Ray Ellis
| Ray Ellis production discography | |
|---|---|
| Studio albums | Billie Holiday's Lady in Satin (1958) |
Ray Ellis (July 28, 1923 – October 27, 2008) was an American record producer, arranger, conductor, and saxophonist. He was responsible for the orchestration in Billie Holiday's Lady in Satin (1958).[1]
Biography
[edit | edit source]Raymond Spencer Ellis was born in Philadelphia.[1] He composed, and performed much of the underscore music for the animated Spider-Man (1967 TV series).[2] He composed two extended themes for The Today Show, the first in 1971. It was used as the Friday closing theme (and eventually the show's full-time theme) until the end of the decade.[1] However, in Herald Square Music v. Living Music, the District Court of the Southern District of New York "found the instrumental arrangement and harmonization of defendant's melody to be substantially similar to that of 'Day by Day,'" a Stephen Schwartz song from the musical Godspell.[3] As a result, Ellis composed a second Today Show theme based on the trademark NBC chimes. That theme was the NBC show's signature from 1978 to 1985 and has appeared irregularly on the morning program ever since.[1]
Work with Filmation
[edit | edit source]Using the name of his wife "Yvette Blais" as a pseudonym, Ellis and Norm Prescott, who used the pseudonym "Jeff Michael" after his sons Jeff and Michael) composed nearly all of the background music for cartoon studio Filmation from 1968 to 1982, according to DVD booklets for Ark II, Space Academy, and Jason of Star Command.[4] This also included much of the music used in Star Trek: The Animated Series, which was re-released on November 29, 2016 as part of that franchise's 50th anniversary.[5]
Death
[edit | edit source]Ellis died of complications from melanoma on October 27, 2008, at an assisted-living facility in Encino, California. He was survived by sons Marc and Jeffrey.[1][6]
Selected discography
[edit | edit source]As arranger or conductor
[edit | edit source]- Mood Jazz, Joe Castro (1956)
- Lady in Satin, Billie Holiday (1958)
- Chris Connor Sings the George Gershwin Almanac of Song, Chris Connor (1961)
- The Third Album, Barbra Streisand (1963)
- Soul, Lena Horne (1966)
- There Is a Time, Liza Minnelli (1966)
- And I Love Him!, Esther Phillips (1965)
- Seven Letters, Ben E. King (1965)
- Herbie Mann Plays The Roar of the Greasepaint – The Smell of the Crowd, Herbie Mann (1965)[7]
- A Lazy Afternoon, Harold Land (1995)
- The Christmas Album, Johnny Mathis (2002)
References
[edit | edit source]- ^ a b c d e Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ https://blog.wfmu.org/freeform/2007/01/the_music_every.html
- ^ Herald Square Music v. Living Music, 205 U.S.P.Q. 1241, No. 77 Civ. 0008 (S.D.N.Y. Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).).
- ^ Mangels, Andy; booklets for Space Sentinels/The Freedom Force, Hero High, The Ghost Busters, Ark II, Space Academy, Jason of Star Command, and The Secrets of Isis
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
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External links
[edit | edit source]- Ray Ellis at IMDb
- Ray Ellis at Memory Alpha
- Ray Ellis Interview NAMM Oral History Library (1997)
- Ray Ellis discography at Discogs
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- 1923 births
- 2008 deaths
- American male jazz composers
- American jazz musicians
- American music arrangers
- Record producers from Pennsylvania
- Musicians from Philadelphia
- MGM Records artists
- Filmation people
- RCA Victor artists
- 20th-century American jazz composers
- Deaths from melanoma in California
- American male conductors (music)
- Jazz musicians from Pennsylvania
- 20th-century American conductors (music)
- 20th-century American male musicians
- Animation composers