Ray Conniff
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Biography
A big band leader and composer who grew into a smooth, easy listening, lounge crooner, Ray Conniff released over 100 albums, sold 70 million records and became dubbed the "Godfather of Muzak". Taught to play trombone by his father and piano by his mother as a child, Conniff started out playing with Bunny Berigan's Orchestra and Bob Crosby's Bobcats in the 1940s before becoming an in-house arranger for Columbia Records in 1951. He wrote Don Cherry's million-selling single Band Of Gold and led his orchestra on hits by Johnny Mathis, Frankie Laine and Johnnie May, before striking out on his own with the acclaimed debut album S'Wonderful (1956), which unusually featured male and female vocal choruses alongside upbeat big band show tunes. His melodic, uplifting style was compared to the likes of Tony Bennett and Andy Williams and produced a string of hit albums including Christmas With Conniff (1959), Somewhere My Love (1966) and the UK Number 1 His Orchestra, His Chorus, His Singers, His Sound (1969) and he later became one of the first US artists to record and perform in Russia. Conniff's instrumental works proved particularly popular and influential in the 1970s, filling wine bars and providing atmospheric background mood music, and he won a Grammy Award for his signature anthem Somewhere My Love (used as Lara's Theme in the movie Dr Zhivago). An incredibly prolific talent, he gave one of his last public performances at the wedding of Liza Minnelli and David Gest and recorded up until his death in 2002 at 85. His music was also used posthumously in the comedy film Something About Mary.
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Albums
Top Tracks
- Track Popularity
- Somewhere My Love
- The Poor People of Paris by Ray Conniff, His Orchestra & Chorus
- 'S Wonderful
- Love Is a Many Splendored Thing
- Where Do I Begin
- How Long, How Long Blues by Johnnie Ray
- Will You Love Me
- Bon Bon
- Wonderful Wonderful by Ray Conniff
- Rhapsody In Blue by Ray Conniff, His Orchestra & Chorus
- Tell Me You Love Me, Tell Me You're Mine
- I Wish I Didn't Have To Dream So Far by Eileen Rodgers
- It's Not For Me To Say featuring Ray Conniff
- Ring Christmas Bells by The Ray Conniff Singers
- My Secret Inspiration
- That's What I Learned In School
- The Lord Made A Peanut by Guy Mitchell
- Wonderin' And Worryin' by Guy Mitchell
- Give Me by Eileen Rodgers
- Favorite Theme From Tchaikovsky's First Piano Concerto
- Easy Goin' Heart
- I Want You To Be My Guy
- Embraceable You featuring Ray Conniff
- Is Wonderful
