Bobby McClure

BOBBY McCLURE - You Bring Out The Love In Me

PEAK OF LOVE
Don’t Jump (Out Of The Skillet Into The Fire)
I Want To Reach The Peak Of Love
You Don’t Love Me

With Fontella Bass:

YOUR GONNA MESS UP A GOOD THING – Chess
You’ll Miss Me (When I’m Gone)

Born  21st April 1942 – Chicago, Illinois

Died  13th November 1992 – Los Angeles, California

Bobby McClure was a soul singer probably best remembered for his duet with Fontalla Bass – You’re Gonna Mess Up A Good Thing.

At the age of two he lived in East St. Louis and began singing in local churches at the age of nine. Later he was the only male in the Spirit Of Illinois gospel group who toured with The Swan Silvertones, The Pilgrim Travellers and the Soul Stirrers.

bobby McLure

In 1958 Bobby started the doo-wop group Bobby And The Vocals. He sang with East St. Louis drummer Big Daddy Jenkins. band for a time then joined The Oliver Sain’s Revue. Sain was responsible for starting the careers of Little Milton and Fontella Bass.

Bobby teamed up with Fontella on his first recording, Don’t Mess Up A Good Thing released in January 1965 on Checker which reached the US Top 30.

In the same year he moved to Chicago to do live shows with Otis Clay and Little Milton. Back in East St. Louis he continued singing for Sain, often duetting with Shirley Brown.
He recorded tracks for the Vanessa label, February 15 Records, Sedgwick, Klondike, and Willie Mitchell‘s Hi label.

In 1981, his singing career apparently over, Bobby became a prison guard at Illinois state penitentiary.

In the late 1980’s he recorded for B-Mac, left his job and went to Los Angeles and recorded for Jerry ‘Swamp Dogg’ Williams and Al Bell’s (ex-Stax) Edge Records.

Gonna Mess Up A Good Thing was a huge soul track on the Manchester scene in the sixties. It was a duet very much in the style of Charlie and Inez Foxx.