Charles Singleton

Charles Fowler Singleton Jr. (September 17, 1913 – December 12, 1985), known as Charlie "Hoss" Singleton, was an American songwriter, best known for having co-written the lyrics for "Strangers in the Night" and "Moon Over Naples" (later covered as "Spanish Eyes").

Singleton wrote or co-wrote more than a thousand songs. "Strangers in the Night" reached number one on the Billboard charts for Frank Sinatra, and the Elvis Presley version of "Spanish Eyes" sold in excess of three million copies. Singleton and McCoy also wrote "Tryin' to Get to You", notably recorded by Elvis Presley at Sun (1955) but first released by Washington, D.C. group The Eagles in 1954. In 1956, Singleton and McCoy, as Charlie and Rosie, recorded a single together on RCA Victor.

Singleton went on to write songs for a number of notable artists, including Pat Boone, Nat King Cole, Ella Fitzgerald, B. B. King, Peggy Lee, Johnny Mathis, Wayne Newton and Andy Williams.

"Strangers in the Night" began as an instrumental called "Beddy Bye", by German bandleader and composer Bert Kaempfert, which appeared on the soundtrack of the film A Man Could Get Killed. When Frank Sinatra's producer Jimmy Bowen heard the tune, he asked Kaempfert to turn it into a song, and Kaempfert approached Singleton and American composer and songwriter Eddie Snyder for help. Singleton wrote the lyrics and Snyder adapted the music for what became "Strangers in the Night". Sinatra initially called the song "a piece of shit" after the first take had to be discarded because session guitarist Glen Campbell had made a mistake. and rejuvenated Sinatra's career.