Alice Clark -

Alice Clark (c.1947 – April 2004) was an American soul singer from Brooklyn who cut two singles in 1968 and a self-titled album in 1972.

Early Singles

Alice Clark grew up in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn. In 1968, Billy Vera — then in a singing duo with Judy Clay — wrote and produced her first single, “You Got a Deal” / “Say You’ll Never (Never Leave Me)”, one of seven releases on Chip Taylor’s short-lived Rainy Day Records.

That same year, she teamed with producer George Kerr (The O’Jays, The Manhattans, The Moments, The Whatnauts) and arranger Richard Tee for the single “You Hit Me (Right Where It Hurt Me)” / “Heaven’s Will (Must Be Obeyed)”, released on Warner Bros.-Seven Arts Records. The a-side, written by Sylvia Moy, was first recorded by Motown artist Kim Weston.

The Album

In 1972, Clark got signed to jazz-psych-soul label Mainstream Records by founder/producer Bob Shad (Art Blakey, Amboy Dukes, Freeport, Lincoln St Exit). That May, she recorded her self-titled album at New York’s Record Plant with arranger Ernie Wilkins.

Alice Clark starts with the Jimmy Webb composition “I Keep It Hid” and contains 10 tracks in all, including three songs by “Sunny” writer Bobby Hebb: “Charms of the Arms of Love,” “Don’t You Care,” and “Hard Hard Promises.” Other tracks include compositions by Juanita Fleming (“Never Did I Stop Loving You”), Leonard Caston (“Don’t Wonder Why”), Earl DeRouen (“Hey Girl”), and John Bromley and Petula Clark (“Looking at Life”).

Alice Clark was engineered by Carmine Rubino (Hal Galper, Hadley Caliman, Hubert Laws, Leon Thomas). The album’s backing cast includes guitarist Cornell Dupree, keyboardist Paul Griffin, and drummer Bernard Purdie. The front and back cover show closeup color profiles of the head-wrapped singer. The inner-gatefold has b&w shots of Clark in session with studio crew, all captured by label photographer Raymond Ross. “I Keep It Hid” and “Don’t Wonder Why” got paired on a Mainstream 7″.

Later Activity

Clark retired from music and died of liver and kidney failure in 2004 at age 57.

In 2010, UK soul-funk archivists BGP Records compiled the album with the two earlier singles on The Complete Studio Recordings 1968-1972. “You Hit Me (Right Where It Hurt Me)” became a classic of the Northern Soul scene.

Discography: