Blowfly (artist)

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Blowfly

Background information
Birth name	Clarence Reid
Born	February 14, 1945
Origin	Cochran, Georgia, USA
Genre(s)	Comedy, Funk, Soul, rap
Occupation(s)	comedian, vocalist, songwriter
Instrument(s)	vocals
Label(s)	Alternative Tentacles
Website	http://www.blowflymusic.com

Blowfly is the stage name and alternate persona of Clarence Reid (b. February 14, 1945 in Cochran, Georgia) who was a songwriter for many hit R&B acts in the 1960s and 1970s. As Blowfly, he has recorded numerous albums, mostly of sex-based parodies of other songs as well as original raps themed around sex. His stage name originated from his grandmother, who overheard him as a child singing "Do the Twist" as "Suck My Dick", and said "You is nastier than a blowfly."

Reid started off writing songs for artists including Betty Wright, Sam & Dave, and KC & the Sunshine Band. He also recorded a few hits of his own in the 60's including a song called "Rap Dirty" in 1965. Many hip hop fans consider "Rap Dirty" as the first rap song because in he talks in rhyme and it has rap (slang for talk) in the title.

Reid would write sexually explicit versions of hit songs for fun but only performed them for his friends at parties or in the studio. In 1971, he along with a band of studio musicians recorded a whole album of "dirty" songs under the name "Blowfly". Back then, no record label would release profane material so he distributed the records himself on his own independent record label, Weird World.

Blowfly's debut album, The Weird World of Blowfly

The album, The Weird World of Blowfly, features Reid dressed as a low-rent supervillain on its cover. Reid created this alter ego to protect his career as a songwriter. Reid continued to perform in increasingly bizarre costumes as his Blowfly character. The albums were widely popular in the South as "party records" in the 70's.

Blowfly on stage.

Many of Blowfly's songs featured his style of talking in rhyme which can be considered a primitive form of rapping. Many of his songs have also been sampled in numerous hip hop songs. After rap music hit the mainstream with Sugarhill Gang's "Rapper's Delight", Reid recorded a profane version of "Rap Dirty" titled "Blowfly's Rapp [sic]". The song was a hit and helped the album, Blowfly's Party reach #26 on Billboard magazine's Black Albums chart and #82 on the Billboard Top 200 in 1980.

Blowfly's profane style has landed Reid in some legal troubles. He was sued by songwriter Stanley Adams, who was ASCAP president at the time, for spoofing "What a Diff'rence a Day Makes" as "What a Difference a Lay Makes". A record store in Alabama was prosecuted for selling his album, Porno Freak.

He continues to release material and tour. He is currently signed with Jello Biafra's independent Alternative Tentacles label. His first album for Alternative Tentacles, Fahrenheit 69 (2005), featured appearances from Slug of Atmosphere and Afroman. During a tour to promote Fahrenheit 69, Blowfly and his band's tour van was broken into overnight, with the thieves making off with several musical instruments as well as some of Reid's Blowfly costumes.

Blowfly's latest album and second Alternative Tentacles release is Blowfly's Punk Rock Party. The album features several punk classics given the Blowfly treatment, including a rewrite of the Dead Kennedys song "Holiday In Cambodia" recast as "R. Kelly in Cambodia", that features Biafra (the song's composer and original vocalist) playing a trial judge.