By Chuck Darrow
When the great songwriters of the 1960s and ’70s are discussed, one name that generally isn’t part of the conversation is that of Anthony Newley. And that continues to vex Eddie Bruce, who believes the multi-talented British entertainer, who died in 1999 at age 67, deserves exponentially more recognition that he has garnered, both while he was alive and posthumously.
“I’ve just always thought he was underappreciated as a songwriter,” said Bruce, who on Aug. 19, brings his Newley tribute show to the Gateway Playhouse in Somers Point. “When you look at the songs he wrote, it’s just incredible.”
Indeed, Newley’s composing resume arguably stands with any of his pop-writing contemporaries, up to and including composing titans like Jimmy Webb and Burt Bacharach. Among the many standards he conjured (mostly with his longtime writing partner, Leslie Bricusse) are “What Kind Of Fool Am I;” “On A Wonderful Day Like Today;” “Who Can I Turn To” and the Nina Simone signature “Feelin’ Good.” His film work included the ionic theme to the James Bond film “Goldfinger” and the score to “Willie Wonka & The Chocolate Factory” (featuring “The Candy Man” and “Pure Inagination”).
So, why isn’t Newley’s legacy more honored?
“I think it’s because he ended up as a ‘Vegas’ act,” suggested Bruce, who celebrated a recent birthday by performing “The Star-Spangled Banner” at a Phillies game.
“I think that lost him respect. And after “Stop The World, I Want to Get Off” and “The Roar Of the Greasepaint, The Smell Of the Crowd” [in the 1960s], he never got a show to Broadway again. And then he ended up in Vegas, and there was a stigma to that back then. He got a reputation as a ‘hack’ performer, which he never was—ask any musician that ever played for him.”
Interestingly, Bruce, a veteran entertainer perhaps best-known as the host of the beloved 1980s Philly-TV dance party, “Dancin’ On Air,” noted that Newley is even less-thought of in his native United Kingdom than he is in America. “I think he’s actually less-revered in England than here, because he made so much of his fortune and most visible work in the States.”
Bruce is hardly a Tony-come-lately when it comes to Newley.
“I used to be fascinated by him when I was a kid, watching him on ‘Merv Griffin,’ ‘Mike Douglas’ and ‘The Tonight Show,’” he offered. “He was so unique as a singer. I mean, he had that thick English accent with the exaggerated vowels, and the flamboyant gestures and the drama.
“And I was attracted to him that way. I thought, ‘What an interesting performer.’ I never felt it was weird. Some people looked at him as a performer and just couldn’t connect because of his over-the-top presentation. But not me; I always liked it.”
Bruce, who remembers seeing Newley perform in 1999 at what is now Harrah’s Resort Atlantic City, debuted his salute to Newley in 2001. He said that through the years, it has been expanded and evolved into its current iteration, which he described as the most-fully rendered version to date. Among the elements included are an introductory video presentation which, Bruce said, “will remind people of who he is,” and a look into the ultimately destroyed friendship Newley shared with Sammy Davis Jr., perhaps the performer most closely associated with his work as a composer (Newley was also a successful actor).
Bruce is especially pleased the audience will include some very special guests.
“I have a couple of his very close friends coming, people that acted with him,” he said. “They love my reverence for him because even when I do an impression of him, which I do once in a show, I don’t do it as a joke. I do all his exaggerations, but I do it really as an homage, so they appreciate it.
“We’ll have a lot of people there that knew him, which I’m very proud of.”
For tickets and information, go to www.gatewaybythebay.org.
