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Leonard Arthur 'Lenny' Davidson (born 30 May 1944 in Enfield,
Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a historic county in southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the ceremonial county of Greater London, with small sections in neighbour ...
, England) is an
English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...
musician and songwriter, best known as the guitarist for
the Dave Clark Five The Dave Clark Five, also known as the DC5, were an English rock and roll band formed in 1958 in Tottenham, London. Drummer Dave Clark (musician), Dave Clark served as the group's leader, producer and co-songwriter. In January 1964 they had thei ...
.


Career

Davidson was born in Enfield as one of three children. He started playing the guitar when he was a teenager. After leaving school, he worked at a company that made steel pipes. In 1961 he joined 'The Dave Clark Five with Stan Saxon', the forerunner of The Dave Clark Five. According to Mike Smith (the DC5's lead singer and keyboardist), Dave Clark was looking for a lead guitarist and asked Smith if he knew anybody. Smith recommended Davidson saying there was no one better. Smith and Davidson had worked together in a previous band. In 1963, the Dave Clark Five signed to EMI and released their debut album ''Glad All Over'' in March 1964. In total, the group appeared on
The Ed Sullivan Show ''The Ed Sullivan Show'' is an American television program, television variety show that ran on CBS from June 20, 1948, to March 28, 1971, and was hosted by New York City, New York entertainment columnist Ed Sullivan. It was replaced in Septembe ...
18 times, more than any over
British Invasion The British Invasion was a cultural phenomenon of the mid-1960s, when rock and pop music acts from the United Kingdom and other aspects of British culture became popular in the United States and significant to the rising "counterculture" o ...
group. He was one of three members of the group who wrote songs. He wrote their 1965 hit " Catch Us If You Can", and contributed five more tunes on the Catch Us If You Can soundtrack album, although Davidson was the only member of the group not to have one single line of dialogue in the film. The Dave Clark Five were one of the first leading groups in The British Invasion, cultural phenomenon of the mid-1960s, when rock and pop acts from the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...
and other aspects of British culture became popular in the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
. He co-wrote five songs, including "Crying Over You" and "When" to their 1965 '' Coast to Coast'' album, and sang lead on the 1967 hit " Everybody Knows" which reached number 2 on the
UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...
. Lenny sang co-lead with Smith on their Because. The Dave Clark Five sold more than 100 million records and scored 15 consecutive Top 20 U.S. hit singles. The Dave Clark Five were big competitors with
The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...
during 1963 and 1964, after knocking many of their songs of the number one spot on numerous music charts. The Dave Clark Five broke up in 1970, but was quickly reformed by
Clark Clark is an English language surname, ultimately derived from the Latin language, Latin with historical links to England, Scotland, and Ireland ''clericus'' meaning "scribe", "secretary" or a scholar within a religious order, referring to someone ...
and Smith as "Dave Clark and Friends".


Personal life

After the Dave Clark Five broke up in 1970, Davidson later relearned the guitar and became a music teacher in
Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For gov ...
, and also owned a company that provided repair and maintenance services for church organs. Following the death of Clark Five bassist Rick Huxley on 11 February 2013, Davidson and
Clark Clark is an English language surname, ultimately derived from the Latin language, Latin with historical links to England, Scotland, and Ireland ''clericus'' meaning "scribe", "secretary" or a scholar within a religious order, referring to someone ...
are the last surviving members. He also owned an
Antique shop An antique shop (or antiques shop) is a retail store specializing in the selling of antiques. Antiques shops can be located either locally or, with the advent of the Internet, found online. An antiques shop can also be located within an ant ...
, as stated by Mike Smith.


Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

Davidson was inducted as part of the group into the
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (RRHOF), sometimes simply referred to as the Rock Hall, is a museum and hall of fame located in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States, on the shore of Lake Erie. The museum documents the history of rock music and ...
in March 2008 along with the then fellow surviving band members Dave Clark and Rick Huxley. Mike Smith died 11 days before the ceremony from
Pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severit ...
aged 64. Davidson mentioned that they arrived in New York City for the ceremony on 8 March, exactly 44 years after the group's first appearance on ''The Ed Sullivan Show''. Lenny also told a story of when the five went to see
Ella Fitzgerald Ella Jane Fitzgerald (April 25, 1917June 15, 1996) was an American jazz singer, sometimes referred to as the "First Lady of Song", "Queen of Jazz", and "Lady Ella". She was noted for her purity of tone, impeccable diction, phrasing, timing, in ...
perform at the same hall the ceremony was held at, and the audience having to evacuate when a curtain caught fire from a lit cigarette.


Discography

* '' A Session with the Dave Clark Five'' (1964) * ''Catch Us If You Can'' (1965) * ''Everybody Knows'' (1967) * ''5 by 5'' (1968) * ''If Somebody Loves You'' (1970)


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Davidson, Lenny 1942 births Living people People from Enfield, London English rock guitarists The Dave Clark Five members 20th-century English musicians Musicians from London Beat musicians Age controversies