"Stunned and Saddened to report that Los Angeles Music Lovers have lost ANOTHER stellar servant today with the passing of Dick Griffey - Fouder of SOLAR: The Sound of Los Angeles Records - launching pad of Shalamar (Howard Hewett, Jody Watley & Jeffey Daniel) , the Whispers, Lakeside, Midnight Star (The Calloways), Klymaxx, Dynasty, the Deele (L.A. & Babyface), Leon Sylvers III and Carrie Lucas. Total Eclipse of The Groove...Respect."
Born in Nashville TN 11/16/43.

http://www.discogs.com/label/Solar

http://en.wikipedia.org/w...AR_Records

[Edited 9/24/10 18:47pm]

[Edited 9/25/10 21:39pm]

Cosign. Thanks for the fantastic music & R.I.P.

WOW. THat is a huge loss

Sad to hear. I've yet to find a link online confirming it.

phunkdaddy said:

Sad to hear. I've yet to find a link online confirming it.

Sorry to report this...and it came from a reliable source.

http://allradionews.com/2...-has-died/

Awww, man, that is sad. I remember his from the early Solar days. I was into all of the Solar artists, have plenty of their music. I know he'll be missed. RIP.

RESPECT!

That unmistakable Solar sound is just the greatest!

rip mr griffrey. you did good.

He may not be well-known in the public eye (except for Unsung and the drama with Shalamar), but in terms of Black Music behind the scenes, this is a tremendous lost.

He's up there with Clarence Avant as a driving force in Black music post-Motown era.

He was one of few Black concert promoters for Black artists in the 70s. He promoted many Motown acts like the Jackson 5 and Marvin Gaye's comeback tour in 74. He was the talent coordinator for Soul Train so he was at the forefront of getting Black artists on TV when it was rare to see Black artist who weren't in the Top 10.

We know he was the owner and founder of Solar Records and the many great recording acts who worked on that label, but he was responsible for the careers of Black producers LA Reid and Babyface and he gave Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis an opportunity to produce at his recording studio before Flyte Tyme, matter of fact, Steve Hodges who went on to engineer many of the Flyte Tyme recordings was an engineer for Solar.

Griffey was also a pioneer in Black artists making music videos and getting them on the air and petitioning/boycotting to get Black artists on MTV. Solar had their own music video production and they made videos before MTV. Their videos helped put BET in business.

He also taught Suge Knight and Dr Dre about the business and helped them form Death Row, The Chronic and Deep Cover was produced in the Solar recording studio.

He gave the building to Babyface and his ex-wife and they went on the produce Soul Food and the building is still there.

So it's not a stretch to say that Dick Griffey set the foundation for companies such as:

Solar/Soul Train Records

Flyte Tyme Productions

LaFace Records

Yab Yum/Edmonds Entertainment

Death Row Records

^ YES.

He did WELL. We need a man like that in this industry to awaken it. He'll be forever missed.

He was an innovative business man with a certain flair for spotting real talent, talent being the operative word. Diddy and the like would be wise to take note of his remarkable resume.

Farewell.

So many of my favorite records from back in the day had the SOLAR label on them. Rest Peacefully Dick Griffey.

.

(edited to correct spelling)

[Edited 9/25/10 18:34pm]

His last name is "Griffey". Shouldn't the title of the thread be changed?

scriptgirl said:

His last name is "Griffey". Shouldn't the title of the thread be changed?

...thought "Driffey" sounded odd, lol. (yes, title should be corrected).

scriptgirl said:

His last name is "Griffey". Shouldn't the title of the thread be changed?

How did Dick get his start in the biz?

Dick Griffey was not well liked by his roster of talent. Most all of them at one time or another had legal battles with him to get their royalties.

He always wanted 50% publishing on his acts and many times woul withhold monies till he got his way.

Still to this day acts like Shalamar, Lakeside, The Whispers, Midnight Star,

The Deele, Dynasty et al have unresolved legal issues with Griffet.

He had major legal problems with Don Cornelius over Soul Train and its subsequent record label and he had major drama with Dr. Dre. Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis and Klymaxx. Every major label that he entered into custom label deals with had problems with him: RCA, Elektra, Sony Music and Capitol-EMI.

I would guess that out of respect for the deceased, they all would say may he R.I.P., but not too many are sad - because they want their coins.

He's like every other record label mogul

His family released this statement:

Pioneering music mogul and founder of SOLAR Records succumbs in Los Angeles

(Los Angeles, CA) – Venerated music industry titan Dick Griffey died yesterday afternoon in Los Angeles from complications of quadruple bypass surgery. Griffey founded SOLAR Records in the late 1970’s and went on to become one of the preeminent black music pioneers of the 20th Century, breaking records and recording artists that ushered in the era of contemporary crossover black music. A music mogul before the term entered popular culture, Griffey’s talent for picking hit songs and superstars defined the music business for more than two decades. Griffey spent the last 10 years of his life in West Africa involved in commodities and international trade.

Widow Carrie Lucas Griffey said, “We walked these last steps with him and held him close. But all who knew him understood he belonged to the world. He acknowledged failures but rejected defeat. The doors he helped open, he reached back to bring others with him. He loved life and people. He did a hard day’s work and expected the same from those around him. We celebrate his "going home".

Mr. Griffey's Home Going Service will be private and reserved for immediate family. A public memorial is being organized and details are forthcoming. Friends and associates interested in participating in the public memorial may contact:
Dina Andrews 424.248.5380
DinaAndrewsMgmt@gmail.com.

Cards and other gifts may be sent to:
Dick Griffey In Memoriam
5152 Sepulveda Blvd., #197
Sherman Oaks, CA 91403

Flowers may be sent to:
Angelus Funeral Home
3875 South Crenshaw Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90008
(323) 296-6666 or (800) 348-3939

He leaves behind his wife Carrie Lucas Griffey; daughters Regina Hughes and Carolyn Griffey; sons Lucas Griffey and Che Scelsa; five grandchildren: Curtis, Devin, Paula, Reggie, and Kennedi; and adopted son Haile Williams.

Thank you Scriptgirl for your post

My pleasure. The greats are leaving us one by one

Just got finished listening to a Solar album. Midnight Star's No Parking On the Dance

Floor. Great from start to finish. Thank you Mr. Griffey for all the great music

over the years. R.I.P

I got two crates with nothing but SOLAR funk, RIP Dick

Dick Griffey, SOLAR Records founder, dies at 71

NEW YORK – Dick Griffey, a key figure in black music whose record label SOLAR churned out classic R&B hits including "Fantastic Voyage" and "Rock Steady," has died. He was 71.

Griffey died Friday in Los Angeles of complications from quadruple bypass surgery, according to a family statement released Tuesday. The Nashville, Tenn.-born entreprenueur was instrumental to soul and funk music and in black entertainment.

Island Def Jam Chairman and CEO Antonio "L.A." Reid, who got his start with SOLAR as a member of the group the Deele, said Wednesday that SOLAR made black pop music for the 1980s and was a cultural force.

"When we look at Motown as an example, the nearest competitor was SOLAR," he said in an interview Wednesday. "The talent under that roof was insane."

SOLAR was home to such top acts as the Whispers, Shalamar, Lakeside, Midnight Star and Klymaxx — groups that helped keep the label at the forefront of R&B music with hits including "As the Beat Goes On," "Second Time Around" and "I Miss You."

Griffey is also credited with giving the upstart production duo of Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis early work paving the way for their blockbuster songwriting and production career. SOLAR was also home to the group the Deele, which featured Reid and Grammy-winning singer-songwriter Babyface.

Reid said it was Griffey who suggested he start producing when Reid told him he couldn't start work on the Deele's second album because the chosen producers were busy. With Babyface, Reid produced some of the biggest acts in the 1990s and created LaFace Records.

"That was a life-changing moment in our careers," he said.

Griffey's first major success came as a concert promoter, when he worked with superstar acts such as Stevie Wonder and the Jacksons.

But Griffey soon turned his talents to creating new hitmakers. In 1975, after working for Don Cornelius as the talent coordinator on "Soul Train," he partnered with Cornelius to start Soul Train Records. Cornelius and Griffey split two years later, and Griffey went on to found SOLAR Records.

In a statement, Quincy Jones said: "Dick Griffey was one of the great pioneering executives in the music business. ... Although Dick stepped away from the music industry many years ago, his presence will forever be felt through the artists that he worked with and shepherded over his time in the business."

Griffey spent his latter years engrossed in African affairs. He was a supporter of South Africa's African National Congress and later established a trading company in West Africa and built a school for girls in Ghana in honor of his mother.

"I always had a vision that Africans and African-Americans should come together and benefit one another. We are the only people that are from nowhere. Cesar Chavez is a Mexican-American, Robert Kennedy is an Irish-American ... Where do blacks come from?" he said. "I always understood that we were Africans. Not understanding that is what makes it difficult for us in this world. Until we make that connection, it will remain difficult."

Survivors include his wife and five children.

[Edited 9/29/10 23:37pm]