Ray Griff

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Ray Griff
Griff in 1969
John Raymond David Griff(1940-04-22)April 22, 1940Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
March 9, 2016(2016-03-09) (aged 75)
Country
Singer-songwriter
Vocals
1964–2016
Dot, Capitol, GRT
George Hamilton IV, Jerry Lee Lewis

John Raymond David Griff (April 22, 1940 – March 9, 2016) was a Canadian country music singer and songwriter, born in Vancouver and raised in Toronto. His songwriting credits reached over 2500 songs, many of which were recorded by Nashville's top recording artists.

Griff was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada and raised in Winfield, Alberta. He began songwriting in the early 1960s and had early cuts by Johnny Horton, Jim Reeves, and others. Griff moved to Nashville, Tennessee in 1964 to pursue his music career full-time. His first records as a singer were released in the late 1960s and Griff had his first hit, "Patches", a remake of the Clarence Carter soul hit in 1970 which peaked at No. 26 in Billboard. Griff recorded for the small country label Royal American and later moved on to Dot Records without much success. His stint at Capitol Records from 1975 to 1979 proved more successful, racking up eight more country top 40 hits, the most successful being 1976's "If I Let Her Come In" which peaked at No. 11.

Griff's success as a songwriter, however, always overshadowed his recording work with over 700 songs recorded, including the major hits "Canadian Pacific" for George Hamilton IV, "Who's Gonna Play This Old Piano" for Jerry Lee Lewis, and "Baby" for Wilma Burgess. Others who had major hit records with Griff songs include Faron Young, Porter Wagoner & Dolly Parton, Bob Luman, Gene Watson, and Johnny Duncan.

Griff returned to Canada in the late 1970s and remained active on the country music scene there as an artist, songwriter, and record producer. He lived a quiet life in Calgary, Alberta, occasionally performing at country venues with musicians from the area, most notably the Ranchman's Inn.

In 2008, Griff was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award by SOCAN at the annual SOCAN Awards in Toronto.

Griff had battled throat cancer in his later years, and he died on March 9, 2016, from pneumonia following surgery. He was 75.

Year	Album	US Country	Label
1968	A Ray of Sunshine	42	Dot
1972	The Entertainer	—
Ray Griff Sings!	—
1973	Songs for Everyone	22
1974	Expressions	47	ABC/Dot
1976	Ray Griff	31	Capitol
The Last of the Winfield Amateurs	44
1977	Raymond's Place	—
1978	Ray's Bar and Grill	—	Boot-London
1979	Canada	—
1980	Maple Leaf	—
1981	Adam's Child	—
1982	Greatest Hits	—
1983	You Can Count on Me	—	RCA
1984	You	—
1985	The Sky's the Limit	—
1987	My Kind of Country	—	Bookshop
1988	Ray Griff & Friends: Honest to Goodness Amigos	—	Warner Music Canada
1990	There'll Always Be Christmas	—	ATI
1993	Ray Griff: Through the Years, Vol. 1 & 2	—	Focus

• A"Weeping Willow Tree" also peaked at number 39 on the Canadian RPM Top 40 chart.

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• Ray Griff website