Clarence Carter, the US soul singer known for hits including Patches and Slip Away, has died at the age of 90. His management company confirmed his death on Wednesday due to complications from pneumonia.
Born blind in Montgomery, Alabama, in 1936, Carter began his music career as part of the duo Clarence & Calvin. After his partner Calvin Scott was injured in a car accident, Carter went solo and achieved his first R&B chart hit in 1967 with Tell Daddy. His 1968 track Slip Away became his most enduring song, reaching No. 2 on the R&B chart and No. 6 on the US pop chart, later appearing in films such as The Commitments and Almost Famous.
In 1968, Carter met future soul legend Candi Staton, who became a backing singer before they married in 1970. Carter introduced her to producer Rick Hall, helping launch her solo career. They had a son, Clarence Carter Jr., but divorced in 1973 after Carter's infidelity.
Carter's biggest hit came in 1970 with Patches, a cover that reached No. 4 in the US and No. 2 in the UK, earning a Grammy for its songwriters. He continued to release music into the 1990s, including the sexually explicit 1988 single Strokin', which was later used in the film Killer Joe. Director William Friedkin called Carter 'the Mozart of Southern music'.
