Irvin Graham (1909 - 2001)
composer - lyricist

 
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September 18, 1909 - December 1, 2001
Place of Birth: Philadelphia, PA
Place of Death: Englewood, NJ

Photography by Bernice B. Perry courtesy of MacDowell

 




Honors and Awards

Yaddo Residency
MacDowell Fellowship




Affiliations

Dramatists Guild Member since 1979
ASCAP, SAG-AFTRA, SGA




Career Highlights

-UK Singles Chart - 18 weeks at #1 (“I Believe”)
-Billboard Charts - 10 weeks at #11 (“I Believe”)
-Wrote Disney’s The Whale Who Wanted to Sing At the Met.




Notable covers

”I Believe” - Elvis Presley, Louis Armstrong, Barbra Streisand
”Dena’s Lullaby” - Danny Kaye
”Maybe I Love Him” - Margaret Whiting
”Love Talk” - Barbara McNair
”This Too Shall Pass Away” - Doris Day
”The Girl With The Paint on Her Face” - Frank Curmit
”With A Twist of the Wrist” - Tony Pastor & Rose Blane
”You Better Go Now” - Billie Holiday

Used by Permission. All rights reserved, Playbill Inc.

B orn Irvin Abraham on September 18, 1909 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Irvin Graham was a composer, lyricist, and loyal Dramatists Guild member.

Irvin wrote his first hit song, “You Better Go Now,” at the age of 15. This song was first performed by Imogene Coca in the Broadway show New Faces and went on to be covered by 53 artists, including Billie Holiday, Johnny Mathis, Jeri Southern, Ben Webster, and Chet Baker. His most well-known song, “I Believe,” has been covered over 166 times to date by stars like Barbra Streisand and Elvis Presley. “I Believe” has also become a holiday staple heard on numerous Christmas albums and is routinely performed by choirs across the country. Graham’s other popular tunes include “Maybe I Love Him,” “I’m In Love With A Married Man,” “With a Twist of the Wrist,” and “Dena’s Lullaby” (made popular by Danny Kaye).

Over the course of his career, Graham wrote material for Maggie Smith, Patrice Munsel, Marguerite Piazza, Constance Bennet, Mimi Benzel and Eddie Albert. He credited with music and/or lyrics on five Broadway shows: New Faces of 1936 (1936), Who’s Who (1938), All in Fun (1940), Crazy With The Heat (1941), and New Faces of 1956 (1956). Graham also wrote a musical version of the Taming of the Shrew for CBS. As a script writer, Irvin Graham worked for WCAU and WIP in Philadelphia as well as Your Show of Shows starring Sid Caesar and The Jane Frohman Show. In addition, he wrote the story for Walt Disney’s The Whale Who Wanted to Sing At the Met.

Irvin Graham was educated at Zeckwer-Hahn Musical Academy in Philadelphia. He was reported to have associations with Norman Lloyd and Max Liebman. Irvin Graham married Lillian Goldstein in 1942. They lived in Manhattan and had no children.

He passed on December 1, 2001.

 

  • 1956 - Broadway opening of New Faces of 1956 at the Ethel Barrymore Theater in NYC. Songs from this production included “Girls ‘n’ Girls ‘n’ Girls” sung by Inga Swenson, Jonny Laverty, John Reardon, Franca Baldwin, Suzanne Bernard, and Virginia Martin.

  • 1953 - “I Believe” written with Ervin Drake, Al Stillman, and Jimmy Shirl for Jane Forman. Original orchestra by Sid Feller. Released by TRO-Cromwell Music.

  • 1946 - The Whale Who Wanted to Sing at the Met for Walt Disney, performed by Nelson Eddy.

  • 1941 - Crazy With The Heat opened on Broadway at the 44th Street Theatre in NYC. This show closed after only 7 performances but then was reopened 16 days later by Ed Sullivan. Includes the song “With A Twist of the Wrist.”

  • 1940 - A musical version of Taming of the Shrew written by Graham and Joseph Gottlieb aired on CBS as part of their Columbia Workshop series.

  • 1940 - Broadway opening of All in Fun at the Majestic Theater in NYC. Songs for this production included “Love and I” (music by Baldwin Bergersen, lyrics by Graham, sung by June Sillman); “But No” (music by Baldwin Bergersen, lyrics by Graham); “I’ve Grown Up”; “The Lady Can Love” (originally used in Calling All Men); “Prettiest Place in Greece” (music by Graham, lyrics by Virginia Faulkner).

  • 1938 - Broadway opening of Who’s Who at the Hudson Theatre in NYC. Graham’s songs for this production included “Skiing at Saks” (produced by Rags Ragland); “I Must Waltz” (music by Baldwin Bergersen, lyrics by Graham, sung by Imogene Coca); “The Girl with the Paint of Her Face” (sung by June Sillman); “Snow White and Burgess Meredith” (music by Paul McGrane, lyrics by Graham, sung by June Blair).

  • 1936 - Broadway opening of New Faces of 1936 at the Vanderbilt Theatre in NYC. Songs from this production included “My Love is Young” (music by Graham, Lyrics by Bickly Reichner, sung by Katharyn Mayfiend); “Miss Mimsey” (sung by Imogene Coca); “You’d Better Go Now” (music by Graham, Lyrics by Bickly Reichner); “Gypsy Tea Kettle”; “We Shriek of Chic” (music by Graham, Lyrics by June Stillman).

 

Songs (selected works)
"Beautifully Belong"
"Bluebird"
"Clover"
"Dena's Lullaby"
"Don't Keep Silent (Tell Me So)"
"Girls 'n' Girls 'n' Girls"
"I Believe"
”I Can’t Fall in Love”
“I Don’t Love You”
"I Know It By"

"I Stay Kissed"
"I'm in Love with a Married Man"
"It's All in Your Heart"
"Love Me a Little Bit"
"Love Talk"
"Maybe I Love Him"
”Rich Woman”
“Tell Me a Little Lie”
"The Girl with the Paint on Her Face"
"This Too Shall Pass Away"
"You've Got to Want Me Enough"

Musicals (selected works)
THE WAR WIDOW
A MAN OF PLEASURE

Complete Irvin Graham Collection

LISTEN on Spotify
WATCH on YOUTUBE
RECORDINGS on Discogs

 

THE BILLBOARD MAGAZINE
Lyrics and music by Irvin Graham, particularly numbers like Women, Women and Saint or Sinner were catchy and the lyrics intelligent.
- Bill Smith, The Billboard Magazine, March 15, 1947 (page 36).

1,000 UK NUMBER ONES
“I Believe” accomplished an awful lot in its day because it said all the things that need to be said in a prayer and yet it didn't
use any of the holy words - Lord, God, Him, His, Thine, Thou. It said it all and it changed the whole spectrum of faith songs."
- Frankie Lane, 1,000 UK Number Ones by Jon Kutner and Spencer Leigh.

STRANGER THINGS SOUNDTRACK; SEASON 2
Soundtrack includes Billie Holiday’s rendition of the Irvin Graham classic “You Better Go Now.”

MACDOWELL FELLOWSHIP
Irvin Graham was the three time recipient of a MacDowell Fellowship