Charles Harrison

Harrison, Charles

Charles (Franklin) Harrison. Lyricist, songwriter, publisher, b Hamilton, Ont, 24 Aug 1883, naturalized US 1927, d Hamilton 11 Nov 1955. He was the son of a prima donna (known alternatively as Mme Yulisse and Marie Harrison) in the Carl Rosa Opera Company. Harrison began writing songs while he was an assistant bank manager in Vancouver and published his first efforts through his own C.F. Harrison and Co, Vancouver and Toronto. These included some ragtime novelty items (eg, 'My Ragtime Automobile') and the patriotic songs 'The Best Old Flag on Earth' (1914) and 'My Own Dear Canada' (1917). The last sold over 10,000 copies in the Vancouver area alone. A collaboration with Fred R. Weaver, 'Keep on Smiling' (1919), was published by Weaver and Harrison, Vancouver.

In 1919 Harrison moved to Chicago where, with Fred Brownhold, he formed the Ted Browne Music Co. Twenty years later the firm was sold to Plymouth Music. Over the years Harrison collaborated with various US composers on over 100 published songs, including the popular 'I'm Drifting Back to Dreamland' (Mayfair Music 1922) and 'How Do You Do?' (George Simon/Shawnee Press 1924), theme-song of the Happiness Boys. Harrison's 'When Summer Is Gone' (Harms 1928), written with Monte Wilhite, was recorded by the orchestras of Meyer Davis, Lou Gold, and Nat Shilkret, the pianist Lee Sims, the tenor Franklyn Baur, and others.