Francis Craig (1900 – 1966) was a songwriter and leader of a Nashville dance band. His works included "Dynamite" and "Near You".

"Dynamite!" now the official fight song of Vanderbilt University, was written by Craig in 1922, when Craig was an undergraduate student at the University. It is played mainly at football games, basketball games, and at other Commodore sports events.

His own recording of "Near You" was released by Bullet Records as catalog number 1001. It first reached the Billboard Best Seller chart on August 30, 1947, and lasted 21 weeks on the chart, peaking at #1. It held the number one spot for 17 straight weeks, which makes it the "Chart Champ", having been number one for the longest period of time. (Beating "White Christmas" which was number one for 11 weeks in a row, and then 4 more weeks for a total of 15 weeks.) Various recordings by other persons have followed.

Other works included "Beg Your Pardon" with Beasley Smith.

Source: Wikipedia