Swingtime starts off the New Year with a celebration of the hits of lyricist/songwriter Johnny Mercer on Tuesday, Jan. 17, at 1 p.m. at the Fountain Hills Community Center.

Mercer wrote the lyrics, and sometimes the music, for more than 1,500 songs during a musical career that began in the Swing era and spanned four decades. Many of his songs are among the great hits of popular music and were written primarily for movies and Broadway shows. Mercer’s prolific output led to 19 Academy Award nominations and four Oscars.

Swingtime will present some of Mercer’s most famous songs as performed by various artists, including Mercer himself. The playlist includes such hits, which are now considered standards, as “And the Angels Sing,” “One for My Baby (and One More for the Road),” “Moon River” and “Days of Wine and Roses.”

Membership in the Community Center is required to attend Swingtime meetings. For more information, contact Bill Whittaker at 480-837-7961 or the Community Center at 480-816-5200.

A spinoff of Golden Age of Radio, Swingtime plays vintage recordings from that magical era when swing was king. Listen to the big bands and small ensembles, the crooners and singing groups. Remember the grand ballrooms, the dance crazes and dance contests. While not all the music of the time was swing, the term itself defines that period from the depression years through World War II.