Otis Lee Clay (February 11, 1942 – January 8, 2016) was an American R&B and

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...

singer, who started in

gospel music Gospel music is a traditional genre of Christian music, and a cornerstone of Christian media. The creation, performance, significance, and even the definition of gospel music varies according to culture and social context. Gospel music is com ...

. In 2013, Clay was inducted to the

Blues Hall of Fame The Blues Hall of Fame is a music museum located at 421 S. Main Street in Memphis, Tennessee. Initially, the "Blues Hall of Fame" was not a physical building, but a listing of people who have significantly contributed to blues music. Started in 1 ...

Early life

Clay was born in Waxhaw, Mississippi, to a musical family, who moved in 1953 to

Muncie, Indiana Muncie ( ) is an incorporated city and the county seat, seat of Delaware County, Indiana, Delaware County, Indiana. Previously known as Buckongahelas Town, named after the legendary Delaware Chief.http://www.delawarecountyhistory.org/history/docs ...

. After singing with local gospel group, the Voices of Hope, he returned to Mississippi to sing with the Christian Travelers, before settling in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

in 1957. There, he joined a series of gospel vocal groups including the Golden Jubilaires, the Famous Blue Jay Singers, the Holy Wonders, and the Pilgrim Harmonizers, before making his first solo secular recordings in 1962. They were unissued, and Clay joined the Gospel Songbirds, who recorded in

Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and the ...

in 1964 and who also included Maurice Dollison who sang R&B under the name

Cash McCall ''Cash McCall'' is a 1960 American romantic drama film in Technicolor from Warner Bros., produced by Henry Blanke, directed by Joseph Pevney, and starring James Garner and Natalie Wood. The film's screenplay by Lenore J. Coffee and Marion Ha ...

, and then the Sensational Nightingales.

Career

In 1965, Clay signed with One-derful! Records in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, to make secular recordings. After releasing a series of gospel-tinged soul records, his first hit came in 1967 with "That's How It Is (When You're In Love)", which reached # 34 on the US ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' R&B

chart A chart (sometimes known as a graph) is a graphical representation for data visualization, in which "the data is represented by symbols, such as bars in a bar chart, lines in a line chart, or slices in a pie chart". A chart can represent tabu ...

, followed by "A Lasting Love" (# 48 R&B). In 1968 the record company folded and his contract was bought by

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over its first 20 years of operation, Atlantic earned a reputation as one of the most i ...

, who launched their subsidiary

Cotillion The cotillion (also cotillon or French country dance) is a social dance, popular in 18th-century Europe and North America. Originally for four couples in square formation, it was a courtly version of an English country dance, the forerunner o ...

label with Clay's version of the

Sir Douglas Quintet The Sir Douglas Quintet was an American Rock music, rock band, formed in San Antonio in 1964. With their first hits, they were acclaimed in their home state. When their career was established (subsequent to working with Texas record producer Huey ...

hit, "She's About A Mover", produced at the

FAME Studios FAME (Florence Alabama Music Enterprises) Studios is a recording studio located at 603 East Avalon Avenue in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, an area of northern Alabama known as the Shoals. Though small and distant from the main recording locations of the ...

Muscle Shoals Muscle Shoals is the largest city in Colbert County, Alabama, Colbert County, Alabama, United States. It is located along the Tennessee River in the northern part of the state and, as of the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census, the populati ...

. The record became Clay's biggest pop hit, reaching #97 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 (# 47 R&B). However, follow-ups on Cotillion, including "Hard Working Woman" produced by

Syl Johnson Sylvester Johnson (born Sylvester Thompson; July 1, 1936 – February 6, 2022) was an American blues and soul singer, musician, songwriter and record producer. His most successful records included "Different Strokes" (1967), " Is It Because I' ...

, and "Is It Over?" produced by Willie Mitchell in

Memphis Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Memp ...

, were less successful. Clay moved to Mitchell's

Hi Records Hi Records is an American soul music and rockabilly label founded in Memphis, Tennessee, in 1957 by singer Ray Harris, record store owner Joe Cuoghi, Bill Cantrell and Quinton Claunch (formerly producers for Sun Records), and three silent partn ...

in 1971, and made many of his best known

soul blues Soul blues is a style of blues music developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s that combines elements of soul music and urban contemporary music. Origin African American singers and musicians who grew up listening to the electric blues by ar ...

records for the label. His biggest hit came in late 1972 with "

Trying To Live My Life Without You "Trying to Live My Life Without You" or "Tryin' to Live My Life Without You" is a song written by Eugene Frank Williams, originally popularized by soul music, soul singer Otis Clay. In early 1973 it reached #102 on the Billboard (magazine), ''Bil ...

," a #102 hit on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, #70 on

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', was an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

, and #24 R&B, which he followed up with "If I Could Reach Out". "Tryin' to Live My Life Without You" was later

covered Cover or covers may refer to: Packaging * Another name for a lid * Cover (philately), generic term for envelope or package * Album cover, the front of the packaging * Book cover or magazine cover ** Book design ** Back cover copy, part of co ...

Bob Seger Robert Clark Seger ( ; born May 6, 1945) is an American singer, songwriter, and musician. As a locally successful Detroit-area artist, he performed and recorded as Bob Seger and the Last Heard and The Bob Seger System throughout the 1960s, break ...

, whose version hit #5 on the pop chart in 1981. After several more Hi singles and the album ''I Can't Take It'', Clay moved to Kayvette Records, where he had his last national hit single in 1977, "All Because Of Your Love" (#44 R&B). He later recorded for the Elka and

Rounder Rounder(s) or The Rounder(s) may refer to: Film and television * ''The Rounders'' (1914 film), a comedy short * ''The Rounder'' (1930 film), a comedy short * ''The Rounders'' (1965 film), a western comedy * ''Rounders'' (film), a 1998 poker f ...

labels, as well as his own Echo Records for whom he recorded the original version of "

The Only Way Is Up "The Only Way Is Up" is a song written by George Jackson (songwriter), George Jackson and Johnny Henderson and originally released in 1980 as a single by soul singer Otis Clay. In 1988, it became a chart-topping single in the United Kingdom for ...

" in 1980. He remained a popular live act in Europe and Japan, as well as the US, and recorded three live albums, ''Soul Man: Live in Japan, Otis Clay Live'' (also in Japan on Victor VDP-5111), and ''Respect Yourself'', recorded live at the Lucerne Blues Festival in Switzerland. In the 1990s he also recorded two soul albums for Bullseye Blues: ''I'll Treat You Right'' and the Willie Mitchell-produced '' This Time Around''. In 2007, he released the gospel album ''Walk a Mile in My Shoes'', which eraned him a Grammy nomination for Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance. In 2010, Clay was honored with a marker on the

Mississippi Blues Trail The Mississippi Blues Trail was created by the Mississippi Blues Commission in 2006 to place interpretive markers at the most notable historical sites related to the birth, growth, and influence of the blues throughout (and in some cases beyond) t ...

in Waxhaw. As a resident of Chicago's West Side, he was actively involved in community-based economic and cultural initiatives, including the development of The Harold Washington Cultural Center. On August 11, 2012, he was one of several acts that performed at Lincoln Center Out of Doors Summer Concerts in New York City. He was backed by the band Platinum. Clay was joined on stage for the finale by William Bell and

Teenie Hodges Mabon Lewis "Teenie" Hodges (November 16, 1945 – June 22, 2014) was an American musician known for his work as a rhythm and lead guitarist and songwriter on many of Al Green's soul hits, and those of other artists such as Ann Peebles and Syl J ...

. Clay was one of the 2013 inductees to the

. In 2015 Otis published with Billy Price the album ''This Time For Real''. During 2015, Otis Clay and

Johnny Rawls Johnny Rawls (born September 10, 1951) is an American soul blues singer, guitarist, arranger, songwriter and record producer. He was influenced by the deep soul and gospel music of the 1960s, as performed by O. V. Wright, James Carr, and Z. Z. ...

won the Blues Blast Award for Soul Album of the Year for their album, ''Soul Brothers''. ''Soul Brothers'' was also nominated for

Blues Music Awards Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spiritual (music), spirituals, work songs, field hollers, Ring shout, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narra ...

Soul Album of the Year and ''

Living Blues ''Living Blues: The Magazine of the African American Blues Tradition'' is a bi-monthly magazine focused on blues music, and America's oldest blues periodical. The magazine was founded as a quarterly in Chicago in 1970 by Jim O'Neal and Amy van Sin ...

'' Blues Album of the Year. It was selected as the number 6 Blues Album of the Year in the ''

DownBeat ' (styled in all caps) is an American music magazine devoted to "jazz, blues and beyond", the last word indicating its expansion beyond the jazz realm which it covered exclusively in previous years. The publication was established in 1934 in Chi ...

'' Critics’ Poll, being the only soul album on the list of top 20 albums.

Death and funeral

On January 8, 2016, Clay died in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

, at the age of 73 of a heart attack. Clay's funeral was held on January 16, 2016, at the Liberty Baptist Church in Chicago. After the funeral, he was buried at the

Oak Woods Cemetery Oak Woods Cemetery is a large lawn cemetery in Chicago, Illinois. Located at 1035 E. 67th Street, in the Greater Grand Crossing area of Chicago's South Side. Established on February 12, 1853, it covers . Oak Woods is the final resting place o ...

in Chicago.

Discography

Albums

* ''Trying to Live My Life Without You'' (1972) * ''I Can't Take It'' (1977) * ''Live!'' (1978) * ''The Only Way Is Up'' (1982) * ''Live Again!'' (1984) * ''Soul Man - Live in Japan'' (1985) * ''Watch Me Now'' (1989) * ''I'll Treat You Right'' (1992) * ''On My Way Home'' (1993) * ''The Gospel Truth'' (1993) * ''You Are My Life'' (1995) * '' This Time Around'' (1998) * ''Testify!'' (2003) * ''In The House'' (2005) * ''Walk a Mile in My Shoes'' (2007) * ''Truth Is'' (2013) * ''Soul Brothers'' (2014) Otis Clay & Johnny Rawls - Catfood Records * ''This Time for Real'' (2015) Billy Price & Otis Clay

Singles

References

External links

* *
An interview in May 2013 at Soul Express

{{DEFAULTSORT:Clay, Otis 1942 births 2016 deaths People from Bolivar County, Mississippi Hi Records artists 20th-century African-American male singers American male singers American soul singers American gospel singers Singers from Mississippi Soul-blues musicians People from Muncie, Indiana One-derful Records artists Mississippi Blues Trail 21st-century African-American people