James Thornton (songwriter, vaudeville performer)
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- For other people named James Thornton, see James Thornton
| James Thornton | |
|---|---|
| Born | December 5, 1861 Liverpool, England |
| Died | July 27, 1938 New York City, New York, United States |
| Genre(s) | Popular music |
| Occupation(s) | Songwriter |
| Years active | c.1885-1934 |
James Thornton (December 5, 1861 — July 27, 1938) was an American composer and lyricist. He was born of Irish parents in Kew Street, Liverpool, England, emigrated to the United States in 1869, became a US citizen in 1931, and died in New York City. Thornton is primarily remembered today as the composer of the 1898 song, When You Were Sweet Sixteen. The song was a favorite of Barbershop Quartets at the turn of the century and was recorded by Harry McDonagh around 1904. In the 1946 Columbia Pictures film, The Jolson Story, where singer Al Jolson was his own voice-double for actor Larry Parks the song was changed to a different format and became the version that most people remember. The song was then recorded by Perry Como in 1947 and was a hit.
Thornton started his career as a "singing waiter" in Boston and then achieved success with his wife, Bonnie Cox, in music halls throughout the US as what was then called a "serio-comic" or "monologist" (essentially a stand-up comic) and singer. During his career, Thornton was also the vaudeville partner of Charles B. Lawlor, composer of the song, The Sidewalks of New York.
Thornton’s other compositions (besides When You Were Sweet Sixteen) include: She May Have Seen Better Days, The Irish Jubilee, Two Little Girls in Blue, When Summer Comes Around, It Don’t Seem Like the Same Old Smile, My Sweetheart's the Man in the Moon, Daddy Wouldn't Buy Me a Bow-Wow and the 1893 song, The Streets of Cairo, composed for the Chicago World’s Fair of that year. Thornton’s last public appearance was in 1934 at the Forrest Theater in New York City.
[edit] Notes
One source (see "liner notes" source, below, says the song is "from" the 1945 Bing Crosby Production, Inc. film, The Great John L.; thus, the song may have an earlier recorded history than normally reported.
