Leiber, Jerry

Leiber, Jerry

(1933– ) lyricist, producer; born in Baltimore, Md.; and Stoller, Mike (1933– ) composer, producer; born in Belle Harbor, N.Y. They met as teenagers, shared an affinity for African-American music, and began writing popular rock classics of the 1950s and 1960s such as "Kansas City" (1951) and "Stand By Me" (1961). They also wrote the music and title songs for several Elvis Presley films including Jailhouse Rock (1957). As producers they were instrumental in fusing traditional black rhythm-and-blues with popular music styles and using Latin percussion and strings.