Montague George Ewing
Montague George Ewing (21 May 1890 – 4 March 1957), was a British composer and arranger of light music and ballads. As a composer and lyricist he used his own name and various other pseudonyms, most famously Sherman Myers, but also Rex Avon, Herbert Carrington, Brian Hope and Paul Hoffmann. Ewing was born in Forest Gate, London and was largely self-taught as a musician. He took various office jobs before the war, while establishing himself as a pianist and accompanist (for instance, accompanying The Jollity Boys in Herne Bay in 1910). As a composer he achieved an early success with novelty compositions for piano that were quickly adapted for bands and orchestras. One of the first was the One-Step Policeman's Holiday in 1911. It was followed by The Police Patrol and The Burglar's Dream, all of which became popular with marching brass bands and as sheet music, originally published by Phillips & Page. From 1915 to 1919 he served in the London Scottish Regiment. After the war Ewing adopted the American sounding name Sherman Myers to attract US publishers, achieving a second run of success in the 1920s and early 1930s with pieces such as Moonlight on the Ganges, an evocation of Far Eastern music with words by Chester Wallace. This was a US hit in 1926 for Paul Whiteman. Many other arrangements followed, with the piece becoming a jazz standard in the 1930s. Butterflies in the Rain, described as "a foxtrot intermezzo", with words by Erell Reaves, was recorded by Henry Hall. Other titles include Fairy on the Clock, Soldier on the Shelf and When Lights Are Low in Cairo. Some of his songs were used uncredited in films during the 1930s, such as Grand Hotel (1932), which includes Soldier on the Shelf. There was an operetta, The Pedlar's Dream, with a text by Margaret Keir and many piano suites with short movements, some for children and educational use. Examples include Silhouettes (Books 1–7, from 1916), Petals: Four Sketches (1919), Fireflies (1921), Mosaics (1921), Love in a Cottage (1923), The Fragrant Year (1925) and Changing Skies (1934). Ewing was also a prolific arranger. Ewing served in the Home Guard during World War 2. He was married to Doris Anne Thronton and there was one son and one daughter. They lived at Watch Cottage, 3 Friern Watch Avenue in North Finchley. He died in Friern Barnet, aged 67. |
Birth and Death Data: Born East Ham (district of the London Borough of Newham in East London, England), Died March 4, 1957 (London Borough of Barnet (borough in the London Region in England) )
Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1926 - 1942
Roles Represented in DAHR: composer
Notes: Sometimes used the pseudonym Sherman Myers.
= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.
Recordings
| Company | Matrix No. | Size | First Recording Date | Title | Primary Performer | Description | Role | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Victor | BVE-36044 | 10-in. | 8/13/1926 | Moonlight on the Ganges | Paul Whiteman Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | composer | |
| Victor | BVE-36045 | 10-in. | 8/13/1926 | Moonlight on the Ganges | The Revelers | Male vocal quartet, with piano | composer | |
| Victor | BS-035347 | 10-in. | 3/24/1939 | Oriental medley | Swing and Sway with Sammy Kaye | Jazz/dance band | composer | |
| Victor | PBS-072169 | 10-in. | 3/9/1942 | Moonlight on the Ganges | Tommy Dorsey Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | composer | |
| Columbia | W142561 | 10-in. | 8/23/1926 | Moonlight on the Ganges | Fred Rich Hotel Astor Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | composer | |
| Columbia | 142820 | 10-in. | 10/14/1926 | Moonlight on the Ganges | WMCA Broadcasters | Jazz/dance band | composer | |
| Columbia | [W]151382 | 10-in. | 3/2/1931 | Soldier on the shelf | Lanin’s Famous Players | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | composer | |
| Columbia | W151452 | 10-in. | 3/21/1931 | Soldier on the shelf | Ben Selvin and his Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | composer | |
| OKeh | 80114 | 10-in. | 9/15/1926 | Moonlight on the Ganges | Markel's Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | composer | |
| OKeh | W80282 | 10-in. | 1/4/1927 | Moonlight on the Ganges | Irving Kaufman ; Lanin’s Famous Players | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | composer | |
| OKeh | W80483 | 10-in. | 2/25/1927 | Moonlight on the Ganges | George Epstyne | Organ solo | composer | |
| Brunswick | E35691 | 10-in. | 12/4/1930 | The wedding in the ark | Harry Reser ; Six Jumping Jacks | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | composer | |
| Brunswick | E36137 | 10-in. | 2/21/1931 | Soldier on the shelf | Sleepy Hall and his Collegians [Fred Rich Orchestra] | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | composer | |
| Brunswick | E4228-E4230 | 10-in. | 12/14/1926 | Moonlight on the Ganges | Al Goering's Collegians | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | composer | |
| Brunswick | E20164-E20165 | 10-in. | 9/15/1926 | Moonlight on the Ganges | Franklyn Baur | Male vocal solo, with orchestra | composer | |
| Brunswick | E20586-E20587 | 10-in. | 10/29/1926 | Moonlight on the Ganges | Jack Denny Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal trio | composer | |
| Brunswick | E20704-E20705 | 10-in. | 11/11/1926 | Moonlight on the Ganges | Bonnie Laddies ; Jack Denny Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal trio | composer | |
| Brunswick | [Br (U.K.) cat 158-b] | 10-in. | Feb. 1928 | Music and moonlight | Fred Elizalde Music | Jazz/dance band | composer | |
| Edison | 11203 | 10-in. | 9/16/1926 | Moonlight on the Ganges | Duke Yellman Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | composer | |
| Edison | 11352 | 10-in. | 12/6/1926 | Moonlight on the Ganges | Frederick Kinsley | Pipe organ solo | composer | |
| Gramophone | 0J921 | 10-in. | 1/11/1933 | Danza de los minutos | Orquesta Demon's Jazz | Jazz/dance band | composer | |
| Gramophone | 0B1389 | 10-in. | 9/22/1931 | The queen was in the parlour | Ambrose Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo and vocal trio | composer | |
| Gramophone | 0B5064 | 10-in. | 9/11/1933 | Whistling under the moon | Jack Jackson Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo and vocal chorus | composer | |
| Gramophone | 0B6414 | 10-in. | 1/31/1933 | Butterflies in the rain | Ray Noble Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | composer | |
| Columbia (U.K.) | CA16795 | 10-in. | between October 1937 and January 1938 | The policeman's holiday | Band of the Grenadier Guards [U.K] ; George Miller | Band | composer |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Ewing, Montague George," accessed December 24, 2025, http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/113860.
Ewing, Montague George. (2025). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved December 24, 2025, from http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/113860.
"Ewing, Montague George." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2025. Web. 24 December 2025.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
External Sources
Discogs: Montague George Ewing
Allmusic: Montague George Ewing
IMDb: Montague George Ewing
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: Ewing, Montague George, 1890-1957 - https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/no2007157141
Wikidata: Sherman Myers - https://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q19513514
VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/4727359
MusicBrainz: Montague Ewing - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/0171d933-576f-4bc5-ad35-1d5eb19ca275
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