Ray Coleman was a British author and music journalist.

Coleman was the former editor-in-chief of Melody Maker known for his biographies of The Beatles.[1] Besides Melody Maker, Coleman contributed to music magazines such as Disc, Black Music, and Musicians Only, and a contributor to magazines such as Billboard. An author or co-author of ten books, he was working with Nicky Hopkins on a never-completed biography at the time of Hopkins' death in 1994. Coleman was also near the completion of a Phil Collins biography at the time of his own death in 1996. The book was completed and published in 1997.

Coleman was the first journalist to be awarded a Gold Badge of Merit by the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors for services to British music

Coleman wrote or co-wrote the biographies of at least a dozen famous musicians. They include the following:

Gary Numan: The Authorised Biography (1982)

Lennon: The Definitive Biography (1985, updated 1993)

McCartney: Yesterday and Today

The Carpenters: The Untold Story

Clapton: The Authorised Biography of Eric Clapton

Frank Sinatra: A Celebration

Stone Alone: The Definitive Story of the Rolling Stones (co-written with Bill Wyman)

Brian Epstein: The Man Who Made The Beatles

Rod Stewart: The Biography

I'll Never Walk Alone (co-written with Gerry Marsden)

Phil Collins: The Definitive Biography