Obituary From the Memphis Commercial Appeal - Published on January 13, 2005

JAMES ARTHUR GRIFFIN, of Franklin TN, passed away at home January 11, 2005. Survived by wife Marti, children, Alexis, Jacob, Jamey, Katy and one sister, Carol Ann Jones. Funeral services will be conducted at 1PM, Friday, January 14, 2005 at Christ Presbyterian Church, Nashville TN, with visitation 2 hours prior to the service. Graveside services will be at 1PM, Saturday, January 15, 2005 in Memphis Tennessee at Memorial Park Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to The American Cancer Society or to Ministry of The Heart, P.O. Box 11954, Memphis, TN 38111. Crawford Funeral Home & Cremation Center Antioch, TN. 615-399-1115

Article From the Memphis Commercial Appeal - Published on January 13, 2005

"Musician Jimmy Griffin, co-founder of Bread, could do it all
Memphis native was singer, guitarist, songwriter, creative force"

By Bill Dries
January 13, 2005

Jimmy Griffin was a Kingsbury High School student with classical music training and a voice that turned heads. He became first a pre-Beatles Hollywood teen idol and later one of the founders of Bread, the band that defined 1970s soft rock. In a world where many specialize, Mr. Griffin could do it all. He was a songwriter, arranger, singer, guitarist and all around creative force who always stayed connected to the Memphis music scene. James Arthur Griffin died Tuesday at his home in Nashville after a six month battle with cancer. He was believed to be 61, a family spokesman said. "I've never met a sweeter, kinder, more unassuming person in my life to have the talents he's had and the songs he's written," said brother-in-law and fellow musician Greg Reding. Mr. Griffin moved to Los Angeles in 1962, after a Memphian with show business connections heard him singing at a party at The Peabody. With help from Memphian Dorsey Burnette, part of The Rock and Roll Trio of the 1950s, Mr. Griffin was signed by Reprise Records and packaged as a teen idol including roles in several teenage exploitation films. "I had offers from several record companies and chose Reprise because Frank Sinatra owns it and I know he isn't broke," Mr. Griffin said in a 1963 interview with The Commecial Appeal. He quickly settled in as a songwriter who wrote and recorded demos for others to record. He learned the business of producing hit records. He and David Gates, another session musician and songwriter, added Robb Royer in 1969 and formed Bread. "Because we both (he and Gates) wanted to play, write, produce and arrange, we decided to form our own group," Griffin said in a 1972 interview. Their first single, "Make It With You," hit the top of the charts in the summer of 1970. Meanwhile, Mr. Griffin won an Oscar that year for The Carpenters tune "For All We Know" used in the movie "Lovers and Other Strangers." He and Royer co-wrote the tune. Griffin used the pseudonym Arthur James. He kept the Oscar on his mantel no matter where he lived, said Reding. Bread recorded six gold albums with hits like "If," "Baby I'm A Want You" and "Guitar Man" before breaking up in 1973. They got back together in 1976 and scored another top 10 single with "Lost Without Your Love." "When he'd ring the bell on a songwriting situation, you'd see the light go on in his head. You knew you were on to something good," Reding said. Mr. Griffin, the husband of Marti Griffin, also leaves four children, Alexis, Jacob, Jamey and Katy, all of Nashville, and a sister, Carol Ann Jones. Funeral services will be at 1 p.m. Friday at Christ Presbyterian Church in Nashville. Graveside services will be at 1 p.m. Saturday at Memorial Park Cemetery in Memphis. Crawford Mortuary & Crematory in Nashville has charge. In lieu of flowers, the family requests any memorials be made to the American Cancer Society or to the Ministry of the Heart in Memphis.

-- Bill Dries: 529-2643

James Arthur "Jimmy" Griffin - January 11, 2005
Obituary From the Memphis Commercial Appeal - Published on January 13, 2005 JAMES ARTHUR GRIFFIN, of Franklin TN, passed away at home January 11, 2005. Survived by wife Marti, children, Alexis, Jacob, Jamey, Katy and one sister, Carol Ann Jones. Funeral services will be conducted at 1PM, Friday, January 14, 2005 at Christ Presbyterian Church, Nashville TN, with visitation 2 hours prior to the service. Graveside services will be at 1PM, Saturday, January 15, 2005 in Memphis Tennessee at Memorial Park Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to The American Cancer Society or to Ministry of The Heart, P.O. Box 11954, Memphis, TN 38111. Crawford Funeral Home & Cremation Center Antioch, TN. 615-399-1115 Article From the Memphis Commercial Appeal - Published on January 13, 2005 "Musician Jimmy Griffin, co-founder of Bread, could do it all Memphis native was singer, guitarist, songwriter, creative force" By Bill Dries January 13, 2005 Jimmy Griffin was a Kingsbury High School student with classical music training and a voice that turned heads. He became first a pre-Beatles Hollywood teen idol and later one of the founders of Bread, the band that defined 1970s soft rock. In a world where many specialize, Mr. Griffin could do it all. He was a songwriter, arranger, singer, guitarist and all around creative force who always stayed connected to the Memphis music scene. James Arthur Griffin died Tuesday at his home in Nashville after a six month battle with cancer. He was believed to be 61, a family spokesman said. "I've never met a sweeter, kinder, more unassuming person in my life to have the talents he's had and the songs he's written," said brother-in-law and fellow musician Greg Reding. Mr. Griffin moved to Los Angeles in 1962, after a Memphian with show business connections heard him singing at a party at The Peabody. With help from Memphian Dorsey Burnette, part of The Rock and Roll Trio of the 1950s, Mr. Griffin was signed by Reprise Records and packaged as a teen idol including roles in several teenage exploitation films. "I had offers from several record companies and chose Reprise because Frank Sinatra owns it and I know he isn't broke," Mr. Griffin said in a 1963 interview with The Commecial Appeal. He quickly settled in as a songwriter who wrote and recorded demos for others to record. He learned the business of producing hit records. He and David Gates, another session musician and songwriter, added Robb Royer in 1969 and formed Bread. "Because we both (he and Gates) wanted to play, write, produce and arrange, we decided to form our own group," Griffin said in a 1972 interview. Their first single, "Make It With You," hit the top of the charts in the summer of 1970. Meanwhile, Mr. Griffin won an Oscar that year for The Carpenters tune "For All We Know" used in the movie "Lovers and Other Strangers." He and Royer co-wrote the tune. Griffin used the pseudonym Arthur James. He kept the Oscar on his mantel no matter where he lived, said Reding. Bread recorded six gold albums with hits like "If," "Baby I'm A Want You" and "Guitar Man" before breaking up in 1973. They got back together in 1976 and scored another top 10 single with "Lost Without Your Love." "When he'd ring the bell on a songwriting situation, you'd see the light go on in his head. You knew you were on to something good," Reding said. Mr. Griffin, the husband of Marti Griffin, also leaves four children, Alexis, Jacob, Jamey and Katy, all of Nashville, and a sister, Carol Ann Jones. Funeral services will be at 1 p.m. Friday at Christ Presbyterian Church in Nashville. Graveside services will be at 1 p.m. Saturday at Memorial Park Cemetery in Memphis. Crawford Mortuary & Crematory in Nashville has charge. In lieu of flowers, the family requests any memorials be made to the American Cancer Society or to the Ministry of the Heart in Memphis. -- Bill Dries: 529-2643
In Memoriam