It was said that Irving Berlin (1888-1989) did not write American music; he was American music. His very long career found him starting out as one of the first major composers of the Great American Songbook and surviving long enough to be one of the very last. In addition to his quantity, the vast range of his writing (which included both the music and the lyrics of his songs) along with the high quality kept him at the top of his field for
over 50 years. What was particularly remarkable is that Irving Berlin did not read music and could only play the piano in the key of F sharp. This most quintessential of American songwriters was actually born in Russia although he moved to New York with his family when he was very young. Not very happy as a child, he ran away from home in 1900 when he was 12, appearing on the stage in 1902’s The Show Girl. He became a singing waiter and began to compose songs. Berlin’s first published tune, “Marie From Sunny Italy,” came out in 1907. He had his first hits two years later with “Sadie Salome, Go Home” and “My Wife’s Gone To The Country (Hurrah! Hurrah!);” the latter was recorded. Berlin made his recording debut in 1910 as a singer and appeared in a Broadway revue, Up And Down Broadway.