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When you’re born with a singing
voice as potent and versatile as the one Clarence Dobbins possesses you
mustn’t limit it to any one genre. Equally moving singing Deep Soul to
Soulful Blues, R & B and even Adult Alternative crossover, Dobbins has
been thrilling audiences throughout “the music city”, Nashville, for
years..
Dobbins began singing at the age of seven after gaining inspiration from
the likes of Otis Redding, Jackie Wilson, Albert King, Bobby “Blue”
Bland and even the smoother Soul stylings of Donnie Hathaway. After
serving his country in the Marines he started performing professionally.
In 1977 he joined The Kadillacs as their lead singer before starting his
own R & B aggregate the Clarence Dobbins Revue by 1979, opening for
Nashville artists like Freddy Waters, Lavart Allison, and Rufus Thomas,
to name a few. He and his band are currently headlining throughout The
Nashville and Memphis area..
If you’ve yet to see a Clarence Dobbins show let me quote
BluesCritic.com, which after seeing Dobbins perform live wrote: “It was
star time at B.B. King's Nashville on this night because Clarence
Dobbins is a ball of pure energy- an electrifying performer who can put
on a sweaty Soul show the likes of an Al Green or Wilson Pickett. On
this night he was an indomitable force. A full band with horns, an
enthusiastic crowd, greasy pork sandwiches, a juke joint with the
Blues...”
Dobbins was born in South Nashville, just a couple of blocks from the
famed “Music Row”. At an early age he was dubbed "The Little
Entertainer" by his family. He would listen to Jackie Wilson, Otis
Redding, Sam Cooke and others on the radio and records imitating them
while dancing to their music. He loved to sing along and imitate James
Brown moves. During a recent interview Clarence was asked, "Where does
all your energy on stage come from?"
Clarence said, "Not from my Wheaties, but from a true love of music, and
a strong desire to perform." Dobbins said "Ultimately, the energy is in
the crowd. They push me to my limit". "People want the real, live thing.
If they wanted to hear the record, they'd stay at home and play it on
the stereo. My performances live are a whole different animal!"
Dobbins is just as impressive in the studio, sparing no expense to
create authentic Soul & Blues music played by real musicians. He
released his first EP “Goes Something Like This” in 2001, which was
expanded and re-cut as “Soul Of The Man” in 2005. The album featured a
staggeringly strong set of Soul and Blues classics plus original songs,
establishing himself as a writer/arranger (let alone producer). Despite
releasing the disc on his own he’s gone on to sell well over 3,000
copies, mostly following shows and on the Internet.
The word of mouth generated by the disc has lead to Dobbins inking a deal for a brand new CD called “The
Uprising”. The album will be released on CDS Records in 2008.
Clarence Dobbins "The Uprising"
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