Clyde McPhatter Says Hello -> August 1970

[kevinstevenage]

he looks more like Dobie Gray than Clyde Mcphatter

[drjohncarpenter]

he looks more like Dobie Gray than Clyde Mcphatter

Thanks, that is very helpful.

[kevinstevenage]

just an observation.

[promiseland]

My mother watched the complete workes with me last night
and with out me saying anything she said " Theres Clyde Mcphatter !" and I said are you sure? She said "Yes thats him , you can tell by his eyes and that smile. That Is Him!"
My mother is 67 and is very knowledgable on 1950 and 60's music scene.
I didn't say when the clip can up "hey mom who do you think that is.. "
she just spotted him and said 'Theres Clyde Mcphatter"

I know this mystery is still not solved with definite proof , but I think it is very strange for someone that knows nothing about this topic has claimed that the mystery man is Clyde Mcphatter.
I don't know exactly what the odds of that is, but it's enough for me to bring this topic back up again after being 10 pages deep....

[drjohncarpenter]

My mother watched the complete works with me last night and without me saying anything she said, "There's Clyde McPhatter!" and I said, "Are you sure? She said, "Yes that's him, you can tell by his eyes and that smile. That is him!"

My mother is 67 and very knowledgeable on 1950s and 60s music scenes.

I didn't say when the clip came up, "Hey mom, who do you think that is.. " she just spotted him and said, "There's Clyde McPhatter!"

I know this mystery is still not solved with definite proof, but I think it is very strange for someone that knows nothing about this topic claimed that the mystery man is Clyde McPhatter.

I don't know exactly what the odds of that is, but it's enough for me to bring this topic back up again after being 10 pages deep....

Thanks a lot for sharing this VERY interesting -- and totally unsolicited -- observation.

[promiseland]

My mother watched the complete works with me last night and without me saying anything she said, "There's Clyde McPhatter!" and I said, "Are you sure? She said, "Yes that's him, you can tell by his eyes and that smile. That is him!"

My mother is 67 and very knowledgeable on 1950s and 60s music scenes.

I didn't say when the clip came up, "Hey mom, who do you think that is.. " she just spotted him and said, "There's Clyde McPhatter!"

I know this mystery is still not solved with definite proof, but I think it is very strange for someone that knows nothing about this topic claimed that the mystery man is Clyde McPhatter.

I don't know exactly what the odds of that is, but it's enough for me to bring this topic back up again after being 10 pages deep....

Thanks a lot for sharing this VERY interesting -- and totally unsolicited -- observation.

You're welcome.
We talked about this , and I was like well theres alot of people on an Elvis forum that says it isn't him or doesn't look like him totally,
and she said " well Elvis didnt look the same at that time than he did in the 50's, but he still had those distinctive features all the way till the end"

I thought that was a good point !

[drjohncarpenter]

Found this article, which at least shows that Clyde had returned to the U.S. as of late July 1970.

Billboard Aug 01 1970 p6.jpg

Billboard - August 1, 1970

[Blue River]

I gotta' hand it to you, drjohn, if nothing else you are persistent.

Maybe it was McPhatter afterall. I hope it's him, so you can start sleeping at night.

[mysterytrainrideson]

Did you know Elvis met singer and hero Clyde McPhatter?



Elvis, Clyde McPhatter - August 10, 1970, Las Vegas, NV

---

How cool is that?

Clyde was a HUGE influence on Elvis, his lead vocal on the 1953 Drifters #1 R&B recording of "Money Honey" is but one example.

He had recently returned from exile in the U.K., cutting a comeback LP called Welcome Home (Decca, 1970).



It was not a success. Sadly, McPhatter died just two years later, a heart attack taking him at the age of 39. As time has passed, his beautiful, unique voice has been acknowledged, and in 1987 was one of the first inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Learn about this man's influential work by clicking this link ->

The Great Clyde McPhatter

Thanks for this info, Doc. Wasn't even aware the two met...Elvis sure loved Clyde...and it's great to see a photo of the two together.i too love clydes music From the Dominoes to the early Drifters. He had a unique voice.

[rjm]

The only other person it could be is Jerry Butler.

Here are a few pictures. (Can't find one with that exact hair just yet.)

Jerry_Butler_sorta_smiling_young.jpg

Jerry_Butler_smiling_young.jpg

jerry-butler.jpg

jerry-butler_sing.jpg

Jerry_Butler_Philadephia.jpg

I've just always had him in mind, but the "all my moves" still points to something more specific. I don't know: it's just a shot, a gut feeling. I don't know.

rjm

[TJ]

Butler was definitely in Chicago on August 17 because he appeared on the very first Soul Train, which was live. He was also working on his songwriting workshop in Chicago that summer. Doesn't mean he couldn't have been in Vegas the week before, but I don't know if there was a professional reason for him to have been in town. The images of Butler from the early '60s look nothing like the guy with Elvis, but by 1970 there is a similarity.

[rjm]

This is no sure solution, because the McPhatter vid is from way back, but at least here's video (of both):

..

..

The actual person:

..

rjm

[drjohncarpenter]

It's most definitely NOT Jerry Butler.

[drjohncarpenter]

A new image, albeit not too large, popped up recently, which seems to show the man in question may not be McPhatter.

700810_PostShow.jpg

If not Clyde, he still must be a performer of some sort. Here's what was booked at the International:

700815_Fabulous Las Vegas.jpg

None of the listed acts at the Casino Theatre seem to fit. He's not in any photos I've seen from Ike Turner's band, and Mac Truque was an all white rock/R&B act. Did comedian Redd Foxx use some kind of musical support? Anyone know more, please chime in!

[mike edwards66]

A new image, albeit not too large, popped up recently, which seems to show the man in question may not be McPhatter.

You sure that's the same guy as the first one. Looks different.

[drjohncarpenter]

The actual person:

..

rjm

Looking again at this I see the man in question at the very beginning of the clip, then later notice Elvis walking deliberately towards him to shake his hand.

700810_after party 001.jpg

700810_after party 002.jpg

He knows this gentleman. Almost immediately after shaking his hand, Presley looks to his right and shakes the hand of the fellow with him. We get a camera switch at this point. Director Denis Sanders had TWO cameras rolling during this after party for the MGM documentary! The other man is also African-American, older, wearing his hair in the old school, "conked" style, and he has on a plaid jacket.

700810_after party 003.jpg

700810_after party 004.jpg

I wish I knew exactly who these guys are, the speculation is getting to be maddening.

[Mister Mike]

It's a little discouraging to see this go back to square one. I've gone well into my 50s since this thread began. I hope I won't be well into my 60s when this finally gets resolved.

[drjohncarpenter]

It's a little discouraging to see this go back to square one. I've gone well into my 50s since this thread began. I hope I won't be well into my 60s when this finally gets resolved.

Hey, you still have your hair.

[Joe Car]

Even though we don't have a proper name of this mystery man, this has been a fascinating thread. Love these kind of threads!!

[Mister Mike]

It's a little discouraging to see this go back to square one. I've gone well into my 50s since this thread began. I hope I won't be well into my 60s when this finally gets resolved.

Hey, you still have your hair.

And that's about it....

[drjohncarpenter]

It's a little discouraging to see this go back to square one. I've gone well into my 50s since this thread began. I hope I won't be well into my 60s when this finally gets resolved.

Hey, you still have your hair.

And that's about it....

Heh. Help us solve this mystery!

[Simon1]

Well, whomever it is, it isn't Clyde, I think we all see that. Well most do anyway. He looks more like Joe Frazier than Clyde

[Vinnie Terranova]

Looks like George Klein sitting on the couch in one of those pics. Maybe he knows...

The actual person:

..

rjm

Looking again at this I see the man in question at the very beginning of the clip, then later notice Elvis walking deliberately towards him to shake his hand.

700810_after party 001.jpg

700810_after party 002.jpg

He knows this gentleman. Almost immediately after shaking his hand, Presley looks to his right and shakes the hand of the fellow with him. We get a camera switch at this point. Director Denis Sanders had TWO cameras rolling during this after party for the MGM documentary! The other man is also African-American, older, wearing his hair in the old school, "conked" style, and he has on a plaid jacket.

700810_after party 003.jpg

700810_after party 004.jpg

I wish I knew exactly who these guys are, the speculation is getting to be maddening.

[Mister Mike]

It's a little discouraging to see this go back to square one. I've gone well into my 50s since this thread began. I hope I won't be well into my 60s when this finally gets resolved.

Hey, you still have your hair.

And that's about it....

Heh. Help us solve this mystery!

I wish I could. I really do. But I'm stumped like the rest of you guys.

[TJ]

Did Sammy have any kind of entourage or hang around with musicians that he worked with? Just a minor possibility that the guy was there with Sammy and that Elvis was familiar with the guy because of that.