Norman Gimbel

Norman Gimbel (November 16, 1927 – December 19, 2018) was an American lyricist and songwriter of popular songs and themes to television shows and films. He wrote the lyrics for songs including "Ready to Take a Chance Again" (with composer Charles Fox) and "Canadian Sunset". He also co-wrote "Killing Me Softly with His Song". He wrote English-language lyrics for many international hits, including "Sway", "Summer Samba", "The Girl from Ipanema", "How Insensitive", "Drinking-Water", "Meditation", "I Will Wait for You" and "Watch What Happens". Of the movie themes he co-wrote, five were nominated for Academy Awards or Golden Globe Awards or both, including "It Goes Like It Goes", from the film Norma Rae, which won the Academy Award for Best Original Song for 1979. Gimbel was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1984.

Background The Tennessee Wig-Walk sheet music cover, published by Francis, Day & Hunter Ltd. in 1953 Gimbel was born on November 16, 1927, in Brooklyn, New York City, the son of Lottie (Nass) and businessman Morris Gimbel. His parents were Jewish immigrants from Austria. He studied English at Baruch College and Columbia University. Gimbel said that he relied on Lieberman to inspire his songwriting creativity since he had passed the most creative days of his youth: "Now I need a reason to write, and Lori is one of the best reasons a lyricwriter could have." Lieberman was inspired by a performance of Don McLean to write some lyrics for a song; she shared these with Gimbel who fleshed out the lyrics while Fox wrote the music. Lieberman, Gimbel and Fox collaborated on the song's title, adapted from Gimbel's notebook of ideas. The song became "Killing Me Softly with His Song", which Lieberman recorded in 1972 in the folk style. Gimbel and Fox produced the song and took full writing credit, cutting Lieberman out of future profits.

Also in 1973, the Gimbel and Fox song "I Got a Name", recorded by Jim Croce and used in the 1973 film The Last American Hero, was voted Best Film Song by the Young New York Film Critics.