Jerry Lordan
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Jerry Lordan (born 30 April 1934 — 24 July 1995), was a English composer and singer.
[edit] Career
Born Jeremiah Patrick Lordan in Paddington, West London, as a child Lordan taught himself to play piano and guitar. He attended Finchley Grammar School and went into National Service in the Royal Air Force as a radar operator. On leaving the Services he had a number of jobs including stand-up comedian, singer and in advertising. He started to write songs and, in 1958, with the help of contacts made in the advertising business, a demo of one of his songs was heard by a record producer. The song, "A House, A Car and a Wedding Ring" was recorded by Mike Preston on Decca Records. It did not sell well, but the song was successfully covered by the American rockabilly star, Dale Hawkins, on the Checker label.
A later song, "I've Waited So Long" was recorded by the young Anthony Newley on Decca and got to number 3 in the UK Singles Chart in May 1959.
Lordan was signed as a singer to Parlophone and had four charting singles in 1960, the most successful being "Who Could Be Bluer?".
But it was as a songwriter that he found real fame when he wrote the instrumental, "Apache" (named after a Burt Lancaster film). It was originally recorded by Bert Weedon, but Lordan did not like the version. Weedon's label, Top Rank, did not release it immediately. On tour with The Shadows, Lordan demonstrated the song to bass player Jet Harris, reportedly picking out the tune on a ukelele. When the rest of the band heard it, they agreed to record it. It was released in July 1960 and hit number one in August, staying at the top for five weeks. The tune was also recorded by the Danish guitarist Jorgen Ingmann, who took it to number two in the Billboard Hot 100. The Shadows' version was voted Top Record of 1960 in the New Musical Express Readers' Poll.
Lordan gave up singing for full-time writing. He wrote the Shadows' UK number one hit "Wonderful Land", and a further number one, "Diamonds" for the ex-Shadows Jet Harris and Tony Meehan. Harris and Meehan also recorded his song "Scarlett O'Hara" taking it to number two in the same chart. He wrote further hits for Cliff Richard, Shane Fenton and "I'm Just a Baby" for Louise Cordet.
By the end of the 1960s the success was largely over and personal difficulties dogged Lordan through the 1970s. During that time he made a brief foray in acting, appearing in the 1977 sex comedy, Come Play With Me. The film was directed by his neighbour, George Harrison Marks. In the 1980s Lordan remarried and started to write again, though the songs were never published.
Lordan died in July 1995 in Shrewsbury Hospital, Shropshire, of acute renal failure at the age of 61. A memorial service was held for him at St Martin-in-the-Fields Church in London, on 25 October 1995.
