In an interview in 2004, George David Weiss shared a story about his start in songwriting. His mother, it seemed, would have preferred he become an accountant and it took some time before he told his mother of his plans to become a songwriter, instead. Luckily, for music lovers everywhere, Weiss didn’t subscribe to the “mother knows best” adage. Instead he went on to pen some of songwriting’s most-beloved songs.

Collaborating with Bennie Benjamin, Weiss wrote such hits as “Rumors Are Flying” (Frankie Carle, Les Paul), “Surrender” (Perry Como), “Confess” (Patti Page), “I Don't See Me In Your Eyes Anymore” (Gordon Jenkins), “Can Anyone Explain?” (The Ames Brothers, Ray Anthony), “Echoes” (Jo Stafford and Gordon MacRae), “I'll Never Be Free” (Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Jordan, Kay Starr), “To Think You've Chosen Me” (Eddy Howard), “I Ran All the Way Home” (Sarah Vaughan), “Jet” (Nat “King” Cole), “Wheel of Fortune” (Kay Starr), “Cross Over the Bridge” (Patti Page), and “How Important Can It Be?” (Joni James).

Weiss collaborated with George Shearing on the jazz standard “Lullaby of Birdland,” a song later recorded by Erroll Garner, Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughn and Count Basie. With Joe Sherman, Weiss wrote “That Sunday, That Summer,” recorded by Nat King Cole. Two of Weiss’ larger hits came with collaborators Luigi Creatore and Hugo Peretti including, “Can’t Help Falling In Love,” recorded by Elvis Presley as well as the song, “Lion Sleeps Tonight.” Perhaps his most-beloved hit was that he wrote with Bob Thiele and recorded by Louis Armstrong, “What A Wonderful World.”

Further collaborations included work on three Broadway musicals. These included Mr. Wonderful (with Jerry Bock and Larry Holofcener and starring Sammy Davis, Jr.), First Impressions (with Robert Goldman and Glenn Paxton) and Maggie Flynn (with Creatore and Peretti and starring Shirley Jones and Jack Cassidy). In 1994, Weiss and Will Severin collaborated on A Tale of Cinderella, which opened in 1994 at the Theater Institute in New York and was later filmed for PBS.

Movie scores written by Weiss include those for Murder, Inc., Gidget Goes to Rome, Mediterranean Holiday and Mademoiselle.

Current President of the SGA, Rick Carnes, said of Weiss, "George David wrote hits in jazz, country, broadway and rock and roll. He covered the map in genres. But, in addition to being a great songwriter he gave his time selflessly to advocate for songwriters in Washington over copyright issues."

Weiss was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1984. He served as president of the Songwriters Guild of America from 1982 to 2000 and served on the board of the Songwriters Hall of Fame.

Weiss was born April 9, 1921 in New York, New York. There he attended the Julliard School of Music. Prior to collaborating with other songwriters, he wrote arrangements for Stan Kenton, Vincent Lopez and Johnny Richards. Weiss passed away today, August 23, 2010.