Virgil F. Stewart

American songwriter, singer & bandleader.
Born August 5, 1907. Died July 10, 1988.
At some point in the 1940s, Stewart assembled a family singing group with his daughters Bethel and Janet, his sister Baba, and neighbor's daughter, Wilma.
Best known for writing the song "Just Out of Reach (Of My Two Open Arms)". Originally recorded by his band, The Stewart Family, in 1951, it took ten more years to become a hit--first a U.S. hit for Solomon Burke in 1961. The song was a crossover hit, hitting #24 overall as well as #6 on the adult contemporary and #7 on the R&B chart. The song has since been recorded by hundreds of artists and has charted six additional times (one of those in the U.K. by Ken Dodd).