Julius Dixon

Songwriter of 1958 hit ' Lollipop ' ; 90

Julius Dixon, a songwriter from the earliest days of rock ' n ' roll whose enduring hit " Lollipop " was a model of bubble-gum pop, died Jan. 30 in Manhattan, said his son, Julius Dixson Jr. He was 90 and lived in Manhattan.

Dixon, who was born with the surname Dixson but used the more common spelling professionally, had his first hit when Bill Haley recorded " Dim, Dim the Lights (I Want Some Atmosphere) " in 1955. That song, Haley ' s follow-up to " Shake, Rattle and Roll, " reached No. 11 on the pop charts and was Haley ' s first crossover to the R & B audience.

Like many black songwriters in New York of the 1950s, Dixon wrote for a variety of groups but had his greatest successes with white performers. " Lollipop " was written for Ronald and Ruby, a duo of a black man and a white woman. The writing credit for that song, as for " Dim, Dim the Lights, " is shared by Dixon and Beverly Ross, the " Ruby " of the group.

It reached No. 20 in 1958. But when it was recorded later that year by the Chordettes, four white women, it went to No. 2 and became a bubble-gum standard.

Among the other hit songs that Dixon wrote or co-wrote are " It Hurts to Be in Love " for Annie Laurie, " Begging, Begging " for James Brown, " Three Ways (to Love You) " for Kitty Wells, and " The Clouds, " an instrumental by the Spacemen.

Dixon, who was born in Barnwell, S.C., served in the Army during World War II and was later assigned to Special Services in Germany, where he had a weekly radio show called " Variety Jive. "

Other survivors besides his son Julius, of Manhattan, include sons William Dixson of France, Oliver Shock of Chicago and Alton Dixson of North Plainfield, N.J.; daughters Beryl Hearns of Chicago and Darlyne Creecy of Richmond, Va.; and sisters Jenny Lou Ross of Manhattan and Ada Marion Anderson of Long Island City.