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JANICE'S BLUES ALLEY PRESENTS

Dobie Gray



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Dobie Gray



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Dobie Gray's Personal WebsiteDobie Gray's Personal Website
CMT: Dobie GrayCMT: Dobie Gray


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Best known for his 1973 smash "Drift Away," Dobie Gray was a versatile vocalist who could handle soul, country, and pop, not to mention musical theater. Gray's origins are somewhat ill-defined; different sources alternately list his birth name as Leonard Victor Ainsworth or Laurence Darrow Brown, and his Texas birthplace as Brookshire or Simonton. His likely birth date is July 26, 1940 (though some sources list 1942 or 1943). Whatever the case, Gray grew up in a family of sharecroppers, and discovered gospel music through his grandfather, a Baptist minister. He also soaked up the R&B and country music of his surroundings, and in the early '60s he moved to Los Angeles to seek his fortune.

Before adopting the name Dobie Gray, he recorded several singles under the names Leonard Ainsworth, Larry Curtis, and Larry Dennis. His seventh single, "Look at Me," became his first chart hit in 1963, but his true breakout was a 1965 recording of "The 'In' Crowd," whose Motown-style bounce distinguished it from jazzman Ramsey Lewis' celebrated version. Gray hit the Top 20 with "The 'In' Crowd" and also had some success with the follow-up, "See You at the Go-Go"; this period � spent mostly on the small, poorly distributed Cordak, Charger, and White Whale labels � was the most soul-oriented of his career. It would be some time before Gray returned to the charts; in the meantime, he pursued a concurrent acting career, eventually spending two and a half years with the Los Angeles production of Hair. During his Hair years, Gray also sang with the band Pollution, which recorded two albums on Prophecy beginning in 1971.

In 1972, Gray resurfaced as a solo artist on MCA, with producer/songwriter Mentor Williams in his camp. Gray promptly scored the biggest hit of his career with the Williams-penned "Drift Away," which hit the Top Five in early 1973 and remains an oldies-radio staple today. The subsequent "Loving Arms," written by Tom Jans, grew into a much-covered repertory item, recorded by singers from the realms of rock, country, and R&B. Gray's own sound was shifting more toward country as well, and when he moved to Capricorn in 1975, he recorded in Nashville with new songwriting collaborator Troy Seals (he eventually relocated there permanently). Gray's popularity in Europe and Africa was growing steadily, and he managed to talk South African authorities into allowing him to play to integrated audiences during the apartheid era.

Gray's tenure in Nashville was marked by a commercial downturn, but his increased activity as a songwriter � mostly in a country vein � resulted in covers by the likes of Don Williams, Charley Pride, George Jones, and John Denver, among others. The disco-flavored "You Can Do It" became his final Top 40 hit in 1978, the same year he recorded the first of two LPs for Infinity. When Infinity went bankrupt, Gray concentrated exclusively on songwriting for a few years, then re-emerged on Capitol in the mid-'80s as a full-fledged country artist. He made the lower reaches of the country charts with singles like "That's One to Grow On" and "From Where I Stand," but found it impossible to break through to a wider country audience, and again faded from view after two albums. In 1997, Gray released Diamond Cuts, a mix of new songs and re-recorded past hits.

-- Steve Huey of All Music Guide.
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LINKSYEARTITLE
1965 Dobie Gray Sings For �In� Crowders That �Go-Go�
1973 Drift Away
1973 Loving Arms
1974 Hey Dixie (live)
1975 New Ray Of Sunshine
1976 Let Go
1979 Dobie Gray
1979 Midnight Diamond
2002 Songs For The Season
2004Drift Away And Other Classics


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1965 Dobie Gray Sings For 'In' Crowders That 'Go-Go'

01. The 'In' Crowd
02. Blue Ribbons
03. Monkey Jerk
04. Walk With Love
05. Look At Me
06. Be A Man
07. No Room To Cry
08. Out On The Floor
09. See You At The Go-Go
10. Mr. Engineer
11. In Hollywood
12. Broken In Two
13. That's How You Treat A Cheater
14. Feelin' In My Heart


1973 Drift Away

01. Drift Away
02. The Time I Love You The Most
03. L. A. Lady
04. We Had It All
05. Now That I'm Without You
06. Rockin' Chair
07. Lay Back
08. City Stars
09. Sweet Lovin' Woman
10. Caddo Queen
11. Eddie's Song



1973 Loving Arms

01. Good Old Song
02. You And Me
03. I Never Had It So Good
04. Lovin' The Easy Way
05. Loving Arms
06. Reachin' For The Feeling
07. There's A Honky Tonk Angel
08. Mississippi Rolling Stone
09. Love Is On The Line
10. Rose


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1974 Hey Dixie (live)

01. Hey Dixie
02. How Can You Live All Alone
03. So High
04. Watch Out For Lucy
05. Old Time Feeling
06. Turning On You
07. Roll On Sweet Mississippi
08. Can You Feel It
09. Performance
10. The Music's Real


1975 New Ray Of Sunshine

01. Harold And The Swinging Rocks
02. Drive On, Ride On
03. If Love Must Go
04. Lover's Sweat
05. New Ray Of Sunshine
06. I'll Take You Down To Mexico
07. Easy Loving Lady
08. Comfort And Please You
09. What A Lady
10. Easy Come, Easy Go


1976 Let Go

01. Let Go
02. Do It
03. Mellow Man
04. Find 'Em, Fool 'Em And Forget 'Em
05. The Best Of My Love
06. Country Love
07. When A Man Loves A Woman
08. But I Do
09. Moonlight Trippin'
10. Can't Stop A Man In Love


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1979 Dobie Gray

01. The �In� Crowd
02. Stumblin' Back To You
03. Sunny Day To Rain
04. Spending Time Making Love And Going Crazy
05. You Can't Keep A Good Man Down
06. Fool, Fool
07. All I Wanna Do Is Make Love To You
08. We Had It All
09. Bridge Of Silence



1979 Midnight Diamond

01. You Can Do It
02. We've Got To Get It On Again
03. Let This Man Take Hold Of Your Life
04. Weekend Friend
05. Miss You Nights
06. I Can See Clearly Now
07. Sharing The Night Together
08. Who's Loving You
09. I'll Be Your Hold Me Tight
10. Thank You For Tonight


2002 Songs For The Season



2004 Drift Away And Other Classics

01. Drift Away
02. I Can See Clearly Now
03. Cupid
04. Wonderful World
05. Slip Away
06. Got My Heart Set On You
07. Ain't That Good News
08. The �In� Crowd
09. Lean On Me
10. Loving Arms
11. It's Not Because We Didn't Try
12. Slow Rain
13. We Had It All
14. I'm Only Speaking My Heart
15. Until The Dream Becomes Real
16. It's Over


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