Women's History Month - Merry Clayton: Rock n Soul Singer

When I was 12/13 years old I spent a good 6 months of my life in the movie theater.  What was I doing?  Watching Dirty Dancing of course....11 times.  And each time this one song would come up that did not fit amongst the oldies featured in the film.  I didn't like the song at first, but like so many other 13 year old girls who listened to the Dirty Dancing soundtrack endlessly, it grew on me.  The song was "Yes" by Merry Clayton, a woman who would only be known to me as "that lady from the Dirty Dancing" soundtrack for the next 8 years.

Then one day at the ripe ol' age of 21, I was browsing through the KAOS record library and had an interesting discovery.  It seems this "Merry Clayton"person had recorded PRIOR to Dirty Dancing. Thus began a journey of discovery - a journey that would take a long LONG time in the days when there was very little info about her on-line.  But that just made each fact I learned and each song I discovered so much more mind-blowing.  So here's her story.

Merry Clayton was born on Christmas day 1948 in New Orleans.  She was named "Merry"- get it?  At age 15 she recorded the original version of "The Shoop Shoop Song" before Betty Everette turned it into a hit. 

A handful of other hot singles were cut before she entered into a long career of straddling the fence between rock and soul as one the THE greatest back up singers of all time. She in fact was a member of the Raelettes (Ray Charles back up group) briefly but she didn't really hit her stride as a backing vocalist until the late 60s. Here are just a few of the artists who went to Merry Clayton when they wanted to make their records sound a lot more soulful:

- Neil Young (1968)
- Joe Cocker (1969 & 1974)
- John Phillips (1970)
- Phil Oches
- Leon Russell (1970)
- Linda Ronstadt (1971)
- Buffy Saint Marie (1971)
- Barbara Streisand (1971)
- Carole King (1971)
- Jerry Garcia (1972 & 1978)
- Ringo Starr (1973)
- Lynard Skynyrd (1974)

Her most celebrated back up work was for the Rolling Stones on the Let it Bleed album from 1969.  The Song "Gimme Shelter" really should have been credited as 'The Rolling Stones with Merry Clayton".  Her vocals really make the song the rock n roll riot protest anthem that it is.

She also recorded a few solo incredible singles and albums during this period including her own version of "Gimme Shelter".  You can hear some selections of those below.

In addition to singing, Merry did a little acting as well.  She originated the roll of the Acid Queen for the London stage version of the Who's "Tommy".  In the eighties she acted with "Maid to Order with Ally Sheedy and also  appeared on Cagney & Lacey.

Please take a moment to listen to one of the most arresting vocalists of our time.

Here it is - the original version of "the Shoop Shoop Song".  for some reason youtube won't let me embed this one so please click on the link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KDKwz6Oeh4g


I really dig this early cut! One of my favs!

Lets get into the back up work.  I want to start with the most famous, "Gimme Shelter" first the stones version featuring Clayton and then her own version.

And here are a few other songs she backed.





This is my favorite. Merry played both sides of the fence in this famous music fued. She did a cover of Neil young's Southern Man and then did backing vocals for Lynard Skynard's response to Southern Man. Amazing! Check it out.


Here is Merry as the Acid Queen

Here are a couple more incredible Merry Clayton Cover's of rock classics. There are many more but they aren't on youtube.

This is a James Taylor song


Merry does Dylan

And I'll close it with the Black National Anthem


- Post by Portland's DJ Action Slacks of Sugar Town