PEORIA’S MUSIC MAN

It is my guess that most Peorians young and old have heard of a song by Billy Rose and Mort Dixon called “I Wish’t I Was In Peoria.”  That song was copyrighted in

1925. I wondered about that song and how on earth those guys knew anything about Peoria, let alone be able to write a song about it.  Well, I found a man that felt that he was a victim of plagiarism and way back in the twenties, he was not afraid to make his complaint known. He actually did not blame Rose and Dixon: he blamed it on a man that used to hang around the theatre that Paul rehearsed in. Paul also made the mistake of not copywriting the work so he was out of luck.  So, being in the fun business of resurrecting old time Peorians let me introduce you to Paul LaRocca.

Paul was born in Peoria August 6, 1899 and lived over on 205 Martin, attending Manual High School as a teen where he was a star athlete. His occupation later was that of a barber in his own shop at 413 Fulton Street across the street from a beautiful gambling casino known as The Alcazar. Paul’s real love was music and that consumed his life for many years.  He had three brothers and a father that were members of local bands and orchestras and the father was an internationally renowned harpist.  Still in his teens, Paul became a member of the local Orpheum Vaudeville Circuit and traveled all over the United States singing songs that he composed and appearing in most all of the local venues here in Peoria and major cities in America. He was a noted violinist as well, but it was Paul’s voice that brought him fame.

His songs and compositions brought him national attention which he shared with his brothers and was a great ambassador for Peoria, Illinois. So it was during this time that he wrote his own version of a song about Peoria, and he first sang it here in 1922 at the local Rotary Club.  It was a smash hit in Peoria before he sang it all across the Vaudeville Circuit. He was soon called ‘The Singing Songwriter’ which stuck with him long after he retired to the barbershop.  You can pull up the words to Billy Rose and Mort Dixon’s version of the song, but here are some of Paul’s words about his beloved hometown.

                                                          PEORIA

                          I’ve traveled all around and seen most every town.

                         But I’m right here to state we live in one town great.

                         Although we have no Broadway, our Main Streets mighty gay.

                         And don’t forget our scenery, the best in U.S.A.

Of course it’s corny, but that was Peoria, Illinois way back there in 1921.  Prohibition was the scourge of the country, and here in Peoria, Illinois the Soft Drink Parlors, the Flappers, Jazz, local musicians and booze saw those folks through some pretty desperate times. Paul LaRocca and his talented family were right in the thick of it all. Throughout his career of traveling and returning to Peoria to his many fans, he reached the pinnacle of his success.  Then in 1936, he added to his many compositions a song called “The Savior Of The U.S.A.”  The song was meant to honor Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Mrs. Roosevelt commented about the song once it was handed to her. It came in handy when the Democratic Party had a huge convention here in Peoria, and of course the song was a magic hit for Paul and all the F.D.R. backers. A few service clubs adopted it as their loyalty song, and it was sung at many of Peoria’s major sporting events. Paul was delighted to learn that his song about F.D.R. would be played at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia in June of 1936.

Paul had a loyal fan base not only here in town but all along the Vaudeville Circuit who demanded that he do most of his own songs rather than what was popular at the time. An example of that was a song of his called “Pal Of My Heart.”  That song was introduced while LaRocca was traveling with a famous west coast band called Max Bradfield’s Band. As for Paul’s Peoria song on August 5, 1964, the City Council adopted the song as Peoria’s official song. Truth is Mayor Woodruff signed a proclamation declaring it to be our official song way back in 1923.

But eventually all bright lights fade and Paul had his memories and some fame when he went back to his barbershop full time. Sadly a fire virtually destroyed most of the material he had stored in a trunk, but he still had his memories to the end.  Paul LaRocca died in December of 1971 and is buried in Springdale Cemetery.  Joseph Petardi, a famous stone carver, well known here and in Europe carved the elaborate monument for the LaRocca family plot.