Tony Clarke - Poor Boy / The Fugitive Kind Mp3

Tony Clarke may have been a one-hit wonder but this single, released six months after "The Entertainer" and a commercial failure back in 1965, is still worth checking out.
Side 1 gives us a fine big city soul ballad that would have fit on Kent's "Hurt Of The City" compilation. The singer tells us about how coming from the wrong neighbourhood can have a disastrous effect on your love life, especially if you fancy a "society girl". It soon becomes clear that the "brother" and "fellow" that he adresses is actually he himself. The focus here is not so much on race as on class (which of course in America cannot be seperated), and Clarke gives it to us straight: "you're just a poor boy...and all you got are dreams that may not come true"..."a poor boy, that's all you'll ever be". The tone is fatalistic with just a tiny dose of indignation shining through. But what's totally absent is lamentation or self-pity. The powerful yet measured vocal delivery, complemented by a gritty backing band with stand-out horns and a few bluesy guitar licks, manages to turn the song into a statement of working class pride and endurance in the face of a grim reality. No wonder Tony Clarke was a hero for the Mods over in England. Give this tune a few spins, it really grows on you.
Now flip the record and head for the dancefloor. Well...at least get up from the sofa then! "The Fugitive Kind" is a catchy floater that echoes "The Entertainer" but is also blood related in rhythm to "Um, Um, Um, Um, Um, Um" by Major Lance, another Chicago Soul landmark. Soul DJs, you know what to do now!