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John Walter Bratton
Encyclopedia
John Walter Bratton was an American Tin Pan Alley
composer and theatrical producer who became popular during the era known as the Gay Nineties
, near Wilmington
, John Walter Bratton (sometimes spelled Bratten) was the son of John F. and Emma Bratton, of which little is known. He was educated at the Harkness Academy in Wilmington and later attended the Philadelphia College of Music before embarking on a career as a baritone singer.
called Hats off to the Boys Who Made Good, that years later Bratton conceded was "terrible". Today he is remembered for his 1907 composition Teddy Bears' Picnic
the only one of his songs to be a lasting hit. Although most of his compositions had lyrics, he left Teddy Bears' Picnic as an instrumental. Perhaps because it sold so well as sheet music he never felt little need to do anything else with it except over the silent film ere as background music for a number of popular movies. Many years later British based, but Irish born Jimmy Kennedy
wrote the lyrics. This explains why an American composition contains the British term “Mummies and Daddies" rather than "Mommies and Daddies”, though the latter does crop up from time to time in copies printed in the former colony.
Tunes Bratton wrote that were popular in their day include The Sunshine of Paradise Alley (ca. 1895), Henrietta, Have You Met Her?, (ca. 1895) I love you in the Same Old Way, (ca. 1896) Isabella and In a Cosey Corner ( ca. 1901). As half of the firm Lefler and Bratton he produced the musical comedies Hodge Podge and Co. (1900), The Star and the Garter (1900), The Man from China (1904), The Pearl and the Pumpkin' '(1905) and others.
His songs were featured in many other musical comedies including The Rainmakers (1894), Star & Garter (1900), The Office Boy (1903), The Toreador (1904), The Rollicking Girl (1905), and The Merry-Go-Round (1908).
Tin Pan Alley
Tin Pan Alley is the name given to the collection of New York City music publishers and songwriters who dominated the popular music of the United States in the late 19th century and early 20th century...
composer and theatrical producer who became popular during the era known as the Gay Nineties
Gay Nineties
Gay Nineties is an American nostalgic term that refers to the decade of the 1890s. It is known in the UK as the Naughty Nineties, and refers there to the decade of supposedly decadent art by Aubrey Beardsley, the witty plays and trial of Oscar Wilde, society scandals and the beginning of the...
Early life
Raised by his grandmother, Mary Bratton, in New Castle, DelawareNew Castle, Delaware
New Castle is a city in New Castle County, Delaware, six miles south of Wilmington, situated on the Delaware River. In 1900, 3,380 people lived here; in 1910, 3,351...
, near Wilmington
Wilmington, Delaware
Wilmington is the largest city in the state of Delaware, United States, and is located at the confluence of the Christina River and Brandywine Creek, near where the Christina flows into the Delaware River. It is the county seat of New Castle County and one of the major cities in the Delaware Valley...
, John Walter Bratton (sometimes spelled Bratten) was the son of John F. and Emma Bratton, of which little is known. He was educated at the Harkness Academy in Wilmington and later attended the Philadelphia College of Music before embarking on a career as a baritone singer.
Career
John Bratton's career soon moved from performer to composer and producer. He began in the chorus of a show called Ship Ahoy for $18 a week and not before too long was selling songs written with his friend, lyricists Walter H. Ford, for as little as $10 a title. Over the years Bratton would collaborate on over 250 songs with Ford and Paul West. One of their earlier tunes was a tribute to veterans of the Spanish-American WarSpanish-American War
The Spanish–American War was a conflict in 1898 between Spain and the United States, effectively the result of American intervention in the ongoing Cuban War of Independence...
called Hats off to the Boys Who Made Good, that years later Bratton conceded was "terrible". Today he is remembered for his 1907 composition Teddy Bears' Picnic
Teddy bears' picnic
"Teddy Bears' Picnic" is a song consisting of a melody by American composer John Walter Bratton, written in 1907, and lyrics added by Irish songwriter Jimmy Kennedy in 1932. It remains popular as a children's song, having been recorded by numerous artists over the decades. Kennedy lived at...
the only one of his songs to be a lasting hit. Although most of his compositions had lyrics, he left Teddy Bears' Picnic as an instrumental. Perhaps because it sold so well as sheet music he never felt little need to do anything else with it except over the silent film ere as background music for a number of popular movies. Many years later British based, but Irish born Jimmy Kennedy
Jimmy Kennedy
Jimmy Kennedy OBE was an Irish songwriter, predominantly a lyricist, putting words to existing music such as "Teddy Bears' Picnic" and "My Prayer", or co-writing with the composers Michael Carr, Wilhelm Grosz and Nat Simon amongst others.-Biography:Kennedy was born near Omagh...
wrote the lyrics. This explains why an American composition contains the British term “Mummies and Daddies" rather than "Mommies and Daddies”, though the latter does crop up from time to time in copies printed in the former colony.
Tunes Bratton wrote that were popular in their day include The Sunshine of Paradise Alley (ca. 1895), Henrietta, Have You Met Her?, (ca. 1895) I love you in the Same Old Way, (ca. 1896) Isabella and In a Cosey Corner ( ca. 1901). As half of the firm Lefler and Bratton he produced the musical comedies Hodge Podge and Co. (1900), The Star and the Garter (1900), The Man from China (1904), The Pearl and the Pumpkin' '(1905) and others.
Death
John Walter Bratton died at his Brooklyn home in February 1947, aged 80. He had just completed the song Time Brings Many Changes with his partner Leo Edwards, brother of song writer Gus Edwards. Bratton was survived by a wife and daughter.Musical theater credits
- 1900 Hodge, Podge & Co.
- 1904 The Man From China
- 1905 The Pearl and the Pumpkin
- 1909 The Newlyweds and Their Baby
His songs were featured in many other musical comedies including The Rainmakers (1894), Star & Garter (1900), The Office Boy (1903), The Toreador (1904), The Rollicking Girl (1905), and The Merry-Go-Round (1908).