He began his career as pianist while a young teenager working on passenger riverboats on the Mississippi River.
It was Hess's job to translate what Berlin played by ear onto the page in order to make printable sheet music possible.
Their process involved Hess transposing Berlin's songs into easier keys and simplifying tunes so that they could be more accessible for commercial sale.
[4] Musicologist Charles Hamm noted that Hess likely contributed significantly to the finished product of Berlin's tunes written during this period.
Hamm stated the following: "It would be impossible to document precisely what Hess contributed to the final versions of Berlin's songs.
[3] Other songs he wrote included "Don't You Remember the Day", "Huckleberry Finn", "I'm in Heaven (When I'm in My Mother's Arms)", "I Used to Call Her Baby", "Sweet Marimba", "When Alexander Takes His Ragtime Band to France", and "While the Years Roll By".