Clifford Grey
Clifford Grey (5 January 1887 – 25 September 1941) was an English songwriter, librettist and screenwriter. His birth name was Percival Davis, and he was also known as Clifford Gray. Grey contributed prolifically to dozens of West End and Broadway shows, for the period from the First World War to the Second World War, as librettist and lyricist for composers including Ivor Novello, Jerome Kern, Howard Talbot, Ivan Caryll and George Gershwin. Among his best-remembered songs are two from early in his career, in 1916: "If You Were the Only Girl (In the World)" and "Another Little Drink Wouldn't Do Us Any Harm". His later hits include "Got a Date with an Angel" and "Spread a Little Happiness". He also wrote lyrics and screenplays for dozens of films released from 1929 to 1941, and they were used in films released posthumously. For 35 years after 1979 it was widely believed that Grey secretly competed as an American bobsleigher, under the name Clifford "Tippy" Gray, in two Winter Olympics, in 1928 and 1932, winning gold medals, but it was finally shown that the sportsman was a different person. |
Birth and Death Data: Born Birmingham (city in the West Midlands, England), Died September 25, 1941 (Ipswich (county town of Suffolk, England) )
Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1918 - 1954
Roles Represented in DAHR: lyricist
= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.
Recordings (Results 126-150 of 173 records)
| Company | Matrix No. | Size | First Recording Date | Title | Primary Performer | Description | Role | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OKeh | W403198 | 10-in. | 10/28/1929 | Dream lover | Smith Ballew Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | lyricist | |
| OKeh | W403200 | 10-in. | 10/28/1929 | My love parade | Smith Ballew Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | lyricist | |
| OKeh | W403248 | 10-in. | 11/11/1929 | If you were the only girl | Ed Kirkeby Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal trio | lyricist | |
| OKeh | W403525 | 10-in. | 12/18/1929 | The shepherd's serenade | Smith Ballew Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | lyricist | |
| OKeh | W403526 | 10-in. | 12/18/1929 | Charming | Smith Ballew Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | lyricist | |
| OKeh | W403769 | 10-in. | 2/25/1930 | When I'm looking at you | Lanin’s Famous Players | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | lyricist | |
| OKeh | W403795 | 10-in. | 3/3/1930 | Montana call | Seger Ellis | Male vocal solo, with jazz/dance band | lyricist | |
| OKeh | W403796 | 10-in. | 3/4/1930 | Montana call | Arthur Schutt Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | lyricist | |
| OKeh | W403957 | 10-in. | 4/15/1930 | Dark night | Lanin’s Famous Players | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | lyricist | |
| Brunswick | 13889-13890 | 10-in. | 10/7/1924 | Where the rainbow ends | Allen McQuhae | Male vocal solo, with orchestra | lyricist | |
| Brunswick | E31504 | 10-in. | Dec. 1929 | The shepherd’s serenade (Do you hear me calling you?) | Tom Waring | Male vocal solo, with orchestra | lyricist | |
| Brunswick | E31505 | 10-in. | Dec. 1929 | Charming | Tom Waring | Male vocal solo, with orchestra | lyricist | |
| Brunswick | E31573 | 10-in. | December 1929 | The shepherd’s serenade (Do you hear me calling you?) | Abe Lyman’s California Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with vocal; without vocal (take G) | lyricist | |
| Brunswick | E31625 | 10-in. | December 1929 | If he cared | Abe Lyman’s California Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with vocal; without vocal (take G) | lyricist | |
| Brunswick | E31721 | 10-in. | Jan. 1930 | The shepherd’s serenade | Frank Munn | Male vocal solo, with orchestra | lyricist | |
| Brunswick | E31722 | 10-in. | Jan. 1930 | Charming | Frank Munn | Male vocal solo, with orchestra | lyricist | |
| Brunswick | E31837 | 10-in. | Jan. 1930 | March of the old guard | Colonial Club Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with vocal quartet | lyricist | |
| Brunswick | E32023 | 10-in. | Feb. 1930 | When I’m looking at you | Chester Gaylord | Male vocal solo | lyricist | |
| Brunswick | E32833 | 10-in. | May 1930 | Dark night | Roger Wolfe Kahn Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | lyricist | |
| Brunswick | E34695 | 10-in. | 10/5/1930 | Lonely | Lloyd Huntley Isle O’ Blues Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | lyricist | |
| Brunswick | E35248 | 10-in. | 11/8/1930 | It is destiny | Regent Club Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | lyricist | |
| Brunswick | E2087-E2090 | 10-in. | 1/8/1926 | The road of dreams | Colonial Club Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | lyricist | |
| Brunswick | E6015-E6018 | 10-in. | 6/1/1927 | Hallelujah! | Jay’s Chelsea Orchestra [Frank Black Orchestra] | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo; without vocal (take E6018) | lyricist | |
| Brunswick | E20286-E20287 | 10-in. | 9/28/1926 | Lilies of Lorraine | Allen McQuhae | Male vocal solo, with orchestra | lyricist | |
| Brunswick | E22316-E22319 | 10-in. | 4/8/1927 | Hallelujah! | Victor Arden-Phil Ohman Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with piano duet and male vocal solo | lyricist |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Grey, Clifford," accessed January 7, 2026, http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/108896.
Grey, Clifford. (2026). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved January 7, 2026, from http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/108896.
"Grey, Clifford." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2026. Web. 7 January 2026.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: Grey, Clifford, 1887-1941 - https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/no89019130
Wikidata: Clifford Grey - https://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q1101276
VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/43856190
MusicBrainz: Clifford Grey - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/d5c58002-376b-4961-8ab3-23af9c7c9462
Fast: https://id.worldcat.org/fast/1493284 - https://id.worldcat.org/fast/1493284
Wikipedia content provided under the terms of the Creative Commons BY-SA license
Feedback
Send the Editors a message about this record.
