Henry MacGregor Woods (November 4, 1896 - January 14, 1970) was a Tin Pan Alley songwriter and pianist. Woods is sometimes credited as Harry Woods.

Biographie

Early life
Woods was born in North Chelmsford, Massachusetts. He had no fingers on his left hand since birth. Nonetheless, Woods' mother, a concert singer, encouraged him to play the piano. Woods got his bachelor's degree at Harvard University, where he supported himself by singing in church choirs and giving piano recitals. After graduation, Woods settled in Cape Cod and began life as a farmer. He was drafted into the Army during World War I; it was there that he began cultivating his talent for songwriting. After his discharge, Woods settled in New York City and began his successful career as a songwriter.


Career
Woods' first songwriting success came in 1923 with the song "I'm Goin' South", written with Abner Silver, and a #2 hit song in 1924 for Al Jolson. The same year, "Paddlin' Madeleine Home" was published with words & music by Woods (a recording by Cliff Edwards in 1925 would reach #3 on the Billboard chart).

By 1926, Woods had become an established songwriter on Tin Pan Alley, and he would become legendary with his new song, "When the Red, Red Robin (Comes Bob, Bob, Bobbin' Along)". The song was an instant hit for singers like "Whispering" Jack Smith, Cliff Edwards and the Ipana Troubadors. Al Jolson, however, had the most success with his recording, which reached #1 on the Billboard charts. The song was recorded in 1953 by Doris Day, and again reached considerable success on the charts.

In 1929, Woods began contributing songs to Hollywood musicals such as The Vagabond Lover, A Lady's Morals, Artistic Temper, Aunt Sally, Twentieth Century, Road House, Limelight, It's Love Again, Merry Go Round of 1938, and She's For Me. In 1934, he moved to London, where he lived for three years and worked for the British film studio Gaumont British, contributing to the films Jack Ahoy and Evergreen .

While Woods primarily created both the words and music for his songs, he also collaborated with Mort Dixon, Al Sherman, Howard Johnson, Arthur Freed, Rube Bloom and Gus Kahn. Alone, and with his collaborators, he wrote "I'm Looking Over a Four Leaf Clover", "I'm Goin' South", "The Clouds Will Soon Roll By", "Just a Butterfly that’s Caught in the Rain", "Side by Side", "My Old Man", "A Little Kiss Each Morning", "Heigh-Ho, Everybody, Heigh-Ho", "Man From the South", "River Stay 'Way from My Door", "When the Moon Comes Over the Mountain", "We Just Couldn’t Say Goodbye", "Just an Echo in the Valley", "A Little Street Where Old Friends Meet", "You Ought to See Sally on Sunday", "Hustlin' and Bustlin' for Baby", "What a Little Moonlight Can Do", "Try a Little Tenderness", "I'll Never Say 'Never Again' Again", "Over My Shoulder", "Tinkle Tinkle Tinkle", "When You've Got a Little Springtime in Your Heart", and "I Nearly Let Love Go Slipping Through My Fingers".