Johnny Griffith

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Johnny Griffith (John Ellis Griffith Jnr, born 10 July 1936 in Detroit, Michigan, died 10 November 2002 in Detroit, Michigan) was an African-American musician. Griffith played piano and keyboards for Motown Records' in-house Funk Brothers studio band. Among the hundreds of Motown recordings Griffith played on are "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" by Marvin Gaye, "I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch)" by Four Tops, and "Stop! In the Name of Love" by The Supremes.

Griffith played the Steinway grand piano, the Hammond B-3 organ, the Wurlitzer electric piano, the Fender Rhodes, and the celeste and harpsichord. His musical influences included Bud Powell, Glenn Gould, and Oscar Peterson.

[edit] References

• Justman, Paul (Director). (2002) Standing in the Shadows of Motown [Motion picture]. New York: Artisan Entertainment.