Michael Clarke (musician)

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Michael Clarke
Michael Clarke, circa 1966
Born	June 3, 1946 Spokane, Washington, U.S.A.
Died	December 19, 1993 Treasure Island, Florida, U.S.A.

Michael Clarke (born Michael James Dick) (June 3, 1946 – December 19, 1993), was an American musician, best known as the drummer for the 1960s rock music group The Byrds from 1964 to 1968. He died in 1993, at age 47, from liver failure due to more than three decades of heavy alcohol consumption.

[edit] Biography

Clarke was born Michael James Dick on June 3, 1946 in Spokane, Washington. His father was an artist and his mother was the musician. Clarke ran away from home when he was 17 years old and hitchiked to California to become a musician.

In legend, Clarke was said to have been discovered while playing bongos on the beach by Byrds founder David Crosby, but in fact he was discovered by singer-songwriter, Ivan Ulz and not "on the beach," but in San Francisco's North Beach of Beat Generation fame. Clarke was not accomplished as a musician prior to joining the Byrds. He was hired more for his resemblance to Rolling Stones guitarist Brian Jones than his percussion skills. Clarke's best work appears on raga rock classics "Eight Miles High" and "I See You" from The Byrds' Fifth Dimension album.

During The Notorious Byrd Brothers recording sessions, he was fired and replaced by session drummer Jim Gordon (the compact disc version of that album contains sarcastic and bitter repartee between a petulant Clarke and bandmates Crosby and Chris Hillman over his perceived lack of effort and skill). However, Clarke landed on his feet, and after a short stint in Hawaii as a painter, he followed Hillman to the Flying Burrito Brothers, later working with Firefall and Jerry Jeff Walker. Clarke lost a certain amount of goodwill among longtime Byrds fans when he joined original Byrds singer Gene Clark for a series of shows billed "A 20th Anniversary Celebration of the Byrds." Many clubs simply shortened the billing to "the Byrds," and the pair soon found themselves involved in acrimonious court battles with Roger McGuinn, David Crosby, and Chris Hillman over usage of the group's name. The Byrds set aside their differences long enough to appear together at their induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in January of 1991, where the original lineup played a few songs together. Clarke continued to tour with a group called "Byrds Celebration," but his health declined as his drinking accelerated. After a number of hospital stays, he died of liver failure at the age of 47 on December 19, 1993, at his Treasure Island, Florida home.

In 1994, just a year after his death, Michael's paintings were published in Dick Gautier and Jim McMullan's book, Musicians As Artists.

During his final days, Clarke had expressed a wish to appear on television in the hope of alerting children to the dangers of alcoholism. Following his wishes, Clarke's girlfriend Susan Paul started a foundation in Clarke's name, called the Campaign for Alcohol-free Kids.

[edit] External links

The Byrds
Roger McGuinn \| Chris Hillman \| David Crosby \| Gene Clark \| Michael Clarke Gram Parsons \| Kevin Kelley \| Clarence White \| Gene Parsons \| John York \| Skip Battin
Discography
Studio albums: Mr. Tambourine Man \| Turn! Turn! Turn! \| Fifth Dimension \| Younger Than Yesterday \| The Notorious Byrd Brothers \| Sweetheart of the Rodeo \| Dr. Byrds & Mr. Hyde \| Ballad of Easy Rider \| (Untitled) \| Byrdmaniax \| Farther Along \| Byrds
Live albums: Live at the Fillmore - February 1969
Compilations: The Byrds' Greatest Hits \| The Best of The Byrds: Greatest Hits, Volume II \| The Byrds Play Dylan \| The Essential Byrds
Box Sets: The Byrds