The Clique (Texas band)

For other uses of The Clique or Clique, see Clique (disambiguation).

The Clique was a late 1960s American sunshine pop band from Houston, Texas. They started as the Roustabouts in the Beaumont, Texas area, 90 miles east of Houston, and later the Sandpipers before renaming themselves the Clique in 1967 and settling in Houston.[1]

Their first hit, was a cover of the 13th Floor Elevators' "Splash 1," on Cinema Records, produced by Walt Andrus. The song was No. 1 in Houston for several weeks.[2] The Clique were signed to Scepter Records, New York, for two years following their hit "Splash 1". Members changed as the group became better known and drew attention from the West Coast. The group became centered on record producer/songwriter Gary Zekley, who often employed session musicians. Their self-titled album, The Clique (1969), released by White Whale Records, featured the singles "I'll Hold Out My Hand" and "Sugar on Sunday," which reached No. 45 in the US on December 13, 1969 and No. 22 in the US on October 18, 1969 Billboard Hot 100 chart, respectively. "Sugar on Sunday" was a cover of a Tommy James song and its B-Side, "Superman", was covered by R.E.M. on their 1986 album Lifes Rich Pageant.

The Clique reached #177 on the Billboard Hot 200 album chart. A 1970 single, "Sparkle and Shine", reached No. 100; this song is included, along with six other added songs, on the 1998 Varèse Sarabande re-release of The Clique.

The Gulf Coast Music Hall of Fame inducted the band in 2008, prompting a brief reunion.[1]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "'Superman' soared for the Clique in 1969 - Houston Chronicle". Chron.com. 2013-06-12. Retrieved 2014-02-23.
  2. ↑

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