He was a singer-songwriter, musician and producer born Clarence Henry Reid in Cochran, Georgia, nicknamed “Blowfly” by his grandmother after hearing him let out some obscenities and saying “You is nastier than a blowfly”.
In the 1960s he became a member of the group The Del Mires and he would soon go on to find a career as a solo artist for TK Records and also as a songwriter in collaboration with Steve Alaimo and Willie Clarke. 1969 saw his first chart hit with “Nobody but You Babe”, which was followed in the 1970s by his “Good Old Days” and “Funky Party”.
Making his name as a songwriter he wrote hits such as Betty Wright’s No. 6, “Clean Up Woman”, Gwen McCrae’s No. 1, “Rockin’ Chair” and KC & The Sunshine Band’s “Sound Your Funky Horn” as well as songs for artists that include Sam & Dave, Irma Thomas and Helene Smith. He also got a name for himself as “Blowfly” where he would perform parodies based on sex and adult material and in this guise he released several albums including The Weird World of Blowfly and Blowfly’s Punk Rock Party.
He was instrumental in introducing the successful songwriting team and founding members of KC & The Sunshine Band, Harry Wayne Casey and Richard Finch and worked on releases such as “Jazz Freak” by Paulette Reaves, “I’ll Do the Rockin'” by George & Gwen McCrae, “Somebody Will” that was produced by Buddy Killen and Jimmy Bo Horne’s Gimme Some! His work appears on Classic Dinah Washington, Rockin’ Chair by Gwen Mcrae, Rock Your Baby by George McCrae, Hard to Stop by Betty Wright, Back from the Dead by Bobby Byrd, Heaven in the Afternoon by Lew Kirton, Classic R&B from the 1960s by J.P. Robertson and he has released the solo albums Dancin With Nobody But You Baby, Running Water and Clarence Reid On the Job. Rapper DMX in his “We In Here” and Beyonce’s “Upgrade U” has also sampled his work, as has other songs by artists such as Wu Tang Clan, Suggs from the group Madness, P. Diddy, Ice Cube and Jurassic 5. He released the single “Prime Time” in June 2007.
The release of his 77 Rusty Trombones was announced on 12th January 2016 and he passed away from cancer and multiple organ failure in Lauderdale Lakes less than a week later on 17th January. He was 76 years old.
George & Gwen McCrae recordings
I’ll Do the Rockin’ (Clarence Reid)
I’m Comin’ At You (Clarence Reid)
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