Obituary: ‘Drift Away’ singer Dobie Gray dies aged 71 Posted by Michael R. Gideon ⋅ December 7, 2011 Dobie Grey, the American singer best known for his 1973 hit *Drift Away*, has died at the age of 71. The cause of death has not been revealed. Born in Texas, Dobie Gray had his first taste of success in 1963 with single *Look at Me*. Throughout the 60s he wrote and recorded new material, with *The In Crowd* becoming a hit in 1965. He also acted, spending two years in the musical *Hair* while continuing to record for a variety of smaller record labels.
In 1972 he signed with Decca Records and recorded Mentor Williams’ *Drift Away*, which hit number 5 on the US charts and remains his most popular and well-known recording. In 2003 Gray featured on a re-recording of the song with Uncle Kracker, which was also a hit, but by this point he had almost stopped recording.
