Clarence Clemons

Overview

Clarence Clemons was mostly known as being the dynamic saxophone player in Bruce Springsteen's E-Street Band. He was a pivotal part of the E-street band's persona and was a featured member of the band. His legacy teaming up with Bruce was a pivotal part of the success of the back up band. After Bruce went out on his own, only then did Clarence pursue acting, but he continued playing saxophone in various bands. But he would join the band when Bruce would often bring back the E Street band during various tours.
- IMDb mini biography by: Sam Dworkin

He was a noted saxophone player for E Street Band, featuring 'Bruce Springsteen'.
He was a youth counselor in Newark, New Jersey in the 1960s and 1970s at the Jamesburg State Home For Boys when he began playing with Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band on the Jersey Shore. He first played with him in Asbury Park in 1971 during a lightning storm.
He was married five times and divorced four times. His fifth wife, Victoria Clemons survived him. He is survived by four sons, Clarence Clemons III; Charles Clemons; Christopher Clemons; and Jarod Clemons.
Clemons was born in Norfolk, Virginia but grew up in and around Chesapeake, Virginia, the eldest of the three children of Thelma and Clarence Clemons Sr, who owned a fish market. He began playing the saxophone after his father bought him an alto instrument one Christmas, and enrolled him in music lessons at a local college. He switched to the beefier-toned baritone sax, but then decided the tenor sax was the way to go after feeling inspired to imitate the scorching R&B playing of King Curtis.
Joined E Street Band in October of 1972.

[on first playing with Bruce Springsteen in 1971] I swear I will never forget that moment. I felt like I was supposed to be there. It was a magical moment. He looked at me, and I looked at him, and we fell in love. And that's still there.
You had your black bands and you had your white bands and if you mixed the two you found less places to play.
I grew up with a very religious background. I got into soul music, but I wanted to rock. I was a rocker. I was born rock 'n' roll sax player.
I am not out to get laid every night, not looking for the bomb cocaine or weed. I just want to clear my head and see what living on the planet is really like as a normal, well almost normal, human being.

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