Clem Curtis (born Curtis Clements; 28 November 1940 – 27 March 2017) was a
Trinidadian British
Trinidadian and Tobagonian British people are citizens or residents of the United Kingdom whose ethnic origins lie fully or partially in Trinidad and Tobago.
History and settlement
The largest wave of Trinidadian and Tobagonian people to the UK ...
singer, who was the original lead vocalist of sixties
soul group
The Foundations.
Background
Family
He was the father of seven children, six sons and a daughter from previous relationships.
Early years
Born in
Trinidad as Curtis Clements, he arrived in England at the age of fifteen and later found employment as an
interior decorator. He entered
boxing and won most of his fights as a professional boxer. His mother was a popular singer in Trinidad and Curtis claims that this contributed to his ear for music.
Between 1966 and 1967 Curtis joined
The Ramong Sound
The Ramong Sound was a British R&B, soul and ska band, active from 1965 to 1966.
History
The Ramong Sound was a London based outfit, that featured two black lead singers doing Sam & Dave styled duets, one of them being former professional boxer ...
. He joined the group after hearing from his uncle that Ramong, Raymond Morrison, the lead singer of the group, was looking for backing singers. Curtis initially had very limited singing experience, only singing with his uncle when he came around the house with the guitar. After losing their original lead singer, the band took on board
Arthur Brown temporarily, and went through a few name changes before they became
The Foundations Arthur Brown stated in an interview that in his time with the group, he enjoyed singing with Curtis. They both sang separately as well as doing some duets. The group emerged in January 1967 with Curtis as their lead singer. The Foundations would go on to have worldwide hits with "
Baby Now That I've Found You" and "
Build Me Up Buttercup
"Build Me Up Buttercup" is a song written by Mike d'Abo and Tony Macaulay, and released by the Foundations in 1968 with Colin Young singing lead vocals. Young had replaced Clem Curtis during 1968, and this was the first Foundations hit on which ...
". Curtis is the lead voice on their
hits
Hits or H.I.T.S. may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Music
* ''H.I.T.S.'', 1991 album by New Kids on the Block
* ''...Hits'' (Phil Collins album), 1998
* ''Hits'' (compilation series), 1984–2006; 2014 - a British compilation album se ...
"Baby Now That I've Found You", "
Back on My Feet Again
"Back on My Feet Again" is the second single released by the Foundations. It was the follow-up to their hit single "Baby, Now That I've Found You". It was written by Tony Macaulay and John MacLeod and produced by Tony Macaulay. It charted at nu ...
", and "Any Old Time (You're Lonely and Sad)".
After having found success with The Foundations, two hit singles and releasing two albums, some problems started with their songwriter producer
Tony Macaulay as well within the group. Curtis felt that after their hit a couple of The Foundations members were taking things a little too easy thinking that they did not need to work so hard now that they had scored a hit. After being disillusioned with the band, he along with another member,
Mike Elliott, left The Foundations in 1968 just after recording a version of "It's All Right", a song that they had been playing live for some time. He stuck around long enough to help the band audition a replacement,
Colin Young
Colin Young (born 12 September 1944, Barbados) is a singer known for being a member of the British soul band the Foundations.
Biography
In the mid-1960s, Young came to England for a holiday with his father and decided to stay. He was a former ...
. Curtis went on to pursue a solo career in the United States. This was probably helped along by the encouragement of his friend
Sammy Davis Jr.
In 1969 he was signed to Cowsills Productions and had a debut single with "Marie Take A Chance".
1970s to 2017
After some well-received club appearances and hanging out with artists such as
Wilson Pickett, and staying with
The Cowsills, he did not receive enough work and decided to return to England in the early 1970s. He did some work with
Donnie Elbert and
Johnny Johnson and the Bandwagon
Johnny Johnson and the Bandwagon were an American vocal soul group, prominent in the late 1960s and early 1970s.
Career
Originally known simply as The Bandwagon, they were formed in 1967 and featured Artie Fullilove, Billy Bradley, Terry Lewis and ...
and later reformed a version of The Foundations.
Over the years, Curtis fronted various line-ups of The Foundations, as well as appearing on his own as a solo artist. He
recorded and released
records on various
record labels, including
EMI, Opium,
Pye Records,
RCA Records, Riverdale, and others. In 1977 Clem Curtis and The Foundations nearly got into the
Eurovision
The Eurovision Song Contest (), sometimes abbreviated to ESC and often known simply as Eurovision, is an international songwriting competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), featuring participants representing pr ...
final with "Where Were You When I Needed Your Love", a
John Macleod and Dave Meyers composition. They came third in the heats, and were picked as a favourite to win, but an electricians' strike ruined their chances, and "Rock Bottom" by
Lynsey de Paul and
Mike Moran was the winner.
In the late 1980s, Curtis joined the line-up of "The Corporation", also referred to as "the Traveling Wrinklies", which was a parody of sorts of the popular
Traveling Wilburys. The Traveling Wrinklies were composed of Curtis,
Mike Pender,
Brian Poole
Brian Poole (born 2 November 1941)Eder, BruceBrian Poole Biography, Allmusic. Retrieved 17 August 2014 is a singer and performer who was the lead singer of 1960s beat band The Tremeloes (1957–62) and then Brian Poole and The Tremeloes (1962� ...
, Tony Crane, and
Reg Presley, former lead singer of
The Troggs. They released a single "Ain't Nothing But A House Party" on the Corporation label in 1988.
In the late 1980s, Curtis teamed up with original Foundations guitarist
Alan Warner to re-cut the original Foundations hits.
Curtis appeared on stage as the Lion in ''
The Wiz'' at the
Lyric Hammersmith, and gave a successful gospel stage performance in ''Amen Corner'' at
The Lyric in
Shaftesbury Avenue. He has also appeared on TV chat shows, the British reality television series ''
Airport'', and had a bit part in the
ITV
ITV or iTV may refer to:
ITV
*Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of:
** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...
series ''
The Bill''.
In 2004 Curtis toured the UK as part of a soul package tour with Jimmy James & The Vagabonds. At the end of a show he was invited back on stage by Jimmy James who said "I don't like him and he don't like me but that's all right. Here's Clem Curtis." They then did "
Love Train" together.
Curtis recorded and performed until near the end of his life; he was regularly seen as part of the "soul explosion" night with former
Flirtations singer Earnestine Pearce and
Jimmy James at resorts such as
Butlins and
Warner Leisure Hotels in the United Kingdom. He also appeared on cruises such as the cruise ship "Azura", which docked in Southampton.
Curtis died on 27 March 2017 at the age of 76, after a short battle with cancer.
Curtis has been referred to on various occasions, informally as "The Godfather of English Soul".
Partial discography
References
External links
Interview with Clem CurtisBiography at music.msn.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Curtis, Clem
1940 births
2017 deaths
Trinidad and Tobago emigrants to the United Kingdom
20th-century Black British male singers
English soul singers
English male stage actors
English male television actors
People from Olney, Buckinghamshire
The Foundations members
21st-century Black British male singers
Pye Records artists
RCA Records artists
EMI Records artists
The Corporation (English band) members
Acid Jazz Records artists