Music promotion pioneer Don Graham dies at 87

Don Graham, a music promotion pioneer who worked for Warner Bros. Records, A&M Records and Blue Thumb Records along with Ed “Cook” Byrnes and Connie Stevens, The Everly Brothers and Ike & Tina Turner. He was 87 years old.

Graham died Thursday in Los Angeles of stomach cancer, his family said.

In 1958, Graham learned that Warner Bros. was ready to start a record company and soon became the head of operations in San Francisco. Under his leadership, Warner Bros. Records signed Ed “Cook” Byrnes, Connie Stevens and Tab Hunter, as well as The Everly Brothers and Peter, Paul and Mary.

One of the Warner Bros.’ The first successful recording was Cooke Cooke, Cooke and Stevens’ Borrow Your Comb, based on the popular character of Byrnes on the ABC show. 77 sunset track. When San Francisco’s top radio station KYA didn’t want to add the song to its playlist, Graham created a promotion where Warner would replace any old comb sent in the mail with a new “Cookie” comb.

After around 80,000 hits, the song reached number 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in May 1959.

In 1962 Graham moved to Los Angeles and joined Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss’s A&M Records as their first national promotional manager. Three years later, he moved to Blue Thumb Records, which included Ike and Tina Turner, Dave Mason and Sergio Mendes.

He moved to United Artists in 1968 and had success with Bobby Goldsboro, Jay & the Americans, War, Johnny Rivers and Don McLean, then worked for Midget Productions under Joe Smith and Cream Records. In 1980 he created his own company, Don Graham Promotions.

Donald Frederick Graham was born on November 11, 1934. At age 16, as vice president of the high school, one of his duties was to buy entertainment for assemblies. His budget was $85.

Graham and his friend entered the Blackhawk nightclub in San Francisco, where Dave Brubeck and his quartet were performing that night. Graham approached the jazz legend and convinced him to play at his school for an $85 fee, which Brubeck donated to charity.

After graduating, Graham met Russ Solomon, whose father owned a store in Sacramento called Tower Drugs. Solomon wanted to stop selling drugs and start selling records, so they changed one word on the sign and Tower Records was formed in 1960.

Hunter’s recording of “Young Love” for Dot Records reached number one in 1957 and remained there for six weeks, displacing Elvis Presley’s “Too Much” from the number one spot and leading to the creation of Warner Bros. Records. (Jack Warner was furious that his studio didn’t have a record company that used Hunter’s vocal skills.)

Graham is survived by his wife of 48 years, Robyn, and children Mark (and wife Sherry and son Gavin), Chris (wife Lisa, children Nicholas and Mark) and Jennifer.

Instead of flowers, his wife said, “Say hi every day to someone with a positive attitude like Don.”

A celebration of her life will be held at the Woodland Hills Hilton on July 30 at 3:00 pm. The event’s theme will be “Whistling Thru the Bridge”, which corresponds to the title of the book Graham was writing. RSVP to RSVP at www.HMPwebsite.org.