Frank Denny De Vol, also known simply as De Vol
(September 20, 1911 - October 27, 1999) was an American arranger, composer and
actor.
De Vol was born in Moundsville, West Virginia and raised
in Canton, Ohio, where his father was bandleader for the local vaudeville
theater and his mother, Minnie Emma Humphreys De Vol, had worked in a sewing
shop. DeVol joined his father's band
when he was 14, and was a full-time professional musician before he was twenty.
He attended Miami University. After a variety of gigs, he was hired by Horace
Heidt to play and arrange, but when guitarist Alvino Rey left that band, DeVol
went with him. By the early 1940s, De Vol was leading his own band on Mutural
Network station KHJ in Los Angeles. He soon became musical director for the
network, working with Rudi Vallee, Dinah Shore, Jack Carson, and others, and
was appearing himself in some of the on-air skits.
From the 1940s, De Vol wrote arrangements for the studio
recordings of many top singers, including Nat King Cole, Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah
Vaughan, Tony Bennett, Dinah Shore, Doris Day and Vic Damone. His single most
famous arrangement is probably the haunting string and piano accompaniment to
Cole's Nature Boy, which was a US Number One in 1948. That same year, he
released a version of "The Teddy Bears' Picnic" (Capitol Records
15420), that he arranged and sang lead vocals on.In the 1950s De Vol's
orchestra played frequently at the Hollywood Palladium under the concert name
"Music of the Century".
De Vol & Helen O'Connell c.1951 |
De Vol worked in radio until the early 1950s, when
director Robert Aldrich hired him to score a low-budget movie, "World for
Ransom." Other studio jobs followed, and by the early 1960s, most of his
time was spent writing and conducting music for series such as "My Three
Sons" and "The Brady Bunch" and movies like "Pillow
Talk," "Good Neighbor Sam," "Guess Who's Coming to
Dinner," and "Krakatoa: East of Java." He won five Oscar
nominations for his scores and five Emmys for his television themes and scores.
He was in steady demand as an arranger for vocalists such as Tony Bennett,
Doris Day, Vic Damone, June Christy, and Peggy Lee. And in his spare moments,
he did occasional acting bits, appearing in movies such as "The Parent
Trap" before his "Fernwood/America 2 Nite" stint.
De Vol was also a recording artist with Capitol,
Columbia, and finally, ABC, and released over a dozen albums of string-laden
easy listening music. In 1966–1967, he arranged the soundtrack for the 1967
Columbia Pictures comedy film, The Happening starring Anthony Quinn and
co-produced The Supremes #1 American pop hit, "The Happening"
alongside Motown producers Holland-Dozier-Holland. In all, De Vol composed
music for over 50 motion pictures.
In 1989, after the death of his first wife Grayce, De Vol
married the big band-era singer Helen O'Connell in 1991, and together the
couple performed on cruise ships for several years until O'Connell's death in
1993. Also during the 90's when well into his eighties, De Vol was active in
the Big Band Academy of America. He also spoke at various seminars and social
groups about his inspired and humourous experiences.
De Vol died of congestive heart failure on 27 October
1999 at a nursing home in Lafayette, California. He is interred at the Forest
Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Hollywood Hills.(Info edited from Wikipedia
& Spaceage Pop)
1 comment:
For “Frank De Vol & His Orchestra - Fabulous Hollywood!'' (1959) go here:
http://www51.zippyshare.com/v/eBHNrbYI/file.html
01.Tammy
02.My Foolish Heart
03.Golden Earrings
04.Love Letters
05.True Love
06.Third Man Theme
07.Unchained Melody
08.Around The World In 80 Days
09.Return To Paradise
10.Gigi
11.An Affair To Remember
12.Love Is A Many-Splendored Thing
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