Dee Clark (7 November 1938 - 7 December 1990) was an
African-American soul singer best known for a string of R&B and pop hits in
the late 1950s and early 1960s, including the ballad "Raindrops,"
which became a million-seller in the United States in 1961.
He was born Delectus Clark in Blytheville, Arkansas, and
moved to Chicago in 1941. His mother, Delecta, was a gospel singer and
encouraged her son to pursue his love of music.
Clark made his first recording in 1952 as a member of the
Hambone Kids, who scored an R&B hit with the song "Hambone." In
1953, he joined an R&B group called the Goldentones, who later became the
Kool Gents and were discovered by Chicago radio DJ Herb Kent upon winning a
talent competition. Kent got the Kool Gents signed to Vee-Jay record label,
subsidiary Falcon/Abner. The group changed its name once again, to "The
Delegates," and recorded for Falcon/Abner in 1956.
Clark embarked on a solo career in 1957 and over the next
four years landed several moderate hits, two of which ("Just Keep It
Up" and "Hey Little Girl") reached the top 20 on the Billboard
Hot 100). His biggest single, "Raindrops," a power ballad augmented
by heavy rain and thunder sound effects and Clark's swooping falsetto, hit in
the spring of 1961 and became his biggest hit, soaring to number two on the pop
chart (behind only Gary U.S. Bonds' "Quarter to Three") and number
three on the R&B charts. The narrator of the song tries to convince himself
that the tears he has cried since his love left him are raindrops, since
"a man ain't supposed to cry."
"Raindrops" sold over two million copies and remains a staple on oldies radio station playlists to this day, and has also been covered by several other artists in the years since, including David Cassidy, Tony Orlando and Dawn, and most notably Narvel Felts, who took the song to number 30 on the country chart in 1974. Clark himself recorded an updated version of "Raindrops" in 1973.
However, Clark's biggest hit was also his last. The
follow-up to "Raindrops," "Don't Walk Away From Me," was a
flop, and he made the pop charts in America only twice more, with "I'm
Going Back to School" (1962) and "Crossfire Time" (1963). By the
time "Crossfire Time" came out, Clark had moved from Vee-Jay to the
Constellation label.
Clark's Constellation tenure is a study in frustration --
between 1964 and 1966, he released eight singles for the label, none of which
charted. (Some were nevertheless excellent, in particular the Bob Gaudio-penned
"Come Closer," "Warm Summer Breeze," and
"T.C.B.") In the wake of "Old Fashion Love," issued in
mid-1966, Constellation folded and Clark spent the remainder of his career
hopscotching from label to label, never again releasing more than one single on
any given imprint -- these efforts include 1967's "In These Very Tender
Moments" (Columbia), 1968's "Nobody But You" (Wand), 1970s
"24 Hours of Loneliness" (Liberty) and the self-explanatory
"Raindrops '73," which appeared on the Warner subsidiary Rocky. Throughout
this period he lived in almost as many cities, making a living by headlining
local lounges and nightclubs during extended stays in Los Angeles, Atlanta, and
Orlando.
Though he continued to record for Constellation through
1966, none of his records charted. Clark had a brief revival in 1975 when his
song "Ride a Wild Horse" became a surprise top 30 hit in the UK
Singles Chart, becoming his first chart hit in the UK since "Just Keep It
Up."
Afterward, Clark performed mostly on the oldies circuit. By
the late 1980s, he was in dire straits financially, living in a welfare hotel
in Toccoa, Georgia. Despite suffering a stroke in 1987 that left him partially
paralyzed and with a mild speech impediment, he continued to perform until his
death on 7 December 1990, , from a heart attack in Smyrna, Georgia, at the age
of 52. (info edited from Wikipedia & All Music)
2 comments:
For “Dee Clark – A History 1952-1960” go here:
http://www86.zippyshare.com/v/CxLtngJT/file.html
Disc 1
1. THIS IS THE NIGHT - KOOL GENTS
2. DO YA DO - KOOL GENTS
3. YOU KNOW - KOOL GENTS
4. I JUST CAN'T HELP MYSELF - KOOL GENTS
5. JUST LIKE A FOOL - KOOL GENTS
6. CRAZY OVER YOU - KOOL GENTS
7. THE CONVENTION - THE DELEGATES
8. MOTHER'S SON - THE DELEGATES
9. I'M GONNA BE GLAD - THE DELEGATES
10. GLORIA - DEE CLARK
11. KANGAROO HOP
12. 24 BOYFRIENDS
13. SEVEN NIGHTS
14. OH LITTLE GIRL
15. WONDERING
16. NOBODY BUT YOU
17. WHEN I CALL ON YOU
18. JUST KEEP IT UP
19. WHISPERING GRASS
20. HEY LTTLE GIRL
21. IF IT WASN'T FOR LOVE
22. HOW ABOUT THAT
23. BLUES GET OFF MY SHOULDER
24. AT MY FRONT DOOR
Disc 2
1. CLING A LING
2. YOU'RE LOOKING GOOD
3. BECAUSE I LOVE YOU
4. YOUR FRIENDS
5. LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD
6. COME TO CALIFORNIA
7. BABY WHAT DO YOU WANT ME TO DO
8. JUST LIKE A FOOL
9. WHAT'D I SAY
10. I CAN'T DREAM
11. LUCKY ME
12. COUNT ON ME
13. NATURE BOY
14. THEY'RE TALKIN'
15. SENOR BLUES
16. A FOGGY DAY IN LONDON TOWN
17. YOU THERE
18. SILENTLY LOVING YOU
19. MOONLIGHT IN VERMONT
20. THE TIME HAS COME
21. EMMA JEAN
22. I LOVE YOU DARLING (Duet with Jerry Butler)
Dee Clark enjoyed a brief but spectacular chart career between 1958 and 1961 including the UK hit 'Just Keep It Up'. This is the most comprehensive package of Dee's recordings yet released and includes his first recordings with doo wop group The Kool Gents. Arranged in chronological order it also includes his three original LPs, 'You're Looking Good', 'Dee Clark' and 'How About That'.
This versatile singer could emote on doo wop songs, rock like Little Richard, croon standards like Johnny Mathis and it's all featured right here on this wonderful CD,
Great post Bob. These couldn't be oldies because they were out when I was a kid.
Pudge
Post a Comment