Dick Griffey, American record executive, founder of SOLAR Records, died from complications from heart surgery.he was , 71

Richard Gilbert "Dick" Griffey  was an American record producer and promoter who founded SOLAR Records, an acronym for "Sound of Los Angeles Records", which played a major role in developing a funk-oriented blend of disco, R&B and soul music during the 1970s and 1980s  died from complications from heart surgery.he was , 71. As a concert promoter, Griffey arranged bookings for artists including James Brown, Aretha Franklin, Michael Jackson and Stevie Wonder.


(November 16, 1938 – September 24, 2010)

Life and career

Griffey was born on November 16, 1938, and grew up in the housing projects of Nashville, Tennessee, where he was a drummer in local clubs in his teens.^[1] After briefly attending Tennessee State University he enlisted in the United States Navy at age 17, where he served as a medic and worked as a private-duty nurse after completing his military service.^[1][2]
After moving to Los Angeles in the 1960s, Griffey became part owner of Guys and Dolls, a nightclub which featured performances by such rising stars as Isaac Hayes and Ike & Tina Turner. Griffey worked as talent coordinator on Soul Train, the musical variety show created by Don Cornelius, and the two men established Soul Train Records in 1975. He formed SOLAR Records (an acronym for Sound of Los Angeles Records) in 1977.^[1] Music critic Stephen Holden of The New York Times predicted a bright future for the label in the pop market, writing a profile under the headline "Solar Could Be the Motown of the 80's".^[3] SOLAR acts included Shalamar, which produced such hits as "The Second Time Around" and "This Is for the Lover in You". With The Whispers, SOLAR released such hits as "And the Beat Goes On" (co-written by Griffey) and "Rock Steady". Other acts signed by SOLAR during the 1980s were The Deele, Dynasty, Klymaxx, Lakeside, Midnight Star and The Whispers.^[4] As a promoter, Griffey booked tours for artists including James Brown, Aretha Franklin and Michael Jackson, earning the moniker "Kingpin of Soul Promoters".^[2]
Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds, who had been frustrated in his role as a background singer with The Deele, credited Griffey with encouraging him to step out on his own and pursue a solo career, saying that Griffey told him "If they don’t want you to sing all the time, you should be doing your own thing".^[5] In a statement released after Griffey's death, producer Quincy Jones said Griffey's "fingerprints were on some of the biggest hits of the '80s". Stevie Wonder, one of the artists that Griffey promoted, said that "Professionally, I could not talk about my life without there being a chapter on how Dick Griffey, as a promoter, helped to build my career".^[1]
In the early 1990s, Griffey had a hand in launching the rap label Death Row Records, which was co-founded by ex-N.W.A star Andre "Dr. Dre" Young and one-time bodyguard Marion "Suge" Knight. It was Griffey's SOLAR studios in which portions of Dr. Dre's seminal album, The Chronic, was recorded. However, in July 1997, Griffey along with one-time N.W.A associate and rapper Tracy "The D.O.C." Curry sued Death Row claiming they were "pushed out" of their share in ownership and profits from the record label by Knight and Young.^[6]
Griffey died at the age of 71 on September 24, 2010, at a rehabilitation center in Canoga Park, Los Angeles, where he had been recuperating after undergoing quadruple coronary artery bypass surgery.^[2] Griffey is survived by his second wife, musician Carrie Lucas,as well as by two daughters, two sons and five grandchildren. His daughter Carolyn Griffey performed as a member of Shalamar.^[1]

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