For many years, you couldn’t turn on a TV or radio without hearing something written by Elliot A. Willensky. And though for a time he toyed with the idea of going into science as a career, his heart was always in music.
Born in Bayonne, Willensky was celebrated even before he graduated Bayonne High School, one of those people everybody knew would turn out to accomplish something in life – if not in science, then in music.
Most famous for writing Michael Jackson’s 1971 hit “Got to Be There,” Willensky wrote songs for some of the most prominent performers of that era, including Smokey Robinson, Gladys Knight, Thelma Houston, Syreeta, and Jerry Butler.
“He used to come back to Bayonne to play at the high school as part of the alumni.” – Joseph Wigdor
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Willensky, who was both a composer and lyricist, passed away on March 29 in Summit, N.J., at age 66 after suffering a stroke.
From research to songs
Born and raised in Bayonne, he received Bayonne High School’s Mathematics and Music awards at his graduation before going on to get his bachelor of arts degree in biology with honors from Boston University. Posed for a career path in science, Willensky did post graduate studies at BU and the University of Massachusetts. He then became a research scientist at the National Institute of Health in Bethesda, Md. In 1969, he left medical research to pursue his passion as a songwriter.
“People Magazine” named Willensky’s “If You Say My Eyes Are Beautiful,” performed by Whitney Houston and Jermaine Jackson, one of the 10 top songs performed at weddings.
For over four decades, his songs expressed the full range of human emotions and his joy for life. Early in his career, he composed several songs for the Fifth Dimension.
“Got to Be There,” performed by Michael Jackson, soared toward the top of the Billboard pop charts and became a gold record. Ten years later, it was also recorded by Chaka Khan and became the number one R&B record in the country.
Willensky’s numerous television credits included “The Bell Telephone Hour,” music coordinator of “The Tony Orlando and Dawn Show,” and jingles for Hertz, Fresca, and Chrysler. He wrote the score to the 1999 musical “Abby’s Song,” which played on Broadway in New York.
Next month, his song “When It’s Time to Say Goodbye,” will be featured in a documentary on the life of Karen Ann Quinlan. Last year, he wrote music for the “Hollywood Wives” movie, which started Farrah Fawcett.
Elliot was predeceased by his father, Raymond Willensky. He is survived by his mother, Gertrude Berlin Willensky Sussman, brothers Fred (and his wife Bonnie) and Steven (and his wife Judy), and nieces Rona and Marisa and nephew David. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be sent to the Elliot Willensky Music Fund of the Montefiore Foundation, One David N. Myers Parkway, Beachwood, OH 44122.