The Songs of Hugh MacKay

I became interested in learning more about composer Hugh MacKay after posting Bobby Short's version of his song "Sunday in Savannah." It's a terrific piece, so strongly reminiscent of composer-singer-pianist Willard Robison that Bobby's recording attributed it to the latter songwriter.

Robison loved his rural preachers, setting several of his best-known songs in church - "The Devil Is Afraid of Music," "Truthful Parson Brown," "We'll Have a New Home in the Mornin'" and others. (These can be heard in my recent Willard Robison compilation.) MacKay's composition is in that line - "One more Sunday in Savannah, and the whole creation's shouting, 'Praise the Lord!'"

When I set out to find more songs by MacKay, I was able to discover just a few, and very little about him as a person. Even his name is uncertain - it is rendered as "MacKay," "Mackay" and "McKay" depending on the label. I believe it is "MacKay," based on copyright listings for his songs. Those tell us he was active at least until the late 1950s. The first recording in this collection dates from 1939, so he wrote songs at least for 20 years. But as for biographical information, little has turned up and there are no photos to be found.

Paul Whiteman

But let's take a listen to the songs I did turn up, starting with the just-mentioned 1939 recording. It is "The Shoemaker's Holiday," with a detailed reading by Paul Whiteman and his substantial orchestra, and a vocal by the Modernaires. For this one, MacKay supplied the catchy music and Don Raye the lyrics.

Whiteman, of course, came to prominence in the 1920s, and several members of his band were active in that era, including Frank Signorelli and Charlie and Jack Teagarden. It was also the period of Robison's greatest fame.

Tony Pastor

Skipping ahead to 1941, MacKay turns wordsmith, credited with "special lyrics" for Tony Pastor's version of "Oh Marie!," called "Maria, Mari." Pastor made what I think was the first recording of "Sunday in Savannah," also in 1941 and also in this collection. Pastor was in his element with "Oh Marie!" - like Louis Prima, he was a follower of Louis Armstrong - but "Sunday in Savannah" seems far afield for the son of Middletown, CT.

Pastor's connection with MacKay was clear - Tony's brother Stubby seems to have written songs with him, although not these.

The McFarland Twins

MacKay also wrote both the music and lyrics for our next item, "For Whom the Bell Tolls," also from 1941. (This is not the Victor Young theme for the 1943 film of that name, although the song title was surely inspired by the source of the film, Ernest Hemingway's 1940 novel.) The artists for this number were the McFarland Twins (who styled their band as "Music That Wins by the McFarland Twins"). Now forgotten, the duo came out of the Fred Waring band and made records for a few years. Jimmy Foster is the vocalist on this one, under the spell of the Eberle/y brothers. It's a lovely song, with a depressing text.

MacKay also caught the attention of one of the biggest bandleaders in 1941 - Tommy Dorsey recorded his instrumental "Backstage at the Ballet." A good piece, here with excellent trumpet and tenor solos.

In addition to the Pastor disc, I've included another influential recording of "Sunday in Savannah," this one by Mabel Mercer, the grand dame of cabaret. She included the song on her first Atlantic LP, recorded in 1951. Her advocacy presumably led to the recording by Bobby Short and Nina Simone's later performances.

Marty Grosz

MacKay's own musical interests may or may not be captured in the final item on the program, a 1951 recording of the "Dixieland Jass Band One-Step" by Mart Gross and His Cellar Boys, with a Hugh McKay on cornet. It's not certain that this performer was the same person as the songwriter, but consider that MacKay the songwriter betrayed his interest in the music of the 1920s through his apparent imitation of Willard Robison's compositions, and through his association with musicians who were prominent or at least active back then - including Whiteman, Dorsey and Pastor.

"Mart Gross" turns out to be Marty Grosz, longtime guitarist in trad groups and son of the artist George Grosz. His band included the young pianist Dick Wellstood and the legendary bass player Pops Foster. McKay does get a solo on the record. Sad to say, he was a better songwriter than instrumentalist, that is, assuming it's the same person!

These recordings come from Internet Archive and my own collection.