Classic Pop Icons

A few years back there was a tribute to Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, the great rock ‘n’ roll songwriting team, on American Idol. Reviewing the show, my local arts critic wondered in print just who Leiber and Stoller were. According to the writer, such figures were too obscure for a full blown “Idol” tribute. Some would say that this was a sign that Jerry Leiber, who died August 22 of cardiac arrest, had outlived his fame. Maybe Leiber, the lyricist, in the songwriting duo, and his partner Stoller were never famous enough. They made their greatest impact in an age where the roles of songwriters and singers were often rigidly segregated and unlike the golden age of Tin Pan Alley, the media focused almost exclusively on the performers. The sheer number of classic titles though that they contributed to the rock ‘n’ soul pantheon- “Hound Dog,” “Jailhouse Rock,” “Kansas City,” “Ruby Baby,” “Drip Drop,” “Stand By Me,” “On Broadway,” “Yakety Yak” and on and on – made a lot of people find out who they were. Whether or not they were ever household names or whether some hack writer knew who they were in 2007, is not what’s important. The people who really care about pop music know Leiber and Stoller because they were unbelievably good at what they did and because what they did was so profound and helped create much of what was best about the pop world of the last half century. Leiber’s death does not change that.

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Legendary songwriter, Jerry Leiber, died today of cardiopulmonary failure at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. He was 78.

During Leiber’s 60-year songwriting partnership with Mike Stoller, the pair penned some of the most timeless and popular songs in rock ‘n’ roll history, including “Hound Dog,” “Yakety Yak,” “Love Potion No. 9,” “On Broadway” and “Jailhouse Rock.”

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