Offered here is a 3x5 index card with a signature of the
late Ray Conniff.
I am selling my collection of autographs that I have purchased several years ago from an array of sources – from eBay sellers, from dealers with professional credentials, and from the signers themselves via the mail. Some came with COA’s; most did not. When I obtained these signatures, I believed them to be genuine and I believed that they were genuine when I posted them on Ebay.
I have received opinions from others, including PSA/DNA whose opinion I sought, indicating that some of the signatures that I have posted were not likely to be genuine. I have pulled those questionable signatures, and will not post them for sale again in the future. It is not my intention to sell autographs that are not authentic, and I will continue do my best to try to ensure that the signatures that I am offering are genuine. As indicated below, all signatures that I sell come with a money-back guarantee if they are judged to be of doubtful authenticity.
If the signature or signatures is/are determined to be
inauthentic by a well-recognized autograph expert, this item may be returned
for a full refund.
For those who'd prefer a different form of shipping, please
contact me so that we can discuss what your shipping charges might be.
Short Bio:
The man who popularized wordless vocal choruses and light
orchestral accompaniment on a mix of popular standards and contemporary hits of
the 1960s, Ray Conniff was a trombone player for Bunny Berigan’s
Orchestra and Bob Crosby’s Bobcats before being hired as an arranger by Mitch
Miller for Columbia Records in 1954. After he wrote the charts for several
sizeable Columbia hits during the mid-'50s, Conniff became a solo artist
as well, applying his arranging techniques to instrumental easy listening for
the booming adult album market. The result, 12 Top Ten LPs and well over 50
million total albums sold, cemented his status as one of the top LP sellers of
all time, but his increasingly watered-down and commercially focused
arrangements gained few young fans by the end of the '60s. Though he continued
recording and touring the world into the '90s, Conniff’s albums slipped
off the charts in the early '70s.
by 1954 to accept a position with Columbia
Records and notorious pop producer Mitch Miller. The following year, he put his theories to practice with Don Cherry (the vocalist, not the jazz trumpeter)
on a Top Five hit, "Band of Gold." Close on its heels were some more
big hits of 1956-1957, including the number ones "Singing the Blues"
by Guy Mitchell and "Chances
Are" by Johnny Mathis, plus Top Five entries by Johnnie Ray ("Just
Walking in the Rain"), Frankie Laine ("Moonlight
Gambler"), and Marty Robbins ("A
White Sport Coat [And a Pink Carnation]"). Columbia, undoubtedly ecstatic
over the success of its arranger, agreed to let Conniff record an instrumental album, and the result, ‘S
Wonderful (1956), spent months on
the album charts.
He continued to record albums and perform to his large Latin American
audience into the '90s. On October 12, 2002, Conniff passed away after falling down and hitting his head. He had suffered a
stroke months prior, but his health had continued to deteriorate. He was
85. by John Bush