Miki & Griff were a British country music duo, who had several hit singles on the UK Singles Chart in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Miki was Barbara Macdonald Griffith ( Salisbury; 22 June 1920 – 20 April 1989); Griff was born Emyr Morus Griffith (9 May 1923 – 24 September 1995).
History Barbara Salisbury was born in Ayrshire, Scotland, and Emyr Griffith was born in Flintshire, Wales. They first met while singing in the George Mitchell Singers in 1947. After leaving the Mitchell choir, they performed as members of country and novelty group Johnny Denis & his Ranchers, and married in 1950.
They established themselves as a duo in variety shows, under the name Miki & Griff, and while working with entertainer Max Bygraves performed comedy skits in addition to pop and country songs. They were seen by Lonnie Donegan, who used them on his television shows and won them a recording contract with Pye Records.
From 1959 to 1975, they released several singles, mostly produced by Donegan, their most successful being their version of "A Little Bitty Tear" which reached number 16 on the UK Singles Chart in 1962. They also made many appearances on television variety shows in Britain in the 1960s and recorded 14 albums. Though they never fully broke into the US market, they toured the United States in 1964 and were well-received at the Grand Ole Opry.Roy Hudd and Philip Hindin, Roy Hudd's Cavalcade of Variety Acts, Robson Books, 1998, , p. 120
They continued to tour and record through the 1970s. Barbara ("Miki") died of cancer in 1989, aged 68, and Griff died in 1995, aged 72.
Discography
Charting singles "Hold Back Tomorrow" (1959) UK No. 26search for "Miki & Griff" performed at Everyhit.com database on September 29, 2008. passim "Rockin' Alone" (1960) UK No. 44 "A Little Bitty Tear" (1962) UK No. 16 "I Want to Stay Here" (1963) UK No. 23
Albums Miki And Griff, 1961 Country Style, 1962 Those Rocking Chair People, 1969 Two Little Orphans, 1970 The Country Side Of Miki & Griff, 1972 Let The Rest Of The World Go By, 1973 Golden Hour Of Miki & Griff, 1973 Country Is Miki & Griff, 1974 Two's Company, 1975 This Is Miki, This Is Griff, 1976 Etchings, 1977 Rockin' Alone, 1977 Country, 1978 At Home With Miki & Griff, 1987
References