Ralph Carmichael
Encyclopedia
Ralph Carmichael is a composer
and arranger
of both secular pop music and contemporary Christian music
, being regarded as one of the pioneers of the latter genre. Married to Marvella and father to composer and artist Carol Parks
.
, who asked him to provide the arrangements for an album of mainly sacred Christmas songs by one of the label's biggest stars, Nat King Cole
. The result, The Magic of Christmas
, was released for the 1960 festive season, by which time Capitol had already set Carmichael to work with Cole on more secular albums.
Carmichael duly became Cole's most regularly utilised arranger from then until the singer's death in early 1965, their first mainstream pop collaboration being The Touch Of Your Lips
(also 1960), an album of romantic ballads backed by lush strings, and their final team-up being Cole's last album, L-O-V-E
, with jazzy big band arrangements, recorded in December 1964, only two months before Cole succumbed to the lung cancer
which was already in its advanced stages, although that is little evident from the recordings.
In between these two very different albums were Cole projects which demonstrated Carmichael's versatility even more, from the Latin arrangements of More Cole Espanol
(1962), through the old-time music hall style of 1963's Those Lazy-Hazy-Crazy Days of Summer (album)
, to the plaintive, country and western charts for I Don't Want to Be Hurt Anymore
(1964).
The twin highlights of Carmichael's stint with Cole, however, were the critically acclaimed Nat King Cole Sings/George Shearing Plays
(1962) and the ambitious Nat King Cole Sings My Fair Lady
(1964).
, Bing Crosby
, Stan Kenton
, Jack Jones
, Peggy Lee
, Julie London
, Al Martino
and Roger Williams
. Worthy of particular note are his charts for Sue Raney
's comeback album All By Myself
, recorded in 1963 and released in early 1964. Capitol Records
had wanted Stan Kenton
to back Raney on the project, but when the celebrated bandleader proved to be unavailable, they turned to Carmichael, who wrote hip, bluesy, big band arrangements in the Kenton style, which were considered to be accomplished substitutes. When Capitol promptly dropped Raney after she was knocked down by a car and left largely unable to promote the album during a long convalescence, the singer stuck with Carmichael to provide the arrangements for her next album on Philips Records
.
Carmichael was also Musical Director for I Love Lucy
during the later years of the show.
In 1958, Carmichael was hired by producer Jack H. Harris to score his color science fiction film, The Blob
. With the success of the film, Carmichael was brought back to score Harris' follow-up film, 4D Man
.
He arranged most of the carols on the Stan kenton album "A Merry Christmas"
". (http://www.mymusicway.com/biography/rcarmcl2.html)
(http://www.ag.org/pentecostal-evangel/conversations2002/4623_carmichael.cfm) He founded Light Records
in order to widen the audience for the music of the Jesus People. He was subject to controversy from within the church, being called a heretic
for his use of guitars in worship and his adaptations of Gospel songs to big band stylings.
Carmichael also provided the backing for a number of RCA
albums by Gospel singer George Beverly Shea
, including The Love of God in 1958, and How Great Thou Art in 1969.
In 1969, Carmichael and Kurt Kaiser
collaborated on Tell It Like It Is, a folk musical about God. The record album of the musical, which included the song "Pass It On", sold 2,500 copies, completely selling out the first run; it then completely sold out its second run of 100,000 copies.
In 1970, he made the funky urban soundtrack for The Cross and the Switchblade
.
One of Carmichael's contemporary hymns, "Reach Out to Jesus", was recorded by Elvis Presley
, on the singer's 1971 Grammy Award
-winning album of sacred songs, He Touched Me
. His album Strike Up the Band won a Dove Award for "Instrumental Album of the Year" at the 25th GMA Dove Awards
in 1994.
Gospel Music Hall of Fame
in 1985 (http://www.gmahalloffame.org/inductee_bio.cfm?ID=324) and into the National Religious Broadcasters' Hall of Fame in 2001.
His autobiography, He's Everything To Me, was published by Word Books in 1986.
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
and arranger
Arranger
In investment banking, an arranger is a provider of funds in the syndication of a debt. They are entitled to syndicate the loan or bond issue, and may be referred to as the "lead underwriter". This is because this entity bears the risk of being able to sell the underlying securities/debt or the...
of both secular pop music and contemporary Christian music
Contemporary Christian music
Contemporary Christian music is a genre of modern popular music which is lyrically focused on matters concerned with the Christian faith...
, being regarded as one of the pioneers of the latter genre. Married to Marvella and father to composer and artist Carol Parks
Carol Parks
Carol Celeste Parks was an American singer and composer. She was the former wife of musician Dean Parks.-Early life:...
.
Nat King Cole
His big break came at the end of the 1950s, when his work came to the attention of Capitol RecordsCapitol Records
Capitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine...
, who asked him to provide the arrangements for an album of mainly sacred Christmas songs by one of the label's biggest stars, Nat King Cole
Nat King Cole
Nathaniel Adams Coles , known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American musician who first came to prominence as a leading jazz pianist. Although an accomplished pianist, he owes most of his popular musical fame to his soft baritone voice, which he used to perform in big band and jazz genres...
. The result, The Magic of Christmas
The Magic of Christmas (Nat King Cole album)
The Magic of Christmas is a 1960 album by Nat King Cole, arranged by Ralph Carmichael.This was Cole's only full album of Christmas songs, although he had recorded several holiday singles earlier in his career...
, was released for the 1960 festive season, by which time Capitol had already set Carmichael to work with Cole on more secular albums.
Carmichael duly became Cole's most regularly utilised arranger from then until the singer's death in early 1965, their first mainstream pop collaboration being The Touch Of Your Lips
The Touch of Your Lips
"The Touch of Your Lips" is a romantic ballad written by Ray Noble in 1936. The original version of the song, which has become a standard, was by Al Bowlly."The Touch of Your Lips" has appeared on the following albums:*This Is Love, by Johnny Mathis...
(also 1960), an album of romantic ballads backed by lush strings, and their final team-up being Cole's last album, L-O-V-E
L-O-V-E (album)
L-O-V-E is a 1965 album by Nat King Cole, arranged by Ralph Carmichael.- Track listing :# "L-O-V-E" – 2:52# "The Girl from Ipanema" – 2:56...
, with jazzy big band arrangements, recorded in December 1964, only two months before Cole succumbed to the lung cancer
Lung cancer
Lung cancer is a disease characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. If left untreated, this growth can spread beyond the lung in a process called metastasis into nearby tissue and, eventually, into other parts of the body. Most cancers that start in lung, known as primary...
which was already in its advanced stages, although that is little evident from the recordings.
In between these two very different albums were Cole projects which demonstrated Carmichael's versatility even more, from the Latin arrangements of More Cole Espanol
More Cole Español
The Allmusic review by William Ruhlmann awarded the album three and a half stars, and said that compared to his two other Spanish albums Cole "still didn't sound like he always knew what he was singing, and he still seemed to be working on his pronunciation, but on More Cole Español he was clearly...
(1962), through the old-time music hall style of 1963's Those Lazy-Hazy-Crazy Days of Summer (album)
Those Lazy-Hazy-Crazy Days of Summer (album)
Those Lazy-Hazy-Crazy Days of Summer is a 1963 album by Nat King Cole, arranged by Ralph Carmichael.-Track listing:# "Those Lazy-Hazy-Crazy Days of Summer" – 2:25...
, to the plaintive, country and western charts for I Don't Want to Be Hurt Anymore
I Don't Want to Be Hurt Anymore
The Allmusic review by William Ruhlmann awarded the album three stars, and said it "suffered from a lack of strong material and arrangements...with the sad sentiments undercut by relatively quick tempos and a perky backup chorus"-Track listing:...
(1964).
The twin highlights of Carmichael's stint with Cole, however, were the critically acclaimed Nat King Cole Sings/George Shearing Plays
Nat King Cole Sings/George Shearing Plays
Nat King Cole Sings/George Shearing Plays is a 1962 studio album by Nat King Cole, featuring the pianist George Shearing. - Track listing :# "September Song" – 2:59...
(1962) and the ambitious Nat King Cole Sings My Fair Lady
Nat King Cole Sings My Fair Lady
Nat King Cole Sings My Fair Lady is a 1963 album by Nat King Cole of songs from the 1956 musical My Fair Lady. - Track listing :# "With a Little Bit of Luck" – 2:52# "I Could Have Danced All Night" – 2:30# "The Rain in Spain" – 3:26...
(1964).
Other performers
Carmichael wrote arrangements for many other top performers, including Ella FitzgeraldElla Fitzgerald
Ella Jane Fitzgerald , also known as the "First Lady of Song" and "Lady Ella," was an American jazz and song vocalist...
, Bing Crosby
Bing Crosby
Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby was an American singer and actor. Crosby's trademark bass-baritone voice made him one of the best-selling recording artists of the 20th century, with over half a billion records in circulation....
, Stan Kenton
Stan Kenton
Stanley Newcomb "Stan" Kenton was a pianist, composer, and arranger who led a highly innovative, influential, and often controversial American jazz orchestra. In later years he was widely active as an educator....
, Jack Jones
Jack Jones (singer)
John Allan "Jack" Jones is an American jazz and pop singer. He was one of the most popular vocalists of the 1960s.-Overview:...
, Peggy Lee
Peggy Lee
Peggy Lee was an American jazz and popular music singer, songwriter, composer, and actress in a career spanning six decades. From her beginning as a vocalist on local radio to singing with Benny Goodman's big band, she forged a sophisticated persona, evolving into a multi-faceted artist and...
, Julie London
Julie London
Julie London was an American singer and actress. She was best known for her smoky, sensual voice. London was at her singing career's peak in the 1950s. Her acting career lasted more than 35 years...
, Al Martino
Al Martino
Al Martino was an American singer and actor. He had his greatest success as a singer between the early 1950s and mid 1970s, being described as "one of the great Italian American pop crooners", and also became well known as an actor, particularly for his role as singer Johnny Fontane in The...
and Roger Williams
Roger Williams (pianist)
Roger Williams was an American popular music pianist. As of 2004, he had released 116 albums.-Biography:...
. Worthy of particular note are his charts for Sue Raney
Sue Raney
Sue Raney is an American jazz singer. Signed by Capitol Records at the age of seventeen, her debut album, the Nelson Riddle-produced When Your Lover Has Gone, was released in 1958. Raney begin singing at only four years of age, and encouraged by her mother, began working as a professional before...
's comeback album All By Myself
All by Myself
"All by Myself" is a power ballad written and performed by Eric Carmen in 1975.The verse is based on the second movement of Sergei Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor, Opus 18...
, recorded in 1963 and released in early 1964. Capitol Records
Capitol Records
Capitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine...
had wanted Stan Kenton
Stan Kenton
Stanley Newcomb "Stan" Kenton was a pianist, composer, and arranger who led a highly innovative, influential, and often controversial American jazz orchestra. In later years he was widely active as an educator....
to back Raney on the project, but when the celebrated bandleader proved to be unavailable, they turned to Carmichael, who wrote hip, bluesy, big band arrangements in the Kenton style, which were considered to be accomplished substitutes. When Capitol promptly dropped Raney after she was knocked down by a car and left largely unable to promote the album during a long convalescence, the singer stuck with Carmichael to provide the arrangements for her next album on Philips Records
Philips Records
Philips Records is a record label that was founded by Dutch electronics company Philips. It was started by "Philips Phonographische Industrie" in 1950. Recordings were made with popular artists of various nationalities and also with classical artists from Germany, France and Holland. Philips also...
.
Carmichael was also Musical Director for I Love Lucy
I Love Lucy
I Love Lucy is an American television sitcom starring Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, Vivian Vance, and William Frawley. The black-and-white series originally ran from October 15, 1951, to May 6, 1957, on the Columbia Broadcasting System...
during the later years of the show.
In 1958, Carmichael was hired by producer Jack H. Harris to score his color science fiction film, The Blob
The Blob
The Blob is an independently made 1958 American horror/science-fiction film that depicts a giant amoeba-like alien that terrorizes the small community of Phoenixville, Pennsylvania...
. With the success of the film, Carmichael was brought back to score Harris' follow-up film, 4D Man
4D Man
4D Man is a 1959 American science fiction independent film, produced by Jack H. Harris from his own original screenplay and directed by Irvin S. Yeaworth Jr.-Plot:...
.
He arranged most of the carols on the Stan kenton album "A Merry Christmas"
Christian music
It is in the field of Christian music that Carmichael has been most prolific. In particular, his experiments in pop-rock style in the 1960s and 1970s have brought him recognition as the "Father of Contemporary Christian MusicContemporary Christian music
Contemporary Christian music is a genre of modern popular music which is lyrically focused on matters concerned with the Christian faith...
". (http://www.mymusicway.com/biography/rcarmcl2.html)
(http://www.ag.org/pentecostal-evangel/conversations2002/4623_carmichael.cfm) He founded Light Records
Light Records
Light Records was a gospel record label founded in 1966 by Ralph Carmichael as a joint venture with the Waco, Texas-based Word Records.-History:...
in order to widen the audience for the music of the Jesus People. He was subject to controversy from within the church, being called a heretic
Heresy
Heresy is a controversial or novel change to a system of beliefs, especially a religion, that conflicts with established dogma. It is distinct from apostasy, which is the formal denunciation of one's religion, principles or cause, and blasphemy, which is irreverence toward religion...
for his use of guitars in worship and his adaptations of Gospel songs to big band stylings.
Carmichael also provided the backing for a number of RCA
RCA
RCA Corporation, founded as the Radio Corporation of America, was an American electronics company in existence from 1919 to 1986. The RCA trademark is currently owned by the French conglomerate Technicolor SA through RCA Trademark Management S.A., a company owned by Technicolor...
albums by Gospel singer George Beverly Shea
George Beverly Shea
George Beverly "Bev" Shea is a Grammy Award-winning Canadian-born American gospel singer and hymn composer. Shea has often been described as "America's beloved Gospel singer" and is considered "the first international singing 'star' of the gospel world," as a consequence of his solos at Billy...
, including The Love of God in 1958, and How Great Thou Art in 1969.
In 1969, Carmichael and Kurt Kaiser
Kurt Kaiser
Kurt Kaiser, is an award winning songwriter of Contemporary Christian music and member of the Gospel Music Hall of Fame. He has produced and arranged albums for the likes of: Kathleen Battle, Ernie Ford, Larnelle Harris, Burl Ives, Ken Medema, Christopher Parkening, George Beverly Shea, Joni...
collaborated on Tell It Like It Is, a folk musical about God. The record album of the musical, which included the song "Pass It On", sold 2,500 copies, completely selling out the first run; it then completely sold out its second run of 100,000 copies.
In 1970, he made the funky urban soundtrack for The Cross and the Switchblade
The Cross and the Switchblade
The Cross and the Switchblade is a book written in 1963 by pastor David Wilkerson with John and Elizabeth Sherrill. It tells the true story of Wilkerson's first five years in New York City, where he ministered to disillusioned youth, encouraging them to turn away from the drugs and gang violence...
.
One of Carmichael's contemporary hymns, "Reach Out to Jesus", was recorded by Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
, on the singer's 1971 Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
-winning album of sacred songs, He Touched Me
He Touched Me
He Touched Me is a 1972 gospel music album by Elvis Presley. It earned Presley his second of three Grammy Awards. It was his third and final studio gospel album, and the most contemporary of the three. The album was certified Gold on 3/27/1992 and Platinum on 7/15/1999 by the RIAA.-Track listing:#...
. His album Strike Up the Band won a Dove Award for "Instrumental Album of the Year" at the 25th GMA Dove Awards
25th GMA Dove Awards
The 25th Annual GMA Dove Awards were held on April 28, 1994 recognizing accomplishments of musicians for the year 1993. The show was held at the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville, Tennessee, and was hosted by Amy Grant.-Award recipients:*Artist of the Year...
in 1994.
Recent years
Carmichael was inducted into the GMAGospel Music Association
The Gospel Music Association was founded in 1964 for the purpose of supporting and promoting the development of all forms of Gospel music. There are currently about 4,000 members worldwide...
Gospel Music Hall of Fame
Gospel Music Hall of Fame
The Gospel Music Hall of Fame, created in 1971 by the Gospel Music Association, is a Hall of Fame dedicated exclusively to recognizing meaningful contributions by individuals and groups in all forms of gospel music.-Inductees:...
in 1985 (http://www.gmahalloffame.org/inductee_bio.cfm?ID=324) and into the National Religious Broadcasters' Hall of Fame in 2001.
His autobiography, He's Everything To Me, was published by Word Books in 1986.