Dobie Gray

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Dobie Gray (born Lawrence Brown July 26, 1940?) is an African-American musician/singer best known for his song "Drift Away", which was one of the biggest hits of 1973 and still remains a staple of radio airplay.

He was born in Texas although the exact place is unknown; (Simonton being one of the most generally agreed on locations). There is also some argument as to his date of birth, but it is generally placed in the early 1940s. His birth name is also disputed, being listed as "Leonard Victor Ainsworth" or "Laurence Darrow Brown". Gray is listed in Fort Bend County Birth Records in Texas as Dobie Gray born male on 26 July 1940 to Jane P. Spencel and Jethro Clifton Brown.

Gray moved from Texas to California in the 1960s, where he was mentored by Sonny Bono and later took up residence in Nashville, Tennessee.

Gray had other hits though, with songs such as "The In Crowd" in 1965, and "Out On The Floor" a whole decade later.

"Drift Away" became a hit again in 2003 when it was covered by Uncle Kracker on his No Stranger to Shame album. The video for the song also featured Dobie Gray.

[edit] Trivia

Both the original "Drift Away" single and album of the same title were the final records pressed on the first-run Decca Records label. MCA absorbed the Decca label (along with its other subsidiaries) shortly thereafter.