Clyde McPhatter

CLYDE MCPHATTER d1972. American soul and rock & roll singer. He was one of the most widely imitated R&B singers of the 1950s and early 1960s and was a key figure in the shaping of doo-wop and R&B. His high-pitched tenor voice was steeped in the gospel music he sang in much of his early life. He was the lead tenor of the Mount Lebanon Singers, a gospel group he formed as a teenager. He was later the lead tenor of Billy Ward and his Dominoes and was largely responsible for the initial success of the group. After this he formed his own group, the legendary "Drifters" and later worked as a solo performer. He returned to the US in 1970, making a few appearances on rock-and-roll revival tours, but lived mostly as a recluse. Hopes for a major comeback with a Decca album were crushed on June 13th 1972, when he died in his sleep aged just 39, of complications of heart, liver and kidney disease brought on by his alcohol abuse. This had been fueled by a generally failed career and the resentment he harbored towards the fans he felt had deserted him over the years. Jay Warner’s (On This Day in Music History) wrote about him ; "broke and despondent over a mismanaged career that made him a legend but hardly a success..." Clyde McPhatter left a legacy of over 22 years of recording history. He later became the first artist to be inducted twice into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (first as a member of the Drifters and later as a solo artist)