Bernie Hanighen

Bernard D. Hanighen (April 27, 1908 in Omaha, Nebraska – October 19, 1976 in New York City, New York) was an American songwriter and record producer, best known for "When a Woman Loves a Man", and writing lyrics to the jazz composition "'Round Midnight", composed by jazz musician Thelonious Monk.

Bernie Hanighen and Cootie Williams collaborated to transform Thelonious Monk's bop masterpiece "'Round Midnight", creating what became a standard in the vocal canon thanks to performances by Mel Tormé, Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, Carmen McRae, Nancy Wilson, Chris Connor, and Julie London.

[1] From 1936 to 1939, Hanighen co-produced Billie Holiday's early Columbia recordings with John Hammond.

She wrote in her 1956 autobiography, Lady Sings the Blues: Bernie almost lost his job at Columbia fighting for me.

He was the cause of me making my first records under my own name - not as anybody's damn vocalist, but Billie Holiday period, and then the list of musicians backing me.

Fred Astaire singing Hanighen and Mercer's "Poor Mr. Chisholm" in Second Chorus (1940)