Clyde Lovern Otis (September 11, 1924 – January 8, 2008), was an American songwriter and record producer, best known for his collaboration with singer

Brook Benton Benjamin Franklin Peay (September 19, 1931 – April 9, 1988), better known as Brook Benton, was an American singer and songwriter who was popular with rock and roll, rhythm and blues, and pop music audiences during the late 1950s and early 1960 ...

, and for being one of the first

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...

A&R executives at a major label. According to the

music licensing Music licensing is the licensed use of copyrighted music. Music licensing is intended to ensure that the owners of copyrights on musical works are compensated for certain uses of their work. A purchaser has limited rights to use the work without ...

organization Broadcast Music Inc., Otis is credited as the writer or co-writer of almost 800 songs.

Early career

After serving in the Marines during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, Otis moved to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

and inspired by fellow Marine

Bobby Troup Robert William Troup Jr. (October 18, 1918 – February 7, 1999) was an American actor, jazz pianist, singer, and songwriter. He wrote the song " Route 66" and acted in the role of Dr. Joe Early with his wife Julie London in the television prog ...

, best known for " Route 66", began writing songs. Otis' first success was

Nat King Cole Nathaniel Adams Coles (March 17, 1919 – February 15, 1965), known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American singer, jazz pianist, and actor. Cole's music career began after he dropped out of school at the age of 15, and continued f ...

’s recording of his song "

That's All There Is to That "That's All There Is to That" is a song written by Clyde Otis and Kelly Owens and performed by Nat King Cole featuring The Four Knights. It reached #15 on the U.S. R&B chart and #16 on the U.S. pop chart in 1956. The song reference's Ethel ...

", which reached the '' Billboard'' Top 20 in 1956.

A&R executive

On joining

Mercury Records Mercury Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It had significant success as an independent operation in the 1940s and 1950s. Smash Records and Fontana Records were sub labels of Mercury. In the United States, it i ...

as director of A&R in 1958, Otis began writing and producing material for Brook Benton. This collaboration led to " It's Just a Matter of Time", " Endlessly", "

So Many Ways ''So Many Ways'' is the debut album by American R&B vocal group The Braxtons. Released on August 6, 1996, the album produced four singles; " So Many Ways", " Only Love", " The Boss" – which peaked at number-one in the ''Billboard'' Dance Cha ...

", "

Kiddio "Kiddio" is a 1960 R&B/pop song written by Brook Benton & Clyde Otis. The song was first recorded and released in 1957 by Teddy Randazzo. Brook Benton recording "Kiddio" was later released as a single by Brook Benton in 1960. Randazzo and Benton b ...

" and the

novelty song A novelty song is a type of song built upon some form of novel concept, such as a gimmick, a piece of humor, or a sample of popular culture. Novelty songs partially overlap with comedy songs, which are more explicitly based on humor, and wit ...

, "

The Boll Weevil Song ''The'' () is a grammatical Article (grammar), article in English language, English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite ...

". Otis also produced a number of duets between Benton and

Dinah Washington Dinah Washington (born Ruth Lee Jones; August 29, 1924 – December 14, 1963) was an American singer and pianist, who has been cited as "the most popular black female recording artist of the 1950s songs". Primarily a jazz vocalist, she performe ...

, among them "

Baby (You've Got What It Takes) "Baby (You've Got What It Takes)" is a 1950s song written by Clyde Otis and Murray Stein. Originally titled "You've Got What It Takes", the song was first recorded by Brook Benton's sister, Dorothy Pay, in 1958, as the B-side of her single "St ...

" and "

A Rockin' Good Way (To Mess Around and Fall in Love) "A Rockin' Good Way (to Mess Around and Fall in Love)" is a song first recorded in 1958 by Priscilla Bowman, on the Abner Records label (ABNER DJ 1018). Bowman was given vocal backing by The Spaniels. Dinah Washington and Brook Benton In 1960 ...

"; he worked on Washington's solo efforts, as well, most notably the classic "

What a Difference a Day Makes "What a Diff'rence a Day Made", also recorded as "What a Difference a Day Makes", is a popular song originally written in Spanish by María Grever, a Mexican songwriter, in 1934 with the title "Cuando vuelva a tu lado" ("When I Return to Your ...

" and "

This Bitter Earth "This Bitter Earth" is a 1960 song made famous by rhythm and blues singer Dinah Washington. Written and produced by Clyde Otis, it peaked to #1 on the U.S. R&B charts for the week of July 25, 1960, and also reached #24 on the U.S. pop charts. ...

". Otis also produced hits for Sarah Vaughan (" Broken-Hearted Melody"),

Timi Yuro Rosemary Victoria Yuro (August 4, 1940 – March 30, 2004), known professionally as Timi Yuro, was an American singer-songwriter. Sometimes called "the little girl with the big voice," she is considered to be one of the first blue-eyed soul sty ...

(" Hurt") and

The Diamonds The Diamonds are a Canadian vocal quartet that rose to prominence in the 1950s and early 1960s with 16 ''Billboard'' hit records. The original members were Dave Somerville (lead), Ted Kowalski (tenor), Phil Levitt (baritone), and Bill Reed (ba ...

(" The Stroll"), which he also co-wrote. In 1962 Otis produced 33 of Mercury's 51 chart hits.

Clyde Otis Music Group

Upon leaving the label, he briefly worked at Liberty Records before founding his own publishing firm, the Clyde Otis Music Group, and moving into independent production. Relocating to

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the List of muni ...

, Otis produced sessions for country singers Charlie Rich and

Sonny James Jimmie Hugh Loden (May 1, 1928February 22, 2016), known professionally as Sonny James, was an American country music singer and songwriter best known for his 1957 hit, " Young Love", topping both of the early versions of today's ''Billboard'' ...

. His songs have also been recorded by

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...

, Aretha Franklin, Johnny Mathis, and

Patti Page Clara Ann Fowler (November 8, 1927 – January 1, 2013), known professionally as Patti Page, was an American singer and actress. Primarily known for pop and country music, she was the top-charting female vocalist and best-selling female ar ...

. In the late 1970s, he collaborated again with Brook Benton on several albums for various labels.

Awards

Winner of a

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

in 1994 for producing

Natalie Cole Natalie Maria Cole (February 6, 1950 – December 31, 2015) was an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She was the daughter of American singer and jazz pianist Nat King Cole. She rose to success in the mid-1970s as an R&B singer with the h ...

's "Take a Look",Jaeger, Barbara
"REBUILDING A FOUNDATION"
''

The Record (Bergen County) ''The Record'' (also called ''The North Jersey Record'', ''The Bergen Record'', ''The Sunday Record'' (Sunday edition) and formerly ''The Bergen Evening Record'') is a newspaper in New Jersey, United States. Serving Bergen, Essex, Hudson and ...

'', May 22, 1994. Accessed October 20, 2007. "Veteran songwriter, record producer, and music publisher Clyde Otis of Englewood, whose song "Take a Look" won a Grammy this year for best jazz vocal performance by Natalie Cole, has announced the reactivation of the Take a Look Foundation." Otis was given a Pioneer Award by the

Rhythm and Blues Foundation The Rhythm and Blues Foundation is an independent American nonprofit organization dedicated to the historical and cultural preservation of rhythm and blues music. The idea for the foundation came in 1987 during discussions about royalties with en ...

in 2000.

Personal life

He lived in Englewood, New Jersey, for over 40 years, and died there on January 8, 2008. He was survived by his wife, Lourdes; two sons, Isidro and Clyde III; two daughters, AnaIza and Sharon M. Brodus; and five grandchildren.Obituary from ''The New York Times''
/ref>

References

External links

The Clyde Otis Music Group website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Otis, Clyde 2008 deaths 1924 births American music industry executives People from Jefferson Davis County, Mississippi People from Englewood, New Jersey Mercury Records artists Liberty Records artists