Grayson Hugh
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Grayson Hugh (born October 30, 1960) is an American singer-songwriter, pianist, Hammond B3 organ player and composer. He is best known for his 1988 hit "Talk It Over", and his other blue-eyed soul hits "Bring It All Back" and "How 'Bout Us?".


Early life

Hugh was the first generation of his family to be born in the United States, and grew up surrounded by
classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be #Relationship to other music traditions, distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical mu ...
. His father was classical music radio host Ivor Hugh (born in
Hammersmith Hammersmith is a district of West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It is the administrative centre of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, and identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. It ...
, England); his mother was born in
Shanghai Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...
, the daughter of
missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group who is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thoma ...
Frank Rawlinson (born in Langham,
Rutland Rutland is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It borders Leicestershire to the north and west, Lincolnshire to the north-east, and Northamptonshire to the south-west. Oakham is the largest town and county town. Rutland has a ...
,
England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
), who wrote nine books, including a life of
Christ Jesus ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Christianity, central figure of Christianity, the M ...
in Chinese. Hugh began playing the piano at the age of three years. In his early teens, however,
rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock-n-roll, and rock 'n' roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from African ...
and
soul The soul is the purported Mind–body dualism, immaterial aspect or essence of a Outline of life forms, living being. It is typically believed to be Immortality, immortal and to exist apart from the material world. The three main theories that ...
won out. He played for a year as the
pianist A pianist ( , ) is a musician who plays the piano. A pianist's repertoire may include music from a diverse variety of styles, such as traditional classical music, jazz piano, jazz, blues piano, blues, and popular music, including rock music, ...
in a black
gospel Gospel originally meant the Christianity, Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the second century Anno domino, AD the term (, from which the English word originated as a calque) came to be used also for the books in which the message w ...
church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a place/building for Christian religious activities and praying * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian comm ...
and studied African drumming. He studied piano with
jazz pianist Jazz piano is a collective term for the techniques pianists use when playing jazz. The piano has been an integral part of the jazz idiom since its inception, in both solo and ensemble settings. Its role is multifaceted due largely to the Musical ...
Jaki Byard and avant garde pianist Ran Blake. Hugh dropped out of high school during his junior year to focus on his music. During his 20s, Hugh supplemented his income as a rock and soul musician by accompanying
modern dance Modern dance is a broad genre of western concert dance, concert or theatrical dance which includes dance styles such as ballet, folk, ethnic, religious, and social dancing; and primarily arose out of Europe and the United States in the late 19th ...
classes. This began his association as
composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and def ...
for several well-known choreographers, notably
Viola Farber Viola Farber (February 25, 1931 – December 24, 1998) was an American choreographer and dancer. Biography Viola Farber was born on February 25, 1931, in Heidelberg, Germany. In Germany, Farber began dancing. However, at the age of six she was ...
of New York, Prometheus Dance, Rebecca Rice (Boston Ballet) and Christine Bennett of Cambridge, Massachusetts. He briefly attended film school at the
University of Bridgeport The University of Bridgeport (UB or UBPT) is a private university in Bridgeport, Connecticut, United States. The university is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education. In 2021, the university was purchased by Goodwin Unive ...
. Hugh struggled with alcoholism in the 1970s, achieving sobriety in 1980.Grayson Hugh biography
GraysonHugh.net; accessed May 29, 2017.


Career


1980s

In 1980, Hugh released a self-titled album (One in Nineteen Records, 1980). This album was produced by Ron Scalise, winner of 14
Emmy Awards The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award categor ...
for audio work with
ESPN ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...
. Hugh moved to New York City in 1986 where he happened to meet producer Michael Baker in an elevator. Baker was finishing producing
The Blow Monkeys The Blow Monkeys are a British pop band formed in 1981. Their first single, "Live Today Love Tomorrow", was released in 1982. They subsequently enjoyed a successful career with several hit singles and albums throughout the 1980s before split ...
's album '' She Was Only a Grocer's Daughter'' for
RCA Records RCA Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Group Corporation. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside Columbia Records (its former longtime rival), Arista Records and Epic R ...
. Hugh was hired to sing backup vocals on that album and subsequently signed to RCA Records as singer-songwriter in 1987. He broke into the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in 1989 with three singles from his debut RCA album ''Blind to Reason'' (1988). In 1988 "Talk It Over", a song written by
Sandy Linzer Sanford Roy Linzer (born 1941) is an American songwriter, lyricist, and record producer, who is best known for his songwriting collaborations with Denny Randell and Bob Crewe in the 1960s and 1970s. He co-wrote hits including " A Lover's Concert ...
and Irwin Levine that Hugh arranged, reached the Top 20. After Hugh had arranged and recorded the song,
Olivia Newton-John Dame Olivia Newton-John (26 September 1948 – 8 August 2022) was a British and Australian singer and actress. With over 100 million records sold, Newton-John was one of the List of best-selling music artists#100 million to 119 million record ...
was given rights of first release, then recorded it herself and released it as a single under the name "Can't We Talk It Over in Bed", which appeared on her album '' The Rumour''. Hugh subsequently released his version which became a hit. His two other singles "Bring It All Back" and " How 'Bout Us" (a remake of the 1981 Champaign hit recorded with Betty Wright) were also radio hits. ''Blind to Reason'' eventually went gold in Australia. Hugh toured extensively in 1988 in the US and overseas, at first opening for
Dickey Betts Forrest Richard Betts (December 12, 1943 – April 18, 2024) was an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He was best known as a longtime member of the Allman Brothers Band. A co-founder of the band when it formed in 1969, he was central ...
, Ian Hunter and
Mick Ronson Michael Ronson (26 May 1946 – 29 April 1993) was an English musician, songwriter, arranger, and producer. He achieved critical and commercial success working with David Bowie as the guitarist of the Spiders from Mars. He was a session musici ...
,
Sheena Easton Sheena Shirley Easton (; born 27 April 1959) is a Scottish singer and actress who achieved recognition in an episode of the reality television series ''The Big Time (TV series), The Big Time: Pop Singer'', which recorded her attempts to gain a ...
and
Phoebe Snow Phoebe Snow (born Phoebe Ann Laub; July 17, 1950 – April 26, 2011) was an American roots music singer-songwriter and guitarist, known for her hit 1974 and 1975 songs "Poetry Man" and "Harpo's Blues", and her credited guest vocals on Paul Simo ...
, before beginning several years of headlining his own tours.


1990s

Hugh's second major label album ''Road to Freedom'' (
MCA Records MCA Records was an American record label owned by MCA Inc. established in 1972, though MCA had released recordings under that name in the UK from the 1960s. The label achieved success in the 1970s through the 1980s, often by acquiring other ...
, 1992) was voted "one of the year's top-ten albums" by ''
Billboard Magazine ''Billboard'' (stylized in lowercase since 2013) is an American music and entertainment magazine published weekly by Penske Media Corporation. The magazine provides music charts, news, video, opinion, reviews, events and styles related to th ...
'' and received rave reviews. Leonard Pitts Jr. of the ''
Miami Herald The ''Miami Herald'' is an American daily newspaper owned by McClatchy, The McClatchy Company and headquartered in Miami-Dade County, Florida. Founded in 1903, it is the fifth-largest newspaper in Florida, serving Miami-Dade, Broward County, Fl ...
'' said: "Have I heard any newcomer in the last decade who excites me as much as this guy? No." Director
Ridley Scott Sir Ridley Scott (born 30 November 1937) is an English film director and producer. He directs films in the Science fiction film, science fiction, Crime film, crime, and historical drama, historical epic genres, with an atmospheric and highly co ...
heard an advance pressing of ''Road to Freedom'' and wanted to put Hugh's music in his film ''
Thelma & Louise ''Thelma & Louise'' is a 1991 American crime drama film directed by Ridley Scott and written by Callie Khouri. The film stars Susan Sarandon and Geena Davis as Louise and Thelma, two friends who embark on a road trip that ends up in unforese ...
'' (1991). They eventually settled on two: "I Can't Untie You From Me" and "Don't Look Back" (both of these songs having some additional music contributed by songwriter
Holly Knight Holly Knight (born 1956) is an American songwriter, musician, and singer. She was a member of the 1980s pop rock groups Spider and Device, and wrote or co-wrote several hit singles for other artists, such as " Rag Doll", " Obsession", " Love Is ...
). His gospel-tinged arrangement of
Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan; born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Described as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture over his nearly 70-year ...
's "I'll Remember You" was the featured end-title song for the film ''
Fried Green Tomatoes ''Fried Green Tomatoes'' is a 1991 American comedy-drama film directed by Jon Avnet and based on Fannie Flagg's 1987 novel '' Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe''. Written by Flagg and Carol Sobieski, and starring Kathy Bates, J ...
'' (1991). In 1993, the A&R man who signed Grayson to
MCA Records MCA Records was an American record label owned by MCA Inc. established in 1972, though MCA had released recordings under that name in the UK from the 1960s. The label achieved success in the 1970s through the 1980s, often by acquiring other ...
(Paul Atkinson) was fired, and Hugh was dropped from the label, along with the other acts Atkinson had signed. In 1999, Hugh was forced to declare bankruptcy as a result of financial mismanagement by his business team.From Ruling Pop Charts to Being Homeless, Grayson Hugh Has Seen It All
connecticutmag.com; accessed May 29, 2017.
Disillusioned, Hugh left the music industry and moved to
North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...
in 1994, where he formed Grayson Hugh & The Mooncussers. He continued to write music. Afterwards, he moved back northeast to take a job teaching songwriting at
Berklee College of Music Berklee College of Music () is a Private university, private music college in Boston, Boston, Massachusetts. It is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known for the study of jazz and modern Music of the United ...
in
Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...
in 1999. While there, he was commissioned to compose scores for dance companies.


2000s

As a result of stress and his mother's declining health, Hugh relapsed into
alcoholism Alcoholism is the continued drinking of alcohol despite it causing problems. Some definitions require evidence of dependence and withdrawal. Problematic use of alcohol has been mentioned in the earliest historical records. The World He ...
. In 2004, now broke, estranged from his family and friends, and living in a back room in a Cape Cod restaurant, Hugh suffered a near-fatal alcohol-induced
seizure A seizure is a sudden, brief disruption of brain activity caused by abnormal, excessive, or synchronous neuronal firing. Depending on the regions of the brain involved, seizures can lead to changes in movement, sensation, behavior, awareness, o ...
that left him hospitalized. In October 2004, he checked into a detox facility and shortly thereafter moved into a sober house in Wareham, Massachusetts. In 2005, he began meeting with a rehabilitation councilor named Dean Gilmore who happened to be a fan of his. Gilmore convinced Hugh to return to creating music full-time to help maintain his sobriety and had his agency provide Hugh the seed money to record a new album. Hugh began writing and recording his comeback record, and returned to music full-time in 2007. In August 2008, Hugh married his
backup singer A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are use ...
Polly Messer. His recording ''An American Record'' was released on May 1, 2010.


2010s

Since the release of ''An American Record'', Grayson Hugh has been touring the U.S. and Europe. He released his new album ''Back to the Soul'', a return to his southern soul roots, on August 12, 2015. ''Back to the Soul'' was on the Ballot for a 2015 Grammy in the Best Americana Album category. In August 2016, Hugh announced his new band Grayson Hugh & The Moon Hawks. Hugh is currently working on a new roots country album called "Save Your Love For Me", scheduled for a release to be announced.


2020s

Due to the global coronavirus pandemic, in March 2020, Hugh was forced to put the recording of his new album "Save Your Love for Me" on hold, with a release expected sometime in 2025. A New Zealand Tour had been planned for the Summer of 2020, but due to pandemic, that also was cancelled, with the hope of rescheduling it. On November 1, 2020 Hugh, along with his wife singer Polly Messer, performed a live streaming concert at Caffé Lena, the legendary longest continually-running coffeehouse in
Saratoga Springs, New York Saratoga Springs is a Administrative divisions of New York#City, city in Saratoga County, New York, United States. The population was 28,491 at the United States Census 2020, 2020 census. The name reflects the presence of mineral springs in the ...
.


Discography


Studio albums


Singles


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hugh, Grayson 1960 births Singers from Connecticut University of Bridgeport alumni Living people American soul singers American people of British descent Musicians from Hartford, Connecticut