Paul Williams Elected President and Board Chairman of ASCAP

Paul Williams Elected President and Board Chairman of ASCAP

Songwriter Paul Williams has been elected to succeed Marilyn Bergman as president and chairman of the board of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers by the ASCAP board of directors at its meeting in Nashville, TN.

Written By

NewMusicBox Staff

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Paul Williams, photo courtesy ASCAP

Songwriter Paul Williams has been elected president and chairman of the board of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers by the ASCAP board of directors at its meeting in Nashville, TN. Williams succeeds Marilyn Bergman who will continue as an active board member. Songwriter Jimmy Webb has been elected writer vice chairman to replace Williams, who held that post for the prior two years. On the publisher side, the re-elected officers are: Irwin Robinson of Paramount Allegra Music as vice chairman; Kathy Spanberger of peermusic as secretary; and James M. Kendrick of Schott Music Corporation/European American Music Corporation as treasurer. (Kendrick also serves on the board of directors of the American Music Center.)

Williams’s songs—which have been recorded by such diverse performers as Elvis Presley, Frank Sinatra, Willie Nelson, Ella Fitzgerald, David Bowie, Ray Charles, R.E.M., Tony Bennett, Sarah Vaughn, Johnny Mathis, Luther Vandross, and Kermit the Frog—include: “We’ve Only Just Begun”; “Rainy Days and Mondays”; “You and Me Against the World”; “An Old Fashioned Love Song”; “I Won’t Last a Day Without You”; and “Let Me Be The One”. Born in Omaha, Nebraska, in 1940, Williams has additionally composed the song scores for the films Bugsy Malone and Phantom of the Paradise, as well as the music and lyrics for Garry Marshall musical Happy Days. He has also appeared in 17 motion pictures. In addition to Williams being a recipient of the Oscar, Grammy, and Golden Globe awards, his songs “The Rainbow Connection” (from The Muppet Movie) and “Evergreen” (from A Star is Born) appear on the American Film Institute’s list of the top 100 movie songs of all time. (—From the press release)