Hal Shaper | |
|---|---|
| Born | Harold David Shaper (1931-07-18)July 18, 1931 Muizenberg, Cape Town, South Africa |
| Died | January 8, 2004(2004-01-08) (aged 72) Cape Town, South Africa |
| Genres | |
| Occupation | Lyricist |
| Years active | 1951–2004 |
| Labels | Sparta Music |
Harold David Shaper (18 July 1931 – 8 January 2004), known asHal Shaper, was a South African songwriter. After qualifying as a lawyer in 1955, he travelled to London to begin his five-decade-long musical career during which he worked with and wrote for well-known artists includingFrank Sinatra,Elvis Presley,Barbra Streisand andDavid Bowie. After establishing financial stability following the release of his first hitSoftly, As I Leave You, he began his own music publishing company, Sparta Florida Inc.. Aside from song titles and lyrics, Shaper also wrote for films as well as musicals.
Shaper was born on 18 July 1931 inMuizenberg nearCape Town as the third and youngest child ofJewish parents. His father was fromManchester and his mother from theghetto of Lodz inPoland.[1] He was inspired to become a songwriter after seeing theMickey Rooney filmWords and Music (1948),[2] saying: he was "enchanted by the quality of the songs and the freshness of them"[3] In 1949 Hal met young pianist and budding songwriter,Charles Segal who was holidaying in Muizenberg. Charles encouraged Hal to write his first lyrics for one of Charles's songs - "I Never Loved Before", beginning a musical collaboration and friendship that spanned many decades. Young Charles introduced young Hal to one of Charles's well-established lyricists,Anton De Waal. Encouraged by his friend, Charles Segal, Hal gained confidence and other songs soon followed (I Got Troubles of My Own", "I'll Never Dream Again", "Tanganyika" and many others). Hal's initial attempts at musical theatre were performed in local theatres; his professional songwriting career did not begin until later. In 1955, Shaper was certified as a lawyer in Cape Town. However, he did not pursue a career in law but rather left immediately for London in seek of a songwriting career.[2]
In London, he first earned a living washing dishes with the Troubadour restaurant inEarls Court. In the summer of 1955, he was employed as asong plugger by pop music publisher Dave Toff ofSouthern Music, who, Shaper said, discouraged him from writing lyrics, stating "there was no future in the business for writers".[3] Shaper was then persuaded to move toRobbins Music by Alan Holmes, leaving his job as a plugger in August 1958. In Robbins Music, a higher quality acclaimed label, he began writing songs under the mentorship ofAlan Holmes and Joy Connock, marking the beginning of his writing career.[2]
Shaper's English title and lyrics to the Italian melody "Softly, As I Leave You" (1962) was his first hit. It was initially released byMatt Monro and was soon recorded later in the US byShirley Bassey.[2] The song was repeatedly released in subsequent years, earning him enough money to start and reluctantly run his own music publishing company in 1964, Sparta Music.[3]
Throughout his career, Shaper's work was released by well-known artists includingFrank Sinatra,Bing Crosby,Elvis Presley,Barbra Streisand (for whom he wrote "Martina"),Petula Clark ("My Friend the Sea"),Jack Jones ("The Years of My Youth"),[2]Val Doonican ("The Mysterious People"),Lena Horne,Bobby Darin andRichard Anthony. In addition, various other writers in the company brought about international successes, getting released by artists such asMoody Blues,Desmond Dekker,David Bowie andBlondie.
Shaper further created and published approximately 60 movie soundtracks for films such asThe Go-Between (1971),Papillon (1973),The Boys from Brazil (1978), andFirst Blood (1982). For these, he won theIvor Novello award multiple times.[2]
He also wrote various musicals for the theatre. Along with composerCyril Ornadel, he wrote two award-winning shows:Treasure Island, which ran for two seasons at theMermaid Theatre; andGreat Expectations, starringJohn Mills,Moira Lister andLesley-Ann Down.[4] After returning to South Africa, he wroteLa Bohème Noire, a stage musical adaptation ofLaBohème' set in contemporarySoweto.[4]
Shaper married twice, first to Susan from 1972 to 1989 with whom he had a daughter, Hollie; and later to Pippa in 1990 with whom he had four children: Jack, Pia, Harry and Lucy. Hal Shaper died in Cape Town on 8 January 2004 at the age of 72.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
| Other | |
