Sanford Clark
Sanford Clark (born October 24, 1935) is an American country-rockabilly singer and guitarist, best known for his 1956 hit "The Fool", written by Lee Hazlewood.
Biography
Clark was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, but was raised in Phoenix, Arizona, from the age of 9. He first began performing in the Phoenix area in the early 1950s. He spent time in the Air Force in the South Pacific; he formed a band there which won a talent show in Hawaii.[1] Returning to Phoenix, he and his friend Al Casey met Lee Hazlewood, then a local DJ. Clark, with Casey on guitar, recorded one of Hazlewood's songs, "The Fool", in Floyd Ramsey's Audio Recorders studio on MCI Records in 1956. Dot Records picked the song up for national distribution after a Philadelphia deejay tipped them off to it. The song became a hit in the U.S., peaking at No. 14 on the Country Singles chart, No. 5 on the Black Singles chart, and No. 7 on the Billboard Top 100.[2] Following the song's success, Clark opened on tour for Ray Price and Roy Orbison.[1]
Clark's 1957 follow-up single, "The Cheat", gave him a second minor hit, peaking at No. 74 Pop.[2] He and Dot Records' owner Randy Wood quarreled over the singer's image, and he eventually signed to Jamie Records in 1958, continuing to work with Hazlewood. In 1959 Sanford Clark recorded a song, "Son of a Gun", about the son of a western gunslinger. This song is also referenced in Keith Richards' book life published in October 2010. He credits the song as being one of the first song he learned and performed on stage prior to forming the Rolling Stones.
Moving to Hollywood, he recorded for several other labels and had several almost-comebacks; his 1964 version of Hazlewood's "Houston" was eclipsed by Dean Martin's version, and in 1965 he re-recorded "The Fool" with Waylon Jennings on guitar.[1] Hazlewood, by now an established songwriter, signed Clark to his own label, LHI, on which Clark released The Black Widow b/w The Son of Hickory Holler's Tramp in 1967, Farm Labor Camp #2 and the album Return of the Fool in 1968.
A few years later Clark left the music business, working in construction, though he occasionally recorded in later decades on his own label, Desert Sun Records.
"The Fool" has been recorded by Chris Farlowe (1965 single), Elvis Presley for Elvis Country (I'm 10,000 Years Old) (1971), The Animals for Before We Were So Rudely Interrupted (1977) and by Richard Thompson on 1000 Years of Popular Music (live) among many others.
TV and film
Clark's most popular and well-known song, "The Fool", was featured in the Netflix film Win It All (2017) and the Focus Features film Dallas Buyers Club (2013). His song "Calling All Hearts" has been played in various TV and film productions including the NBC series Aquarius: Episode 107, the ABC series Nashville: Episode 310,[3] the FXX series It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia: Episode 1209, and in the 20th Century Fox film, Walking With Dinosaurs (2013).[4] His song "The Big Lie" was featured in the FX series Justified: Episode 409, in the Freestyle Releasing film From the Rough (2011), and in Sony Pictures Home Entertainment film The Driftless Area (2015).[5] "Bad Case of You" was featured in the Amazon Studios series Transparent: Episode 308 and 310.[6]
Discography
1950s
Date: Title | Record Label | Details |
---|---|---|
1955: The Fool | MCI Records / Dot Records | 7", Single, 10", Shellac |
1956: The Fool / Lonesome For a Letter | London Records / Reo Records | 10", Shellac |
1956: 9lb. Hammer / Ooo Baby | Dot Records | 7", Single, 10", Shellac |
1956: A Cheat / Usta Be My Baby | Dot Records | 7", Single, 10", Shellac |
1957: The Glory of Love / Darling Dear | Dot Records | 7", Single |
1957: Lou Be Doo / Love Charms | Dot Records | 7", Single |
1957: Swanee River Rock / The Man Who Made an Angel Cry | Dot Records | 7", Single |
1958: Presenting Sanford Clark | London Records | 7", EP |
1958: Modern Romance | Dot Records | 7", Single |
1959: Still As the Night | Jamie Records / Reo Records | 7", Single |
1959: Run, Boy Run | London Records / London American Recordings | 7", Single, 4 P, Tri |
1959: Son-of-a-Gun | London Records / London American Recordings | 7", Single |
1959: My Jealousy | Jamie Records | 7" |
1960s
Date: Title | Record Label | Details |
---|---|---|
1960: Go On Home / Pledging My Love | London Records / London American Recordings | 7" Single / Promo |
1961: Guess It's Love / It Hurts Me Too | Trey Records | 7" Single |
1964: She Taught Me / Just Bluesin' | Warner Bros. Records | 7" Single / Promo |
1965: Houston / Hard Feelings | Warner Bros. Records | 7" Single / Promo |
1966: The Fool / Step Aside | Ramco Records | 7" Single / Promo |
1966: Shades / Once Upon a Time | Ramco Records | 7" Single / Promo |
1966: It's Nothing To Me / Calling All Hearts | Ramco Records | 7" Single / Promo |
1967: The Black Widow Spider / The Son of a Hickory Holler's Tramp | LHI Records | 7" Single / Promo |
1967: (They Call Me) Country / Climbin' The Walls | Ramco Records | 7" Single / Promo |
1968: Farm Labor Camp #2 / Love Me Till Then | LHI Records | 7" Promo |
1968: They Call Me Country | Ember Records | Cassette / Album / LP |
1968: Return of The Fool | LHI Records | Album / LP |
1970s
Date: Title | Record Label | Details |
---|---|---|
1975: Modern Romance | Do-Ja Records | LP, Compilation |
1980s
Date: Title | Record Label | Details |
---|---|---|
1983: The Fool | Ace Records | LP, Compilation, Mono |
1986: Rockin' Rollin' Vol. 1 | Bear Family Records | LP, Compilation |
1986: Rockin' Rollin' Vol. 2 (The Complete Dot & Jamie Recordings, Vol. 2) | Bear Family Records | LP, Compilation |
1988: Sanford Clark / The Crickets (2) - The Fool / It's So Easy! | American Pie Records | 7", Single, RE, Mono |
1990s
Date: Title | Record Label | Details |
---|---|---|
1992: The Fool | Bear Family Records | CD, Compilation |
1993: Shades | Bear Family Records | CD, Compilation |
2010s
Date: Title | Record Label | Details |
---|---|---|
2014: Waylon Jennings / Sanford Clark - Zia Records Presents: Audio Recorders Archive Vol. 1 | Zia Records | 7", Single, Ltd, Num, Gol |
2016: Once Upon A Time | Fervor Records | 5xFile, MP3, EP, 256 |
2017: Mid-Century Sounds: Deep Cuts From the Desert | Fervor Records | Vinyl, LP, Compilation |
Unknown date
Date: Title | Record Label | Details |
---|---|---|
Unknown: The Fool / A Cheat | Collectables, MCA Special Markets & Products | 7", Single |
Unknown: Sanford Clark / Robin Luke - The Fool / Susie Darlin' | Underground Records | 7", RE |
Unknown: Sanford Clark / Ocean - The Fool / Put Your Hand in The Hand | Underground Records | 7", Single |
References
- Sanford Clark at Allmusic
- Billboard Singles, Allmusic.com
- "Music from Nashville S3E10". Tunefind.com. Retrieved 23 August 2018.
- "Walking With Dinosaurs 3D Soundtrack List". Soundtrackmania.net. Retrieved 23 August 2018.
- "The Driftless Area (2015) Soundtrack". RingosTrack.com. Retrieved 23 August 2018.
- "Music by Sanford Clark". Tunefind.com. Retrieved 23 August 2018.
- "Sanford Clark". Discogs.com. Retrieved 23 August 2018.