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Tier 2 · legacy legendfull biography
Willie Clayton
Person · male · United States · Indianola · born 1955 · recording since 1988
American Chicago blues and soul singer and songwriter
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Also known as Will Clayton · ウィリー・クレイトン
Timeline
22 events▣ Album 20◦ Birth 1★ Debut release 1
1950s
1980s
· Debut release
Debut release: Forever
First documented Album in the MusicBrainz discography.
source: musicbrainz
1990s
2000s
2010s
· Album
Album: If Your Loving Wasn’t Good Enough to Keep Me… How in the World Do You Think It Can Bring Me Back
Album
source: musicbrainz
Biography
English biography632 words · 2 sectionssource: wikipedia-en · licence CC BY-SA 4.0 · revision 1346583162
Biography
Willie Clayton (born March 29, 1955) is an American Chicago blues and soul-blues singer and songwriter. He has recorded over 25 albums since the 1980s. He has been performing since the late 1960s. His chart successes span the decades from the 1980s onward.
Allmusic noted that Clayton is "one of those vocalists who could sing the phone book and the result would sound perfectly phrased and memorable." Along with Buddy Guy, Koko Taylor, and Little Milton, Clayton was one of the most important figures in Chicago blues in the 1970s and 1980s.
Biography
Clayton was born in Indianola, Mississippi, one of 11 siblings. He sang gospel in his church as a youngster. Duplex Records issued his debut single, "That's the Way Daddy Did" (1969). In 1971, Clayton relocated to Chicago, Illinois, and appeared regularly in local clubs. He was introduced to Al Green's record producer, Willie Mitchell, who signed Clayton to a recording contract with Pawn, a subsidiary label of Hi Records. Mitchell produced several tracks with Clayton, including "I Must Be Losin' You," "It's Time You Made Up Your Mind," and "Baby You're Ready," but none of them reached the national charts. Clayton toured nationally on the same bill as Green, James Brown and Barry White, before creating his own label, Sky Hero, which issued "Living with You, But My Heart Is Somewhere Else."
Clayton released the single "Rock You" for the Good Luck record label in 1980. The song was written and produced by the Lu-Cor Music team of Maurice Commander and Jerline Shelton-Commander, as well as, S. Harris (according to label printing). Another Chicago-based artist who made on the Billboard chart and Soul Train with the efforts of the Lu-Cor team (Morris Jefferson) later covered the song for the re-release of the album Rock You! in the late 1980s.
Clayton then joined Compleat Records. He issued a couple of singles before "Tell Me", produced by General Crook, was a modest hit in 1984. It was followed on the US Billboard R&B chart by "What a Way to Put It." He returned to the R&B chart in 1989, credited by Polydor Records as Will Clayton, with "Never Too Late
Never Too LateSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracks1Tell Me4:302Baby Don't You Know4:213I Wanna Be Where You Are4:344I Won't Dis Your Love4:245Did You Ever Love Somebody5:076Overdosed (On Love)4:247Never Too Late4:248Say You Love Me Still4:329Try Me4:5310You And Me Girl4:40" and "Tell Me" (a different song from his earlier hit), followed by "I Wanna Be Where You Are", on which he was co-credited with Audrey Wheeler, a former runner-up in the Miss Black Universe contest, who also recorded with Jeff Lorber and Omar Chandler and worked as a session singer. Clayton also recorded a number of albums with Ichiban Records. In 1992, a joint compilation album with Bobby McClure, Bobby McClure & Willie Clayton, was released by Hi Records.
In 1993, Ace Records released the album Let's Get Together
Let's Get TogetherSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 12 tracks1Three People (Sleeping in My Bed)3:572Don't Make Me Pay5:373Back Street Love Affair5:394Let's Get Together4:005Does Your Mama Know3:596Walk Away4:187Welcome Home4:238Party Down4:029I Love Stealing It3:5710How Do You Love 24:1711Let Me Love You3:5912Feels Like Love3:46, followed by Simply Beautiful
Simply BeautifulSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 12 tracks1Lose What You Got2Dancing With My Baby3Love Stealing Ain't Worth Stealing4Crazy for You5Ain't No Way6Oops, There It Is7Tell Me8So Glad You're Mine9Simply Beautiful10Once Upon a Time11Stay12Do to You and It's About Love (1999). His 1998 album, Something to Talk About
Something to Talk AboutSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 14 tracks1Mine All Mine Featuring Paul E. & Tyrone Davis4:212Heart of the City3:583Let Me Be (Your Spare Time)4:184Love Is Something Beautiful4:085Are You Married4:216One Last Kiss4:457Hot Stuff4:428Ain't Nothing I Can Do4:329Something to Talk About4:1310Help You Pay Him Back4:2011God Has a Plan5:2412I Love You (But I Can't Feel a Thing)3:3513I'm Going to Your Wife Featuring Pat Brown4:3214Unconditional Love4:18, reached number 14 on the Billboard Top Blues Albums chart. Clayton had similar chart successes for the following ten years. Something to Talk About included his duet with Tyrone Davis on the song "Mine All Mine" and his cover versions of the songs "Something to Talk About" and "Heart of the City." Clayton started another record label, EndZone, in the late 1990s. He signed with Malaco Records in 2005.
Clayton recorded his version of "I Can't Stand the Rain" on his 2008 album Soul & Blues
Soul & BluesSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 11 tracks1I Feel a Cheating Coming On4:142Strong Love3:563Body Talk3:424Triple Diamond Slot Machine4:435All Day Blues4:436Sweet Thing3:447Another Man's Gain3:428It Hurts So Much3:559I Can't Stand the Rain3:4510Do What I Gotta Do3:5711Your Body (remix)3:57. My Tyme, which was released the same year, was his third album in a five-year period to peak at number 83 on the Billboard Top R&B Albums chart. He returned to the singles chart in 2010, after an absence of over 20 years, with his recording of "We Both Grown", a duet with Dave Hollister
His latest album, I Am Rhythm & Blues
I Am Rhythm & BluesSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracks1I Am Rhythm & Blues3:592Smile3:583Mend Your Broken Heart3:544Your Love Is Wonderful4:315She's Your Woman3:446Last One to Know4:287Loose What You Got4:448Last Rendezvous4:229Loving Each Other for Life4:1710Twist & Turn5:41, was released in 2012. In May 2013, Clayton performed at the Leflore County Civic Center in Greenwood, Mississippi.
Discography & profile
Normalised profile
Percentiles are computed over every artist in the database, so a tier-3 artist can still sit in the 95th percentile on a single axis.
| Metric | Value | Percentile |
|---|---|---|
| Wikipedia language versions | 3 | 16th |
| Spotify monthly listeners | — | no data |
| Release groups in DB | 20 | 87.1th |
| Studio albums | 20 | 96.4th |
| Awards recorded | 0 | 0th |
| Timeline events | 22 | 94.7th |
| Recording span (years) | 24 | 53.9th |
| Genres | 1 | 56th |
Percentiles are computed at render time; missing values mean the artist has no data on that axis.
Discography (20 release groups · 20 studio albums)
Albums · 20
1988 · studio album
Search SpotifySearch YouTube Music
Tracklist · 8 tracks · 32:21
1Your Sweetness5:242Rock and Hold You Baby3:033Special Lady3:424Stone Good Lover4:165Can I Change My Mind3:176Make Me Yours Forever5:157Rocking Chair3:558One Night Stand3:291989 · studio album
Search SpotifySearch YouTube Music
Tracklist · 10 tracks · 45:49
1Tell Me4:302Baby Don't You Know4:213I Wanna Be Where You Are4:344I Won't Dis Your Love4:245Did You Ever Love Somebody5:076Overdosed (On Love)4:247Never Too Late4:248Say You Love Me Still4:329Try Me4:5310You And Me Girl4:401992 · studio album
Search SpotifySearch YouTube Music
Tracklist · 12 tracks · 51:54
1Three People (Sleeping in My Bed)3:572Don't Make Me Pay5:373Back Street Love Affair5:394Let's Get Together4:005Does Your Mama Know3:596Walk Away4:187Welcome Home4:238Party Down4:029I Love Stealing It3:5710How Do You Love 24:1711Let Me Love You3:5912Feels Like Love3:461994 · studio album
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Tracklist · 12 tracks
1Lose What You Got2Dancing With My Baby3Love Stealing Ain't Worth Stealing4Crazy for You5Ain't No Way6Oops, There It Is7Tell Me8So Glad You're Mine9Simply Beautiful10Once Upon a Time11Stay12Do to You1996 · studio album
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Tracklist · 13 tracks
1Equal Opportunity2Three People (Sleeping In My Bed)3Hurt By Love4In Need Of A Good Woman5My Baby's Cheating On Me6Rocking Chair7Careless8Bartender Blues9I Love Stealing It10Happy11Running In Life12Stone Good Lover13Equal Opportunity (solo)1997 · studio album
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Tracklist · 13 tracks
1Bust My Bubble2Rock and Hold Ya3So Very Hard to Go4Last Rendevous5Once Upon a Time6Sweet Thang7Our Love8She's Your Woman9The Blues10Arms of Another Man11Prove It12Living With Me13Bust My Bubble (with rap)2001 · studio album
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Tracklist · 11 tracks · 55:20
1Wiggle4:472Love for Sure5:023I'm Coming Home4:164Shake It5:055The Blues3:576Stuck on You5:397Baby I'm Ready5:398Is This Love5:109Love Is So Good When You're Stealing It5:2110Cheatin' Game4:3911Tongue Bath5:452005 · studio album
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Tracklist · 14 tracks · 1:01:27
1Mine All Mine Featuring Paul E. & Tyrone Davis4:212Heart of the City3:583Let Me Be (Your Spare Time)4:184Love Is Something Beautiful4:085Are You Married4:216One Last Kiss4:457Hot Stuff4:428Ain't Nothing I Can Do4:329Something to Talk About4:1310Help You Pay Him Back4:2011God Has a Plan5:2412I Love You (But I Can't Feel a Thing)3:3513I'm Going to Your Wife Featuring Pat Brown4:3214Unconditional Love4:182005 · studio album
Search SpotifySearch YouTube Music
Tracklist · 12 tracks · 52:23
1Looking to Hook3:382I Found Love (When I Found You)4:153I Wish He Didn't Trust Me So Much4:594Ooh Baby Baby5:085Old Fashioned Girl4:136Drowning in the Sea of Love3:227How to Treat Your Lady4:118Living With Me4:179Let the Good Times Roll4:0510I Love Me Some You5:2411Good Woman3:5412Jesus Will Make a Way4:572005 · studio album
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Tracklist · 12 tracks · 50:41
1Going Crazy4:312If You Ever Get Lonely (Call Me)4:133Stay Together4:144All My Love3:495Playing Your Game Baby4:236Can We Talk3:567I'll Make It Good to You4:448Take It 2 da Club3:569It's a Good Feeling3:1710Meet Me Tonight5:0411Georgia on My Mind3:4512Hold Me4:492006 · studio album
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Tracklist · 12 tracks · 51:58
1Scandalous4:092Party Like We Use to Do5:553Simply Beautiful4:364I Can't Leave Your Love Alone4:075Heart Have a Change of Mind5:216He Don't Love You Like I Do4:277Good Enough to Keep Me5:228Same Thang Make You Laugh3:499Talk to Me3:5310A Woman Needs to Be Loved3:0411Without You in My Life3:3512My Heart Can't Let You Go3:402006 · studio album
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Tracklist · 17 tracks · 1:08:46
1Fact, No Rumor3:072Love Mechanic3:443Whipped5:004Come on Over1:265I Want You4:166I Wanna Get It On4:307Take 'Um Off2:468Love Zone4:529So in Love3:5210Keep Steppin'3:5211Woman's World4:5212Whatcha' Do to Me5:1213Monkey See, Monkey Do4:3114Unconditionally4:4015A Thang 4 You4:4216My Mama Song3:4017Monkey See Monkey Do (remix)3:442006 · studio album
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Tracklist · 13 tracks · 56:30
1Boom, Boom, Boom3:582Beautiful5:273Can I Change My Mind3:534When I Think About Cheating4:345A Little Bit More4:136My Lover My Friend4:157Running Out of Lies4:578She Holding Back4:149Missing You4:2410Sweet Lady4:2111Dreams4:2312My Miss America4:2113Trust3:302008 · studio album
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Tracklist · 11 tracks · 45:48
1Gotta Love4:122A Woman Knows3:553Happy Time4:044Foreplay4:105Give You My World4:126Angel4:347Back 2 the Good Ole Days3:208Down Home Blues3:209Spend One Night5:3110Young Blues Man4:3211Three People3:582008 · studio album
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Tracklist · 11 tracks · 44:18
1I Feel a Cheating Coming On4:142Strong Love3:563Body Talk3:424Triple Diamond Slot Machine4:435All Day Blues4:436Sweet Thing3:447Another Man's Gain3:428It Hurts So Much3:559I Can't Stand the Rain3:4510Do What I Gotta Do3:5711Your Body (remix)3:572009 · studio album
Search SpotifySearch YouTube Music
Tracklist · 14 tracks · 1:02:39
1Dance the Nite Away3:592I Need to Know4:363We Both Grown3:574Good Woman, Good Man3:595Love to You3:316My Everything4:577Put It on Me5:248Special to Me4:329Some Kind of Wonderful3:5510Where Were You4:4311We Both Grown (Bedroom Mix)4:2012The Best Years of My Life5:3013Dance the Nite Away (Steppers Mix)5:2514Shake Your Money Maker3:512010 · studio album
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Tracklist · 13 tracks · 48:38
1The Voice (intro)0:092Wonderful4:073She's the One (Bust My Bubble)3:594Beautiful4:125Tonight4:076My Everything4:577As We Lay4:048Rock and Hold You4:119Ain't Nothing I Can Do4:3110I Love4:2311Diamonds3:4912Change Gonna Come6:0913Somebody Wants YouIf Your Loving Wasn’t Good Enough to Keep Me… How in the World Do You Think It Can Bring Me Back
2011 · studio album
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Tracklist · 12 tracks · 53:55
1If Your Loving Wasn’t Good Enough to Keep Me…how in the World Do You Think It Can Bring Me Back4:062Cheating in the Day Light5:043One Night Stand3:284Open Up the Door to Your Heart3:435How Do You Love Two4:166A Woman Needs to Be Loved4:007Show Me4:138Feels Like Love to Me3:419Shining Star4:1710Does Your Mama Know4:2811Stay7:1812Where Has Love Gone5:21The Tribute: One Man, One Voice
2011 · studio album
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Tracklist · 13 tracks · 52:46
1Still Called the Blues4:232Ain't No Party4:363Turn Back the Hands of Time3:064I Believe in You4:345Mine All Mine4:276Be With Me4:327Equal Oppurtunity4:068Turning Point3:499Move to Soon4:1810A Woman Was Made to Be Loved3:0111Without You in My Life3:3112Careless4:0113Candy Licker4:222012 · studio album
Search SpotifySearch YouTube Music
Tracklist · 10 tracks · 43:38
1I Am Rhythm & Blues3:592Smile3:583Mend Your Broken Heart3:544Your Love Is Wonderful4:315She's Your Woman3:446Last One to Know4:287Loose What You Got4:448Last Rendezvous4:229Loving Each Other for Life4:1710Twist & Turn5:41
Stats & PK
Percentile within all 23,672 published artists.Put Willie Clayton head-to-head →
| Metric | Value | Percentile |
|---|---|---|
| Wikipedia language versions | 3 | 16th |
| Spotify monthly listeners | — | no data |
| Release groups in DB | 20 | 87.1th |
| Studio albums | 20 | 96.4th |
| Awards recorded | 0 | 0th |
| Timeline events | 22 | 94.7th |
| Recording span (years) | 24 | 53.9th |
| Genres | 1 | 56th |
Awards & honours
Where this record comes from
aliases/urls—musicbrainz · CC0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://musicbrainz.org/artist/0b0ded52-3918-4bb0-b5fc-1d1e6b4334bcdiscography—musicbrainz · CC0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://musicbrainz.org/artist/0b0ded52-3918-4bb0-b5fc-1d1e6b4334bccore—wikidata · CC0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q16186614genre—wikidata · CC0 · retrieved 11 October 2026
https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q16186614seed-list—wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Willie_Claytonbiography—wikipedia-en · CC BY-SA 4.0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Willie_Clayton
Why this artist is in the database
- List of soul musicians
Tier rule: genre canon: soul
Image: no portrait (not displayed: the licence credit is missing)
Wikidata: Q16186614 · MusicBrainz: 0b0ded52-3918-4bb0-b5fc-1d1e6b4334bc
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