Clifford Gray
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: 1916 - 1930
Roles Represented in DAHR: lyricist
= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.
Recordings
| Company | Matrix No. | Size | First Recording Date | Title | Primary Performer | Description | Role | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Columbia | W150562 | 10-in. | 6/3/1930 | My kind of a man | Ethel Waters | Female vocal solo | lyricist | |
| Columbia | 6803 | 12-in. | approximately 1916 | Another little drink wouldn't do us any harm | Alhambra Theatre Orchestra ; Alfred Lester ; Violet Loraine ; George Robey | Vocal trio with orchestra | lyricist | |
| Columbia | 6804 | 12-in. | approximately 1916 | I stopped, I looked, I listened | Alhambra Theatre Orchestra ; George Robey | Male vocal solo, with orchestra | lyricist | |
| Columbia | 6805 | 12-in. | approximately 1916 | If you were the only boy in the world, and I were the onlyl girl | Alhambra Theatre Orchestra ; Violet Loraine ; George Robey | Vocal duet, with orchestra | lyricist | |
| Columbia | 6806 | 12-in. | approximately 1916 | In other words | Alhambra Theatre Orchestra ; George Robey | Male vocal solo, with orchestra | lyricist | |
| Columbia | 76637 | 12-in. | approximately 10/15/1919 | Wonderful love | Adelphi Theatre (London) Orchestra ; Cicely Debenham ; Howard Talbot ; Fred Winn | Male vocal duet, with orchestra | lyricist | |
| Columbia | 76638 | 12-in. | approximately 10/15/1919 | Wedding jazz | Adelphi Theatre (London) Orchestra ; Cicely Debenham ; Howard Talbot | Male vocal solo, with orchestra and chorus | lyricist | |
| Columbia | 76639 | 12-in. | approximately 10/15/1919 | My London Town | Adelphi Theatre (London) Orchestra ; Paul Plunket ; Howard Talbot | Male vocal solo, with orchestra and chorus | lyricist | |
| Columbia | 76640 | 12-in. | approximately 10/15/1919 | What are the wild waves saying? | Adelphi Theatre (London) Orchestra ; Howard Talbot ; Fred Winn | Male vocal solo, with orchestra and chorus | lyricist | |
| Columbia | 76641 | 12-in. | approximately 10/15/1919 | There's an angel watching | Adelphi Theatre (London) Orchestra ; Cicely Debenham ; Paul Plunket ; Howard Talbot | Male vocal duet, with orchestra | lyricist | |
| Columbia | 76642 | 12-in. | approximately 10/15/1919 | Day dreams | Adelphi Theatre (London) Orchestra ; Violet Blythe ; Howard Talbot | Female vocal solo, with orchestra | lyricist | |
| Columbia | 76643 | 12-in. | approximately 10/15/1919 | It's nice to be home | Adelphi Theatre (London) Orchestra ; Violet Blythe ; Howard Talbot ; Fred Winn | Vocal duet, with orchestra | lyricist | |
| Columbia | 76644 | 12-in. | approximately 10/15/1919 | Come landlord | Adelphi Theatre (London) Orchestra ; Alfred Beers ; Howard Talbot ; Fred Winn | Vocal duet, with orchestra | lyricist | |
| Columbia | 76645 | 12-in. | approximately 10/16/1919 | Each day in passing | Adelphi Theatre (London) Orchestra ; Marjorie Gordon ; Howard Talbot | Female vocal solo, with orchestra | lyricist | |
| Columbia | 76646 | 12-in. | approximately 10/16/1919 | A ladies man | Adelphi Theatre (London) Orchestra ; Robert Michaelis ; Howard Talbot | Male vocal solo, with orchestra | lyricist | |
| Columbia | 76647 | 12-in. | approximately 10/16/1919 | My recipe for love | Adelphi Theatre (London) Orchestra ; Madeline Seymour ; Howard Talbot | Female vocal solo, with orchestra and chorus | lyricist | |
| Columbia | 76648 | 12-in. | approximately 10/16/1919 | When no-one's looking | Adelphi Theatre (London) Orchestra ; Marjorie Gordon ; Robert Michaelis ; Howard Talbot | Vocal duet, with orchestra | lyricist | |
| Columbia | 76649 | 12-in. | approximately 10/15/1919 | Garden of our dreams | Adelphi Theatre (London) Orchestra ; Marjorie Gordon ; Robert Michaelis ; Howard Talbot | Vocal duet, with orchestra | lyricist | |
| Columbia | 76653 | 12-in. | approximately 10/16/1919 | I'm really very sorry for a lunatic | Adelphi Theatre (London) Orchestra ; Howard Talbot ; Fred Winn | Male vocal solo, with orchestra | lyricist | |
| OKeh | W404024 | 10-in. | 5/14/1930 | My kind of a man | Phil Spitalny Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | lyricist |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Gray, Clifford," accessed December 24, 2025, http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/101265.
Gray, Clifford. (2025). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved December 24, 2025, from http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/101265.
"Gray, Clifford." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2025. Web. 24 December 2025.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: Gray, Clifford, 1887-1941 - https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n2008017285
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
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