W.C. Clark
@ The Blues Saloon, April 10, 1998

W.C. Clark
The Blues Saloon, 4/10/98
Photo © 1998 by Tom Asp
All rights reserved
After hearing W. C. Clark's first two Black Top albums "Heart of Gold" and the 1996 W.C. Handy award winning "Texas Soul," I fell in love with his voice. A man with a southern soul singers voice singing the blues. He was scheduled in town last year but was sidetracked after a near fatal auto accident left a band member and his fiancée dead. He has recovered with the support of his fans and friends and is back out on the road singing and playing his sweet Texas soul. Clark also delivers the complete package. He has one of those memorable voices that oozes with feeling, can play a passionate blues guitar, is an excellent song writer and is also an engaging performer. He has a smile that lights up the room when he is on stage, and did I mention his voice? Of course I did. This is one of those voices I never tire of hearing and I find myself waiting to hear what heights he takes it to on the next song.

Clark opened the show recently at the Blues Saloon with a Freddie King instrumental then he pulled his hat down over his eyes and in his sweet tenor voice sang a version of "Reconsider Baby" that would have made Lowell Fulson proud. His guitar playing is very tasteful. He makes his guitar solos an integral part of each song. He doesn't play notes just for their own sake. You can hear each distinct note and feel how it enhances the mood and meaning of the song. Each note is played so you can savor and appreciate it.

W.C. Clark's show was filled with a great deal of variety too. He sang some soulful Memphis blues, some fiery Texas guitar driven blues, some back road country flavored blues, classic R&B and straight ahead Chicago blues. He even pulled out a wonderful medley of Jimmy Reed material and the Willie Nelson country standard "Funny How Time Slips Away." After all he IS from Texas. On this song Clarks voice slides right up there near the falsetto range.

W.C. Clark
The Blues Saloon, 4/10/98
Photo © 1998 by Tom Asp
All rights reserved

Two 90 minute sets just wasn't enough. There is so much material he could have covered but the night wasn't long enough. We did hear the Eddie Floyd classic "Knock On Wood," Freddie King's "Hideaway" which he played for all it's worth. Some of his own material like the poignant "Reminiscing" (he said he loves that tune) from his "Texas Soul" CD and even a little funk and some southern soul. He stated out the second set with a short solo doing a country boogie and saved two unbelievable crowd pleasers for later in the set - "Cold Shot," the hit he wrote for Stevie Ray Vaughan and "Let's Straighten It Out."

Born in Austin, Texas November 16, 1939, the 58 year old Clark is now known as the godfather of Austin blues. He was there playing and paying his dues long before Austin music hit the national scene. Not surprising he sites Sam Cooke as one of his major influences along with Al Green, Wilson Picket, Bobby Bland and B.B. King. When I commented about how important his voice was to his music he said "I was born in singing. My grandmother was singing, my mother was singing, they sang all the while I was a little boy. While they was cooking, washing and everything, I was around it all the time, so much so, when I got ready to sing, all I had to do was just bring it to the surface. It was already imbedded in my soul. I listened to gospel growing up. The thing is, blues was off limits in my house, 'cause my family came form the old church. Late at night when my mom was sleep I turned the radio on and listened to Nashville, John R. out of Nashville. Today my mom she's finally come around. She told me, 'son this is not the music we programmed you to play but I want you to know that Mom is very proud of you.' Every once in a while now I go out past her house and she got the radio on and she's listening to the blues. I say 'mama, what is that you listening to?' (here he howls with a wicked laugh). 'Church sister!' (he teases with more laughter). Mom says 'get away from me, leave me alone (laughs). You know back then lot of black people was naive when it comes to music, but you see I wasn't because I knew its the same notes I play out here, and the same notes I play in church. I bring it up to my mom and she ignores me and starts talking about something else (more laughter)."


W.C. Clark
The Blues Saloon, 4/10/98
Photo © 1998 by Ray Stiles
All rights reserved
Clark started playing music around the age of 12 or 13 and was playing professionally around age 16. "My step father was one of the first people that pushed me into playing," Clark said. "He had a harmonica that I played first. He only played it a little. Long time ago those old guys they would play what they called the hound and the train (he demonstrates a train sound with his cupped hands over his mouth)." Clark then picked up the bass and guitar. In the late 1950's he was a member of Blues Boy Hubbard and the Jets and got to open for Sam Cooke and Buddy Holly when they came through Austin. Holly even asked Clark to play standup bass with him on stage. In the late 70's and early 80's he formed Triple Threat and switched to bass with a young and energetic Stevie Ray Vaughan on guitar and Lou Ann Barton on vocals. This was before SRV's Double Trouble days.

Clark jokingly referred to Robert Cray as "my son." "I hate to say that but when Robert Cray used to come to Austin, people used to leave his gig and come where I'm playin' and go 'hey man, there's a guy out there, he looks like you and sings like you.' So one night me and Jimmie Vaughan, Bonnie Raitt, and Kaz Kazanoff were playing and Robert Cray was sitting over on the side. I went over and said 'hey man there's people say that you might be my long lost son.' It just a joke OK? He said 'yeah I got a gap right there too'(Clark points to the gap between his front teeth with more laughter)."

When Clark is not out touring you can find him most every Tuesday at a place in Austin called the Top Of The Mark. He also has a new album due out in May on Black Top.

Visit the W.C. Clark web page at: www.wcclark.com/welcome.html

Send E-mail to: WCClark@WCClark.com

Mailbox E-mail Ray Stiles at: mnblues@aol.com

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Copyright © 1998 by Ray M. Stiles
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, or any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the author.