1983)
"I Just Called to Say I Love You"
Music and lyrics: Stevie Wonder (1984)
"Say You, Say Me"
Music and lyrics: Lionel Richie (1985)
"Take My Breath Away"
Music: Giorgio Moroder
Lyrics: Tom Whitlock (1986)
"(I've Had) The Time of My Life"
Music: Franke Previte, John DeNicola and Donald Markowitz
Lyrics: Franke Previte (1987)
"Let the River Run"
Music and lyrics: Carly Simon (1988)
"Under the Sea"
Music: Alan Menken
Lyrics: Howard Ashman (1989)
"Sooner or Later (I Always Get My Man)"
Music and lyrics: Stephen Sondheim (1990)
1991–2000
"Beauty and the Beast"
Music: Alan Menken
Lyrics: Howard Ashman (1991)
"A Whole New World"
Music: Alan Menken
Lyrics: Tim Rice (1992)
"Streets of Philadelphia"
Music and lyrics: Bruce Springsteen (1993)
"Can You Feel the Love Tonight"
Music: Elton John
Lyrics: Tim Rice (1994)
"Colors of the Wind"
Music: Alan Menken
Lyrics: Stephen Schwartz (1995)
"You Must Love Me"
Music: Andrew Lloyd Webber
Lyrics: Tim Rice (1996)
"My Heart Will Go On"
Music: James Horner
Lyrics: Will Jennings (1997)
"When You Believe"
Music and lyrics: Stephen Schwartz (1998)
"You'll Be in My Heart"
Music and lyrics: Phil Collins (1999)
"Things Have Changed"
Music and lyrics: Bob Dylan (2000)
2001–2010
"If I Didn't Have You"
Music and lyrics: Randy Newman (2001)
"Lose Yourself"
Music: Eminem, Jeff Bass and Luis Resto
Lyrics: Eminem (2002)
"Into the West"
Music and lyrics: Fran Walsh, Howard Shore and Annie Lennox (2003)
"Al otro lado del río"
Music and lyrics: Jorge Drexler (2004)
"It's Hard out Here for a Pimp"
Music and lyrics: Juicy J, Frayser Boy and DJ Paul (2005)
"I Need to Wake Up"
Music and lyrics: Melissa Etheridge (2006)
"Falling Slowly"
Music and lyrics: Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová (2007)
"Jai Ho"
Music: A. R. Rahman
Lyrics: Gulzar (2008)
"The Weary Kind"
Music and lyrics: Ryan Bingham and T Bone Burnett (2009)
"We Belong Together"
Music and lyrics: Randy Newman (2010)
2011–2020
"Man or Muppet"
Music and lyrics: Bret McKenzie (2011)
"Skyfall"
Music and lyrics: Adele Adkins and Paul Epworth (2012)
"Let It Go"
Music and lyrics: Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez (2013)
"Glory"
Music and lyrics: John Stephens and Lonnie Lynn (2014)
"Writing's on the Wall"
Music and lyrics: James Napier and Sam Smith (2015)
"City of Stars"
Music: Justin Hurwitz
Lyrics: Benj Pasek and Justin Paul (2016)
"Remember Me"
Music and lyrics: Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez (2017)
"Shallow"
Music and lyrics: Lady Gaga, Mark Ronson, Anthony Rossomando and Andrew Wyatt (2018)
"(I'm Gonna) Love Me Again"
Music: Elton John
Lyrics: Bernie Taupin (2019)
"Fight for You"
Music: D'Mile and H.E.R.
Lyrics: H.E.R. and Tiara Thomas (2020)
2021–present
"No Time to Die"
Music and lyrics: Billie Eilish and Finneas O'Connell (2021)
"Naatu Naatu"
Music: M. M. Keeravani
Lyrics: Chandrabose (2022)
"What Was I Made For?"
Music and lyrics: Billie Eilish and Finneas O'Connell (2023)
"El Mal"
Music: Clément Ducol and Camille
Lyrics: Clément Ducol, Camille, and Jacques Audiard (2024)
"Golden"
Music and lyrics: Ejae, Mark Sonnenblick, Joong Gyu-kwak, Yu Han Lee, Hee Dong Nam, Jeong Hoon Seo, and Teddy Park (2025)
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Grammy Award for Song of the Year
Awarded to songwriters
1950s
"Nel blu, dipinto di blu" – Domenico Modugno (1959)
1960s
"The Battle of New Orleans" – Jimmy Driftwood (1960)
"Theme of Exodus" – Ernest Gold (1961)
"Moon River" – Johnny Mercer & Henry Mancini (1962)
"What Kind of Fool Am I?" – Leslie Bricusse & Anthony Newley (1963)
"Days of Wine and Roses" – Johnny Mercer & Henry Mancini (1964)
"Hello, Dolly!" – Jerry Herman (1965)
"The Shadow of Your Smile" – Paul Francis Webster & Johnny Mandel (1966)
"Michelle" – John Lennon & Paul McCartney (1967)
"Up, Up, and Away" – Jimmy Webb (1968)
"Little Green Apples" – Bobby Russell (1969)
1970s
"Games People Play" – Joe South (1970)
"Bridge over Troubled Water" – Paul Simon (1971)
"You've Got a Friend" – Carole King (1972)
"The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" – Ewan MacColl (1973)
"Killing Me Softly with His Song" – Norman Gimbel & Charles Fox (1974)
"The Way We Were" – Alan and Marilyn Bergman & Marvin Hamlisch (1975)
"Send In the Clowns" – Stephen Sondheim (1976)
"I Write the Songs" – Bruce Johnston (1977)
"Evergreen (Love Theme from A Star Is Born)" – Barbra Streisand & Paul Williams / "You Light Up My Life" – Joe Brooks (1978)
"Just the Way You Are" – Billy Joel (1979)
1980s
"What a Fool Believes" – Kenny Loggins & Michael McDonald (1980)
"Sailing" – Christopher Cross (1981)
"Bette Davis Eyes" – Donna Weiss & Jackie DeShannon (1982)
"Always on My Mind" – Johnny Christopher, Mark James & Wayne Carson (1983)
"Every Breath You Take" – Sting (1984)
"What's Love Got to Do with It" – Graham Lyle & Terry Britten (1985)
"We Are the World" – Michael Jackson & Lionel Richie (1986)
"That's What Friends Are For" – Burt Bacharach & Carole Bayer Sager (1987)
"Somewhere Out There" – James Horner, Barry Mann & Cynthia Weil (1988)
"Don't Worry, Be Happy" – Bobby McFerrin (1989)
1990s
"Wind Beneath My Wings" – Larry Henley & Jeff Silbar (1990)
"From a Distance" – Julie Gold (1991)
"Unforgettable" – Irving Gordon (1992)
"Tears in Heaven" – Eric Clapton & Will Jennings (1993)
"A Whole New World" – Alan Menken & Tim Rice (1994)
"Streets of Philadelphia" – Bruce Springsteen (1995)
"Kiss from a Rose" – Seal (1996)
"Change the World" – Gordon Kennedy, Wayne Kirkpatrick & Tommy Sims (1997)
"Sunny Came Home" – Shawn Colvin & John Leventhal (1998)
"My Heart Will Go On" – James Horner & Will Jennings (1999)
2000s
"Smooth" – Itaal Shur & Rob Thomas (2000)
"Beautiful Day" – Adam Clayton, David Evans, Laurence Mullen & Paul Hewson (2001)
"Fallin'" – Alicia Keys (2002)
"Don't Know Why" – Jesse Harris (2003)
"Dance with My Father" – Richard Marx & Luther Vandross (2004)
"Daughters" – John Mayer (2005)
"Sometimes You Can't Make It on Your Own" – Adam Clayton, David Evans, Laurence Mullen & Paul Hewson (2006)
"Not Ready to Make Nice" – Emily Burns Erwin, Martha Maguire, Natalie Maines Pasdar & Dan Wilson (2007)
"Rehab" – Amy Winehouse (2008)
"Viva la Vida" – Guy Berryman, Jonathan Buckland, William Champion & Christopher Martin (2009)
2010s
"Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)" – Thaddis "Kuk" Harrell, Beyoncé Knowles, Terius Nash & Christopher Stewart (2010)
"Need You Now" – Dave Haywood, Josh Kear, Charles Kelley & Hillary Scott (2011)
"Rolling in the Deep" – Adele Adkins & Paul Epworth (2012)
"We Are Young" – Jack Antonoff, Jeff Bhasker, Andrew Dost & Nate Ruess (2013)
"Royals" – Joel Little & Ella Yelich O'Connor (2014)
"Stay with Me" (Darkchild version) – James Napier, William Phillips & Sam Smith (2015)
"Thinking Out Loud" – Ed Sheeran & Amy Wadge (2016)
"Hello" – Adele Adkins & Greg Kurstin (2017)
"That's What I Like" – Christopher Brody Brown, James Fauntleroy, Philip Lawrence, Bruno Mars, Ray Charles McCullough II, Jeremy Reeves, Ray Romulus & Jonathan Yip (2018)
"This Is America" – Donald Glover, Ludwig Göransson & Jeffery Lamar Williams (2019)