Douglas Brownsmith(1902-1965)

Composer and arranger Reginald Douglas Brownsmith's first big success as a composer came in 1927 when "Down the Mall" written with Tony Lowry was published. The newly-formed BBC Dance Orchestra under Henry Hall made its first broadcast (and Columbia recordings) in March 1932, and Douglas Brownsmith was one of a fine team of arrangers, working alongside Tony Lowry, Phil Cardew, Sid Phillips, Peter Yorke, Ronnie Munro and Van Phillips. One of his compositions, "Hush Hush Hush Here Comes The Bogey Man" (credited on the label to Lowton and Benson - actually Lowry and Brownsmith) was on the other side of the famous Henry Hall record of "Teddy Bears' Picnic". After World War II production music publishers needed a vast amount of original orchestral compositions to service the requirements of radio, films and the emerging television stations around the world; Bosworth, Boosey & Hawkes, Charles Brull and Francis Day & Hunter all published a number of Brownsmith's works.