Dominic Michael Guarasci (November 1, 1925 – September 12, 2005), better known as Don Grashey, was a Canadian songwriter and music producer, best known as the owner of Zero,Gaiety and Golden Eagle records.
The classic song became so popular that two other duet versions were released simultaneously in the U.S. with Ginny Wright & Tom Tall scoring a #2 hit and Red Sovine and Goldie Hill earning a Top 20 hit…all charting and being played on radio at the same time.
In 1959, Williams heard Loretta Lynn perform at a backyard jam session held in a converted chicken coop [2] in Vancouver, British Columbia, just over the border from Custer, Washington, where the singer was living with her husband and children.
[4] In her 1976 autobiography, Coal Miner's Daughter, Lynn credits the duo, as follows, "There was one fellow named Don Grashey who had some business sense, and he ran the record company for Mr.
"[5] Grashey produced Lynn's first recording session which took place in Hollywood in March, 1960 and resulted in the hit single "I'm a Honky Tonk Girl".
The backup musicians were Speedy West as steel guitarist and leader of the band, Harold Hensely (fiddle), Roy Lanham (guitar), Al Williams (bass), and Muddy Berry (drums).
George Petralia, a songwriter and sculptor, heard Carroll Baker[7] on a live radio show from the Hayloft Jamboree in Markham, Ontario, and he introduced her to Grashey, and sponsored her first recording.
[citation needed] In Canada, his songs were recorded by Jerry Palmer (who cut some 20 of Grashey's compositions, including the Top 10 hits, "Did I Forget To Tell Her", "Not Living, Not Dying (Just Hanging On)" and "A Picture’s Worth A Thousand Words".