Representative Albums: "Merry Clayton," "Celebration," "Keep Your Eye on the Sparrow"
Representative Songs: "Yes," "He Touched My Life," "The Acid Queen"
Biography
Best known for her background vocal work on the Rolling Stones' legendary single "Gimme Shelter," Merry Clayton had a long and successful career as backup singer, solo artist, and actress. Born December 25, 1948 (hence the rather "holiday" feel of her first name), in New Orleans, LA, Clayton recorded tracks with Elvis Presley, the Supremes, Ray Charles, and Joe Cocker, as well as being a member of Ray Charles' Raelettes in the early '60s. Her solo debut, "The Doorbell Rings," was released in 1963, and she eventually found success as a session singer for the aforementioned artists. She followed up her best-known work -- the appearance on "Gimme Shelter" -- with a solo album of the same name, and during the '70s managed some minor R&B hits with tracks like "After All This Time" in 1971 and "Oh No Not My Baby" in 1973. After a brief hiatus from the music business, Clayton did minor acting work, appearing in the film Maid to Order and Cagney & Lacey. Clayton returned to the music side of things in 1994, albeit as a gospel singer, with the album Miracles. In 1996, Clayton performed with Marianne Faithfull and Darlene Love in the show 20th Century Pop, a performance of "20 rock-era standards." ~ Christopher True, All Music Guide
Clayton is best known for her 1969 performance in a duet with Mick Jagger on the Rolling Stones' song "Gimme Shelter". (Originally, the Stones had intended to have Bonnie Bramlett sing, but Bramlett was not available, possibly due to illness.)[4] Clayton also sang backing vocals on Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Sweet Home Alabama".[5] Also, early in her career, Clayton sang backup vocals for Tom Jones, Joe Cocker and Carole King. She also originated the role of the Acid Queen in the original 1972 London production of The Who's Tommy. More recently, Clayton has provided background vocals for Sparta's latest album Threes on the songs "Atlas" and "Translation". As an actress, she co-starred with Ally Sheedy in the 1987 film Maid to Order, and played Verna Dee Jordan in the final season of Cagney & Lacey.
In 1970, Clayton recorded her own version of "Gimme Shelter," and it became the title track of her debut solo album, released that year. Her version would be the first of two singles under her name to crack the Billboard Hot 100, reaching #73. She continued to release solo albums throughout the next decade, notching several minor R&B singles.
Clayton sang "You're Always There When I Need You," the main title for 1980's The Nude Bomb, the first Get Smart movie, which starred Don Adams. Merry also sang the song "Yes" that was in the 1987 film Dirty Dancing and also featured on the soundtrack album. This tune became her second, and biggest hit to date to crack the Billboard Hot 100 charts, peaking at #45 in 1988. She also recorded backing vocals for Tori Amos on her 1994 hit, Cornflake Girl.
Clayton also sang backup on several tracks from Neil Young's debut album Neil Young, originally released in 1968.
