Clay Hart(1936-2022)

What exactly is a city boy doing singing country music and, in the meantime, so darn good at it? Just ask Rhode Island native Clay Hart, whose singing and songwriting won him legions of fans on the long-running The Lawrence Welk Show (1955) and later in Nashville and on the stage. After graduating from Amherst College in Massachusetts, Clay moved to New York City, first working in a record shop and on Wall Street to pay the bills, while in his spare time, sang in nightclubs and bars hoping to catch his big break. It came in 1968. It was while performing in a Charleston, West Virginia club that he was discovered by Lawrence Welk, who was in town on behalf of the charity "Cancer Crusade". He joined the Welk show in 1969 and stayed until 1975 as the program's country singer and, during this time, he performed on stage with the Musical Family, recorded numerous albums, won a Grammy nomination for "Spring", and met Sally Flynn, the love of his life. Today, they have been married going on thirty years and have honed their talents as a husband and wife singing duo (like Guy & Ralna!) performing at country fairs and various concerts and have been opening acts for entertainers such as Red Skelton, The Statler Brothers and Juliet Prowse.