American Popular Song Series: Eubie Blake

We continue our rebroadcast of our series on American Popular Song with a tribute to ragtime composer and performer Eubie Blake. He was born on Feb. 7, 1883, in Baltimore, Md. He wrote the songs for the Broadway hit Shuffle Along. African American ragtime musicians of the day sought out Eubie to write their songs. Two of Eubie Blake's best known songs are "I'm Just Wild About Harry" and "Love Will Find A Way." Just over 100 years after his life began, on Feb. 12, 1983, Eubie Blake died in Brooklyn, New York. We'll present a concert with singer Vernel Bagneris and pianist Dick Hyman and feature theater historian Robert Kimball. Singer Vernel Bagneris co-starred in the Broadway musical The Life. He also co-created and starred in a Jelly Roll Morton revue, and the New Orleans music revue One Mo' Time. Dick Hyman is an expert in piano styles of the teens, twenties and thirties. He has also composed music for several Woody Allen movies. Kimball rediscovered Blake in the the late '60s and co-authored the book Reminiscing with Sissle and Blake. Kimball is also the co-author of The Gershwins, and editor of The Complete Lyrics of Ira Gershwin and Cole Porter.