Harry Barris

Biography

Barris was born to Jewish parents in New York City. Gary Giddins described him as "small, wiry, and moon-faced with glittery eyes, and dark hair slicked back and parted in the middle." He was educated in Denver, Colorado. Barris became a professional pianist at the age of 14. He led a band which toured the Far East at the age of 17.

Barris married Hazelle Thompson in 1925.

The same year, Barris played the piano and occasionally sang in Paul Ash's orchestra. In the same year, Al Rinker and Bing Crosby became members of Paul Whiteman's Orchestra as a singing duo. However, at the Paul Whiteman Club, where there were no microphones, they could not be heard by the audience. They were promptly dropped from the bill. However, a band member who knew Barris suggested that they add him to make a trio. With Barris's help, they were heard, and The Rhythm Boys were formed.

In 1930, Barris divorced Hazelle Thompson. The Rhythm Boys left Paul Whiteman the same year and joined Gus Arnheim's Cocoanut Grove Orchestra. After one recording together, "Them There Eyes" (November 1930), the boys decided to quit, and they went their separate ways. However, Barris changed his mind and returned to the Cocoanut Grove to complete his contract. Barris joined Arnheim's singing group The Three Ambassadors. Barris met Loyce Whiteman, who also sang with the Orchestra, and married her in 1931. They appear together in an episode of Rambling 'Round Radio Row. They had one daughter, Marti Barris, who also became a musician. They divorced in 1946.

Barris appeared in 57 films between 1931 and 1950, usually as a band member, pianist and/or singer. In 1932, Barris signed a contract to star in six shorts for Educational Pictures, similar to Bing Crosby's launch into films. The first of these shorts was That Rascal. In The Lost Weekend (1945), he is the nightclub pianist who humiliates Ray Milland by singing "Somebody Stole My Purse". An unusual change of pace for Barris was his comedy role in The Fleet's In (1942), as a runty sailor named Pee Wee who perpetrates malapropisms in a surprisingly deep voice.

During World War II, Barris, along with Joe E. Brown, went overseas to entertain troops.

Barris had a lifelong drinking problem. In a fall, he fractured his hip in March 1961. Despite a series of operations, he developed a cancerous tumor. He died in Burbank, California, aged 57. His composition "Never Been So Lost" was published shortly before his death.

1. "Hong Kong Dream Girl" (1924), with George E. Springer
2. "'Tain't Cold" (1925), with Jack Mills
3. "And She'll Do It For a Long, Long Time" (1926)
4. "Brown Sugar" (1926)
5. "I'm Out in Nowhere, Going to Go Somewhere" (1926)
6. "I Got a Sweet Lil' Girl" (1926)
7. "Jimmy-Da-Walk, Da Boss-A New York" (1926), with Howard Johnson and James Cavanaugh
8. "Why Does My Sweetie Love (Nobody But Me)" (1926), with Irving Mills
9. "Mississippi Mud" (1927), with James Cavanaugh
10. "That's Grandma" (1927), with Bing Crosby and James Cavanaugh
11. "Play It, Red" (1927)
12. "Sweet L'il" (1927)
13. "From Monday On" (1928), with Bing Crosby
14. "Wa-Da-Da (Ev'rybody's Doin' It Now)" (1928), with James Cavanaugh
15. "What Price Lyrics?" (1928), with Bing Crosby and Matty Malneck
16. "My Blue Print of Dreams" (1929), with Billy Moll
17. "So the Bluebirds and the Blackbirds Got Together" (1929), with Billy Moll
18. "That's What's Troubling Me" (1929), with Billy Moll
19. "Ev'rything's Agreed Upon" (1930), with Bing Crosby
20. "At Your Command" (1931), with Bing Crosby and Harry Tobias
21. "Chances Are" (1931), with Gus Arnheim and Ralph Freed
22. "It's the Darndest Thing" (1931)
23. "I Surrender Dear" (1931), with Gordon Clifford
24. "It Must Be True" (1931), with Gordon Clifford
25. "Lies" (1931), with George E. Springer
26. "What Good Would Be Tomorrow (Without You, Dear)" (1931), with Gus Arnheim and Ralph Freed
27. "What Is It?" (1931), with Harry Tobias
28. "Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams" (1931), with Ted Koehler and Billy Moll
29. "I Got the Ritz From the One I Love (I Got the Big Go-By)" (1932), with J. C. Lewis
30. "It Was So Beautiful" (1932), with Arthur Freed
31. "Music Has Charms" (1932)
32. "We're Alone" (1932), with Arthur Freed
33. "It Will Be Too Bad for You" (1933)
34. "I'm Satisfied" (1934), with Ralph Freed
35. "Little Dutch Mill" (1934), with Ralph Freed
36. "Lonesome China Boy" (1934), with Mort Greene
37. "Flirtation" (1935), with Mort Greene
38. "Thrilled" (1935), with Mort Greene
39. "Never Been So Lost" (1962)

Selected filmography

Solo recordings

In 1926, Barris, billed as "Happy Harry Barris," made a solo record performing his own composition, "And She'll Do It For a Long, Long Time" (Cameo 1080), showcasing his talents as a pianist, vocalist, and songwriter. While this record survives, his few other solos recorded in 1926 have been destroyed. They include:

During the 1930s, it was uncommon to hear Barris perform completely solo outside of films. A rare example is a Cocoanut Grove broadcast tape of "It's the Darndest Thing."