The Clique was a late 1960s

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

sunshine pop Sunshine pop (originally known as soft pop) is a subgenre of pop music that originated in Southern California in the mid-1960s. Rooted in easy listening and advertising jingles, sunshine pop acts combined nostalgic or anxious moods with "an appre ...

band Band or BAND may refer to: Places *Bánd, a village in Hungary *Band, Iran, a village in Urmia County, West Azerbaijan Province, Iran * Band, Mureș, a commune in Romania *Band-e Majid Khan, a village in Bukan County, West Azerbaijan Province, I ...

from

Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...

, United States. They started as the Roustabouts in the

Beaumont, Texas Beaumont is a coastal city in the U.S. state of Texas. It is the seat of government of Jefferson County, within the Beaumont– Port Arthur metropolitan statistical area, located in Southeast Texas on the Neches River about east of Houston ( ...

area, 90 miles east of

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 ...

, and later the Sandpipers before renaming themselves the Clique in 1967 and settling in Houston. Original members of the band were John Kanesaw (drums), Bruce Tinch (bass guitar), Cooper Hawthorne (lead guitar), Larry Lawson (vocals and keyboards), David Dunham (vocals and horns), and Randy Shaw (vocals and horns). Their first hit was a cover of the

13th Floor Elevators The 13th Floor Elevators was an American rock band from Austin, Texas, United States, formed by guitarist and vocalist Roky Erickson, electric jug player Tommy Hall, and guitarist Stacy Sutherland. The band was together from 1965 to 1969, ...

' "Splash 1", on Cinema Records, produced by Walt Andrus. The song was No. 1 in Houston for several weeks.
The Clique were signed to Scepter Records, New York, for two years following their hit "Splash 1". During this period, Cooper Hawthorne and Larry Lawson left the group and were replaced by Bill Black (guitar and backing vocals) and Sid Templeton (keys, guitar and backing vocals). John Kanesaw, Bruce Tinch, and Bill Black left thereafter and were replaced by Jerry Cope (drums), Tom Pena (bass), and Oscar Houchins (keys and backing vocals). The group drew attention from the West Coast. They consisted of Tom Pena (bass), Sid Templeton (guitar and backing vocals), Jerry Cope (drums), and Oscar Houchins (keys and backing vocals). David Dunham (sax and backing vocals) and lead singer Randy Shaw were the only two original members at the time the group signed with White Whale Records (label mates with the Turtles). The group became centered on

record producer A record producer is a recording project's creative and technical leader, commanding studio time and coaching artists, and in popular genres typically creates the song's very sound and structure.Virgil Moorefield"Introduction" ''The Producer as ...

songwriter A songwriter is a musician who professionally composes musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music ...

Gary Zekley Alan Gary Zekley (also known as Brandon Chase; January 4, 1943 – June 19, 1996) was an American West Coast record producer and songwriter associated with 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s bands and songs in the bubblegum, rock and roll, sunshine pop, and ...

. Their self-titled

album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records c ...

, ''The Clique'' (1969), released by White Whale Records, featured the

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"I'll Hold Out My Hand" and "Sugar on Sunday", which reached No. 45 in the US on December 13, 1969 and No. 22 in the US on October 18, 1969 ''Billboard'' Hot 100

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 ...

, respectively. "Sugar on Sunday" was a

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of a

Tommy James Tommy James (born Thomas Gregory Jackson; April 29, 1947), also known as Tommy Tadger, is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer, widely known as frontman of the 1960s rock band Tommy James and the Shondells, who were know ...

song A song is a musical composition intended to be performed by the human voice. This is often done at distinct and fixed pitches (melodies) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs contain various forms, such as those including the repetiti ...

and its

B-Side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record compan ...

, "

Superman Superman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, and debuted in the comic book '' Action Comics'' #1 ( cover-dated June 1938 and pu ...

", was covered by R.E.M. on their 1986 album '' Lifes Rich Pageant.'' ''The Clique'' reached No. 177 on the

Billboard Hot 200 The ''Billboard'' 200 is a record chart ranking the 200 most popular music albums and EPs in the United States. It is published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine and is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artist ...

album chart. A 1970 single, "Sparkle and Shine", reached No. 100; this song is included, along with six other added songs, on the 1998

Varèse Sarabande Varèse Sarabande is an American record label, owned by Concord Music Group and distributed by Universal Music Group, which specializes in film scores and original cast recordings. It aims to reissue rare or unavailable albums, as well as newer r ...

re-release of ''The Clique.'' The Clique performed on several national television shows, including John Byner's "Something Else" and "The Dating Game". The group toured nationally appearing with popular acts of the day, including Tommy James and The Shondells, Grand Funk Railroad, Brooklyn Bridge, and The Dave Clark Five. The Gulf Coast Music Hall of Fame inducted the band in 2008, prompting a brief reunion.

References

External links

* AllMusic review of ''The Clique''
Vicki Welch Ayo
{{DEFAULTSORT:Clique, The Musical groups from Texas White Whale Records artists