| LC control no. | no2012135389 |
|---|---|
| Descriptive conventions | rda |
| Personal name heading | James, Dick |
| Variant(s) | Vapnick, Leon Isaac |
| Birth date | 19201212 |
| Death date | 19860201 |
| Place of birth | East End (London, England) |
| Place of death | London (England) |
| Affiliation | Northern Songs (Firm) |
| Profession or occupation | Music publishers Singers |
| Found in | His It's a cryin' shame [SR] 1946?: label (Dick James) Wikipedia, July 10, 2014 (Dick James; British music publisher and, together with his son Stephen, founded the DJM record label and recording studios, as well as (with Brian Epstein) The Beatles' publisher Northern Songs; born Leon Isaac Vapnick on December 12, 1920 in the East End of London; James sang with North London dance bands in his early teens, and was a regular vocalist at the Cricklewood Palais by the age of seventeen; he joined the Henry Hall band, and made first radio broadcast in 1940, but joined the Army in 1942; after World War II he continued to sing with leading bands, including Geraldo's; later, James was also a part-time member of The Stargazers, a popular early 1950s vocal group; he was the singer of the theme songs of The Adventures of Robin Hood and The Buccaneers, from British television in the 1950s; he opened Dick James Music in 1961; in early 1963, he was contacted by Brian Epstein who was looking for a publisher for the second Beatles single, Please Please Me; the pair subsequently established Northern Songs Ltd., with Beatles John Lennon and Paul McCartney, to publish Lennon and McCartney's original songs; James's company, Dick James Music, administered Northern Songs; he sold Northern Songs in 1969 without offering the Beatles an opportunity to buy control of the publishing company; James profited handsomely from the sale of Northern Songs, but the Beatles never again had the rights to their own songs; James signed Elton John and his lyricist Bernie Taupin as untried unknowns in 1967; James died in London of a heart attack on Febraury 2, 1986) |
| Associated language | eng |
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