James Shelton (songwriter)

James Shelton was an American Broadway actor, composer, and writer. He is best known for being the songwriter of "Lilac Wine" (1950), which has been covered by numerous artists.^[1]

Musicals and revues

• New Faces of 1934, produced by Leonard Sillman. Music by James Shelton with Henry Fonda, March 15, 1934 – July 1934^[2]
• Who's Who, March 1, 1938 – March 1938^[3]
• The Straw Hat Revue, September 29, 1939 – December 2, 1939
• Dance Me a Song, January 20, 1950 – February 18, 1950^[4][5]
• Mrs Patterson, December 1, 1954 – February 26, 1955
• Almost Crazy, music by James Shelton, June 20, 1955 – July 2, 1955^[6]

References

1. "Cover versions of Lilac Wine written by James Shelton". SecondHandSongs. Retrieved 9 February 2022.
2. Ken Bloom Routledge Guide to Broadway 2013 1135871175- Page 111 The first of Leonard Sillman's New Faces (1934) revues introduced actors Imogene Coca, Hildegard Halliday, and James Shelton to New York audiences. But by far the greatest new face was that of Henry Fonda.".
3. Stanley Green - Encyclopedia of the Musical Theatre - Page 305 078674684X 2009 "On Bway, the cast included Imogene Coca, Nancy Hamilton, Walters, James Shelton, Henry Fonda, and Sillman. Charles Dillingham was the ... Sillman's 1938 revue, Who's Who, was essentially another New Faces with a change in title ."
4. David Jenness, Donald Velsey Classic American Popular Song: The Second Half-Century, 1950-2000 1136797459 - 2014 "Lilac Wine is a long song from the revue “Dance Me a Song” (1950), music and lyrics by James Shelton. It's an elegant, folklike song, which compares a lover's infatuation with the effects of a magic potion: in the verse, “I made wine from the ..."
5. Opening Night on Broadway: A Critical Quotebook of the Golden Era 1990 0028726286 " DANCE ME A SONG a musical revue, with music and lyrics mostly by James Shelton; sketches by Jimmy (James) Kirkwood and Lee Goodman, George Oppenheimer and Vincente Minnelli. Marya Mannes, Robert Anderson, James Shelton, "
6. Gerald Bordman - American Musical Theater: A Chronicle - 2001 Page 650 019513074X "A brightly mounted but vacuous revue, Almost Crazy (20 June 1955, Longacre), opened the season. Much of its material was by the persistent, if uninspired, James Shelton, while a fine comedienne, Portia Nelson, contributed several numbers .."