1880's & 1890's

Established in 1883 by Walter Gould in Kempsey on the Mid North Coast of New South Wales Australia.
Walter Gould was well known and respected as a piano tuner who would travel with two horses to clients homes from Coffs Harbour through to Maitland. 
In the 1898 Walter Gould relocated to Singleton to manage the Gould Brothers timber mill. During Walter's absence, his brother-in-law Horace Reginald Gray became the personal store supervisor and manager and went on to become the sole proprietor soon after. 
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1900's & 1910's

Horace expanded the business across three stores in Kempsey, Taree and Wingham, with other selling agents carrying stock across the Mid North Coast.
The PIANO WAREHOUSE of GRAY had a fine reputation and Horace was well respected as a religious man who raised his musical family within the community where he was known as "Honest Horry".

1920's

Horace's sons Norman and Clifton trained in the piano tuning trade. Clifton remained in Kempsey with the family store while Norman established his own business in 1923 when he began advertising as a travelling piano tuner in his early 20's, travelling from his family home in Kempsey through to Singleton in the Hunter Valley.

He married and settled in Singleton in 1926 where he opened his first dedicated retail store named "HARMONY HOUSE" in 1927.
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1930's

Through the decades the store developed into GRAYS MUSIC CENTRE, selling all things musical while adding new technologies like lighting, radio, refrigeration and home appliances to the growing range of sales and service items.
Sheet music, pianola rolls and imported 78' records were a key part of trade as popular music became the exciting "new thing".

1940's

The business expanded after the war into car and tractor sales. In partnership with Norman's son-in-law Bruce Ricardo, they traded in the premises next door at 91 John St as RICARDO & GRAY and sold many Vanguard & Fiat motor cars and Massey Fergusson tractors throughout the region to the local townsfolk and farmers.

1950's & 1960's

The historic 1955 flood of Singleton and the Hunter Valley brought a wave of destruction to the area. 
In the aftermath, the Gray family business moved away from the car dealership. Focussing again on music and appliances, the business name was changed to NORMAN GRAY & SONS as the family came on board, and expanded into the television age.

1970's & 1980's

As the business continued to grow, more family members came onboard and the business was renamed GRAYS ELECTRICAL. Having outgrown the premises at 89 John Street, the GRAFAM (Gray Family) trust was formed and in the late 1970's the disused iconic Grainger & Faulkner department store was purchased and renovated as the GRAFAM Building, home of the new Grays Electrical store.
 
Music and entertainment were still at the heart of the business, selling all instruments & sheet music, home hifi and entertainment systems. The music section boasted a buzzing "Record Bar" and the 1980's brought the first VHS Video rental service to Singleton. Business flourished, taking on TANDY Electronics and RETRAVISION dealerships and later expanding with a dedicated store specialising in Computers & Lighting. 

1990's

The global economic recession of 1990 hit everyone and changed the the playing field completely. The Gray family business had heavily invested in a large commercial property development in the late 1980's. The new economic downturn and crippling interest rates necessitated huge changes to ensure the business could survive. In an effort to reduce running costs the business sold its Retravision dealership, contracted and condensed its trade back to a single store trading as GRAYS MUSIC & COMPUTERS.

2000's & 2010's

After the sale of the GRAFAM building and another business name change, GRAYS MUSIC & COMMUNICATIONS relocated and downsized once again, focussing on musical instrument sales & service, electronics and communication . Consumer trends and the introduction of the Internet and online sales proved to be too hard to compete with so after decades of service to the community, the Gray family retail store closed it's doors in 2005. 
The Grays Music business continued under the sole management of John Gray until he passed away in 2018.

2020's

In 2022 the business was reestablished when Jolyon Gray returned to the trade where he trained and worked throughout the 1990's.

After four generations, he follows in the tradition of fine musical instrument repairs and servicing after founder Walter Gould, proprietor & great-grandfather Horace Gray, grandfather Norman Gray, great uncle Clifton Gray and father John Gray,

Jolyon is proud to carry on the Grays Music tradition travelling and working full-time from his home workshop restoring, repairing and servicing a wide range of instruments both new and old.