Bert Kaempfert - Danke Schoen

Bert Kaempfert (born Berthold Kämpfert; 16 October 1923 21 June 1980) was a German orchestra leader and songwriter. He made easy listening and jazz-oriented records, and wrote the music for a number of well-known songs, such as "Strangers in the Night" (originally recorded by Ivo Robić) and "Spanish Eyes".
He was born in Hamburg, Germany - where he received his lifelong nickname, Fips - and studied at the School of Music there. A multi-instrumentalist, he was hired by Hans Busch to play with his orchestra before serving as a bandsman in the German Navy during World War II. He later formed his own big band, toured with them, then worked as an arranger and producer, making hit records with Freddy Quinn and Ivo Robić. In 1961, he hired The Beatles to back Tony Sheridan on "My Bonnie (Lies Over the Ocean)," "When the Saints Go Marching In," "Ain't She Sweet" and "Cry for a Shadow," in a session for Polydor, the Beatles' first commercial recordings.
Kaempfert's own first hit with his orchestra had been in 1960, with "Wonderland by Night". Many of his tunes became better known as hits for other artists:
•"Strangers in the Night" (with words by Charles Singleton and Eddie Snyder, originally composed by Ivo Robić), was originally recorded as part of his score for the 1965 film A Man Could Get Killed. It became a #1 hit for Frank Sinatra in 1966.
•"Wooden Heart," sung by Elvis Presley in the film GI Blues was a hit in 1961. A cover of "Wooden Heart" performed by Joe Dowell became a big hit in the summer of 1961, reaching #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, on August 28 of that year.
•His instrumental "Moon Over Naples," when given words by Snyder, became "Spanish Eyes", originally a hit for Al Martino and also recorded by Engelbert Humperdinck, Presley, and many others.
•"Danke Schoen", with words added by Kurt Schwabach and Milt Gabler, became Wayne Newton's signature song.
•"L-O-V-E", with words added by Milt Gabler, was a hit for Nat King Cole
•"Almost There", Andy Williams
•"Tenderly", "Three O'Clock in the Morning", "Red Roses for a Blue Lady" and other romantic songs were covered frequently by other easy-listening or middle-of-the-road performers.
•A jazzier number called "A Swingin' Safari" was the initial theme tune for the long-running TV game show, The Match Game used on the NBC version from 1962-67. "A Swingin' Safari" also hit the Billboard charts by Billy Vaughn, the single release peaking at #13 in the summer of 1962. Another 1962 single, That Happy Feeling, became well-known as background music for children's television programming, most notably that of Sandy Becker.