BEVERLY “RUBY” ROSS - An Archive

Beverly Ross, who also used the pseudonym Rachel Frank, was born in the Bronx but moved with her family as a child to Lakewood, NJ. Given piano lessons, she showed a natural musical ability and early on knew she wanted to be a professional musician. She got her break while a teenager living in the Bronx where she pitched her songs to writers of the iconic Brill Building.

Ross would be known for many top 40 hits but one of her most enduring, written with Julius Dixon, was “Lollipop”. It was ultimately made into a top hit by the Chordettes but she had originally recorded it herself with Ronald Gumm as the duo “Ronald & Ruby” and took it to #20 on the charts. But when it was discovered that Gumm was African-American, networks and other venues started cancelling their appearances; not wanting an interracial duo to offend audiences. A true pioneer indeed.

She wrote songs and lyrics for many of the top performers at the time including one of the last hits for Bill Haley and the Comets, "Dim, Dim The Lights (I Want Some Atmosphere)" which was a hit in 1955. She also wrote “Dixieland Rock” which was made into a hit and performed by Elvis Presley in the film “King Creole”. Elvis also covered her “Girl of My Best Friend” as did many others including Bryan Ferry. She also scored a huge hit with “Judy’s Turn To Cry” performed by Leslie Gore.

Another big hit was “Candy Man” that Roy Orbison made into a hit and was the “B” side to “Crying”. This was re-recorded by Mickey Gilley in the 1980’s where it went to #5 on the US Country charts and Ross was awarded a BMI award in 1985 for the song.

She wrote songs for other artists over the years including Engelbert Humperdinck, Bonnie Raitt,, Shelby Lynne and many others. She also collaborated with Phil Spector for several months and wrote a memoir about that experience in “I Was the First Woman Phil Spector Killed: An Autobiography In Essays”.

Ross also wrote the full scores for “City of Light”, and “Skin”, Broadway style musicals that appear may have begun production but never made it to actual performances. Finally, she also wrote treatments for TV shows and music scores for TV commercials.

The material in this archive, which is laid out and named primarily based on the specific song or project, appears to be ideas, treatments, demos, and music that with a few notable exceptions, were ultimately not successful releases.

It also contains hand-written ideas, almost stream of consciousness material, on any paper that she had laying around, including the proverbial “back of the napkin”. In this case, it was a napkin for the Carlyle Hotel in NYC.

There is sheet music; hand-written, photocopied with hand-written notations, and simply photocopies of work she had previously completed.

There are original and copied, handwritten and typed, song lyrics for individual songs and for the musicals she created.

Also included are many studio demo discs of both her recordings as well as other artists performing her songs.

There are also several agreements, some signed, that appears to confirm rights to her songs or in the case of “Dixieland Rock”, selling the rights to Elvis’s music company though long after it was performed in “Kid Creole”.

Lastly, there are a few treatments for TV episodes for popular shows such as Captain Kangaroo and Laugh-In though it is not clear if any ideas were actually used.

Though Beverly Ross did not have the career of Carole King, a contemporary, she was every bit as prominent and groundbreaking at the time and likely would have had similar notoriety had she performed more of her own work. The enormous breadth of her work and the dozens of top artists she wrote for and collaborated with, not to mention all of the hits she wrote, ensures her place in the history of Rock and Roll.

Dozens of

hand-

written

and typed

“ideas”.

Live Idea File 1970-74

Live Idea File 1970-74

Live Idea File 1970-74

Live Idea File 1970-74

Writing Ideas 1970

Writing Ideas 1970

Writing Ideas 1970

1969 “Daddy Took Me In” – Photocopied lyrics and sheet music with hand-written notes. Studio Demo 45

1961 “Don’t Believe Everything You Hear” – Collaboration with Phil Spector - Photocopies of music. Studio Demo Vinyl

1978 “And Then You Came Along” – Handwritten lyrics, notes, etc…

1975 “Dimples” – Handwritten & Typed music, lyrics and notes.

Captain Kangaroo Television Treatment – Handwritten and typed lyrics and notes.

1977 “Do You Like the Dance We’re Doin’?” - Handwritten & Typed music, lyrics and notes.

1977 “Dancin’ in the Street” w B Side “Branded Man” – Handwritten & Typed music, lyrics and notes.

Alternate title of “Dancin’ in the Street”?

1977 “Thanks a Million” with 1984 revisions. Handwritten & Typed music, lyrics and notes.

1960 “Doo Dee-oo Doop” Signed Photocopied music & lyrics – Studio Demo Vinyl.

Beverly Ross performing on Studio Demos

Misc. Studio Demo Vinyl and trade releases.

Full Score, with music for all instruments, for unproduced musical “Skin” No date save for a note of “rediscovered in

1993”. Lyrics and music, mostly photocopied with some handwritten notes.

“Skin”

“Skin”

“Skin”

2000 “City of Light” Binder with Full Score and play. Appears to be a stage version used for rehearsals.

“City of Light”

Un-dated – Vitalis TV commercial – Photocopied music and lyrics with some hand-written notes.

Items relating to “Dixieland Rock” Photocopies of original music, commercial sheet music, studio demo vinyl, and a

signed agreement whereby Beverly Ross is selling the rights to this and other songs to Elvis Presley Music.

“Dixieland Rock”

1954 “Dim Dim the Lights” - Items relating to the song. Photocopies of the original music, commercial sheet music,

studio demo vinyl and commercial releases.

Demos performed by Beverly

Undated Photo – Presumed Ms. Ross in center.