Biography
Lyricist and composer Irving Gordon supplied hit material to vocalists including Perry Como, Patti Page, Eddy Arnold, Bing Crosby, and Billie Holiday, yet earned his widest recognition for penning “Unforgettable,” first cut in 1931 by Nat “King” Cole. Brooklyn-born in 1915, he took up violin during childhood and turned to songwriting a few years afterward while employed at a Catskills resort. Early in the 1930s he supplied lyrics to the talent agency headed by Irving Mills, collaborating with Mills on the words for two Duke Ellington pieces from that decade: “Please Forgive Me” and “Prelude to a Kiss.” Additional Gordon compositions encompass “Delaware,” “Rollin’ Stone,” “There’s No Boat Like a Rowboat,” “Mama From the Train,” “What Will I Tell My Heart?,” and “Me, Myself and I.” Relocating to L.A. in the mid-1940s, he remained there for the balance of his years. Irving Gordon lived to witness Natalie—daughter of Nat “King” Cole—score a Grammy-winning revival of “Unforgettable” only a short time before his passing in December 1996.
Albums