Clarence Carter, Legendary Southern Soul Singer, Dies at 90
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Clarence Carter, the blind Southern soul singer whose raw, emotionally charged voice powered classics like “Slip Away,” “Patches,” and “Too Weak to Fight,” died May 13 following complications from pneumonia. He was 90.
Born January 14, 1936, in Montgomery, Alabama, Carter was blind from birth but never allowed that to define the limits of his ambitions. He studied at the Alabama School for the Blind before earning a degree in music from Alabama State University in 1960. Long before his chart success, Carter was already building a reputation around Alabama’s club circuit alongside fellow blind musician Calvin Scott as part of Clarence & Calvin, later renamed the C & C Boys.
After Scott was seriously injured in a car accident, Carter launched a solo career that quickly gained traction at FAME Studios. His self-penned “Tell Daddy” became his first R&B hit in 1967 and later inspired Etta James to record the answer song “Tell Mama.” Carter followed that breakthrough with a run of deeply soulful hits that blended heartbreak, desire, humor, and hard-earned realism.
In 1968, Carter released “Slip Away,” a pleading, slow-burning soul classic that crossed over to the pop charts and became one of the defining records of the Southern soul era. That same year also brought “Too Weak to Fight” and the sly holiday favorite “Back Door Santa,” later sampled by Run-D.M.C. for A Very Special Christmas.
Carter reached the commercial peak of his career in 1970 with “Patches,” his aching interpretation of the song first recorded by Chairmen of the Board. The single climbed to No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 2 in the UK, earning Grammy recognition and cementing Carter as one of soul music’s most distinctive voices.
His music often balanced vulnerability with humor and sexuality, something that resurfaced in 1988 with the cult favorite “Strokin'”, an unapologetically raunchy anthem that introduced Carter to a new generation of fans and later found renewed life in films and pop culture.
Carter was married to fellow soul singer Candi Staton from 1970 to 1973, and the two shared both a son and deep creative ties through the Muscle Shoals music scene.
Across more than six decades in music, Carter remained a towering figure in Southern soul, known for a booming baritone that could deliver tenderness, heartbreak, grit, or sly humor with equal conviction. Whether singing about struggle, temptation, or survival, he brought a lived-in honesty that made his records endure far beyond their era.
What You Should Own
George Jackson was an American southern soul singer and songwriter who penned a number of songs that became major hits throughout the ’70s and ’80s. Born in Greenville, Mississippi, Jackson eventually settled in Memphis where he wrote songs for such studios and labels as FAME, Goldwax, Muscle Shoals, Malaco and Hi Records. Over the years, Jackson released numerous records but none achieved the popularity of song of his that were recorded by others. In 1970, the Osmonds recorded his “One Bad Apple,” which ultimately topped the pop charts. And Bob Seger had a huge hit with “Old Time Rock And Roll” thanks in part to Tom Cruise’s iconic dance scene to it in the 1983 film, Risky Business. The song, co-written with Thomas Jones III, has since become a Classic Rock staple. Jackson’s “The Only Way Is Up” as performed by Yazz and Coldcut topped the US dance charts and UK charts in 1988. Others who have recorded his include Otis Clay, 
Norman Johnson, known professionally as General Johnson, was as Grammy-winning songwriter, as well as a producer and the lead singer of popular late ’60s/early ’70s soul group, Chairmen of the Board. Johnson was just 16 when he made his first recordings for the storied Atlantic Records. In those early days he fronted his own group, the Humdingers, and shortly thereafter, the Showmen. It was with the latter that Johnson first started cracking the R&B singles chart with such records as “39-21-40 Shape.” After a short and less fruitful run as a solo artist, Johnson formed the Chairmen of the Board.  The year was 1967, and it was with that group that he went on to release such hits as “(You’ve Got Me) Dangling On a String,” “Pay the Piper,” and “Give Me Just a Little More Time,” which sold in excess of one million copies. In 1970, Johnson won a Grammy as the songwriter of the mega hit “Patches” as recorded by Clarence Carter. 
Before becoming a household name as founding lead guitarist for the Allman Brothers Band, Duane Allman was an in-demand session guitarist who played on many classic records of the late ’60s. His amazing guitar work was first heard on 