Clarence Burke Jr. (May 25, 1949 - May 26, 2013) – Throwin' Stones Atcha (1976)
Written by Five Stairsteps lead singer Clarence Jr. who sang and played guitar on it, this superb soul/funk jam was produced by Billy Preston feat. himself on keyboards.
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Clarence Burke Jr. was a singer/songwriter and producer and the lead singer of the family soul group Five Stairsteps, best known for their classic “O-o-h Child,” and who later re-formed as The Invisible Man’s Band.
Before going further, you must read this excellent tribute to Clarence Jr. by Bob Davis of Soul-Patrol.com, which is both a personal history of their friendship and an overview of the group’s career and cultural impact.
The Chicago-based Five Stairsteps were dubbed “The First Family of Soul” until the Jackson 5 came along. Consisting of four brothers (Clarence Jr, James, Dennis, and 13 year-old Kenneth aka “Keni”) and one sister (Alohe), they were named by their mother Betty Burke who thought the siblings looked like a staircase when they lined up according to age. Their father Clarence managed them, backed them on bass, and co-wrote songs with Clarence Jr.
The group first attracted attention from record labels when they won a talent contest at Chicago’s Regal Theater. One of their neighbors and family friends was Fred Cash of The Impressions, who brought them to Curtis Mayfield. They signed with his Windy C label, distributed by Philadelphia-based Cameo Parkway, and their first single “You Waited Too Long“ hit #16 R&B in early 1966, b/w “Don’t Waste Your Time,” written by Mayfield.
They released six albums from 1967-71, first on Windy C, then Buddah and Curtom. Their final two Buddah LP’s performed poorly, with Step by Step by Step (1970) only cracking the Billboard 200 album charts at #199, and The Stairsteps (1971) failing to chart at all.
In the mid-70s, the group signed with George Harrison’s Dark Horse Records and released the superb album 2nd Resurrection (1976), produced by Billy Preston. Its masterpiece track was arguably the stellar soul/funk jam “Throwin’ Stones Atcha,” featuring Preston on keyboards.
Clarence Jr. wrote the track, sang lead vocals and played guitar, with Keni on bass, Dennis on guitar, and Alvin Taylor on drums. The rest of the group were on backing vocals alongside Ivory Davis, who was featured as a background singer on several cuts.
The album’s other highlights included the mind-expanding, laid back funk track “Salaam,” which Keni wrote and played bass on, and the Latin funk-flavored “Pasado,” with Preston again playing keys on both tracks. The opening cut “From Us To You” reached #10 R&B.
In 1978, Clarence re-formed the group as the Invisible Man’s Band. Its members were the four Burke brothers, plus Dean Gant on keyboards and Steve Ferrone on drums, formerly of the Average White Band. They recorded the huge dancefloor hit “All Night Thing” (1979), which went Top 10 R&B and #45 on the Billboard Hot 100.
#soul #funk #FiveStairsteps #ClarenceBurkeJr