| Gary
Grier
First Tenor, Second Tenor and Lead
Gary Grier was born on November 8, 1952, in Detroit,
and grew up on its north end. He was influenced by the
popular groups of the day such as The Coasters and The
Drifters and solo acts like Brook Benton, Sam Cooke, Dinah
Washington and Sarah Vaughan. Coached by his mother, Catherine
Grier, Gary began singing, at first just entertaining
his family and their friends. While attending Hutchins
Junior High, a classmate named Gloria Wier got him an
audition for the mixed chorus.
The mixed chorus took Gary's joy of singing to another
level. The group, under the direction of Ms. Barbara Williams,
performed at a number of venues in the area, including
other schools and at the Ford Auditorium in downtown Detroit.
While in school, Gary joined the Illusions, a five member
vocal group. Their first big gig was called the Hutcha-balao,
and pitted students versus teachers.
After graduating from the Atterbury Job Corps, he joined
the Soul Impressions and sang with the group for about
five years. In the early seventies, Gary became a member
of the Sons Of Truth. The group cut a rock-gospel album
for Stax Record Company (which launched the careers of
major pop soul stars Otis Redding, Sam & Dave, Carla
& Rufus Thomas, Booker T. & the MGs, the Mar-Keys,
Isaac Hayes, etc.) Sadly, shortly afterward, Stax shut
down before the album had a chance to get out of the gate.
After about 18 months with the Sons Of Truth, a four-man
group called Rare Quality, featuring Gary Grier, Steve
Spears, Dwjuan Brock and Ed Range was formed. Gary stayed
with this group for 2-3 years. After leaving Rare Quality,
Gary kept his musical skills sharp by singing at local
Karaoke venues and participating in Karaoke contests.
At his day job, Gary worked with a singer named Joyce
Johnson, who was an opening act with THE CONTOURS. While
Gary was rehearsing with The Illusions in preparation
for a group reunion, Joyce introduced him to Joe Billingslea
of THE CONTOURS. This led to an audition, and in the fall
of 1993, Gary Grier joined THE CONTOURS. Gary debuted
with the group at the Hyatt Regency in Dearborn, Michigan.
He was thrilled, but his biggest fan, his mother, was
even more excited.
Since joined THE CONTOURS, Gary has toured extensively
in North America and Europe. He has received several awards,
including the Smokey Robinson Heroes and Legend Award.
In addition to singing, Gary is the group's choreographer.
Gary is married to Delariece and has three children,
Gary, Sherita and Shaquita. He dedicated his career and
success as a Contour to his mother, Catherine Grier. |
