“Come Live With Me“
Roy Clark
Written by Felice and Boudleaux Bryant
Billboard
#1 (1 week)
May 12, 1973
It’s so satisfying when the final No. 1 single of a legendary artist is also one of their best.
Roy Clark was such a compelling entertainer and breathtaking musician that his vocal prowess is often overlooked. Clark sings this song so beautifully that it’s hard to imagine any woman would say no to a life with him by her side.
The song’s production deftly intertwines a Nashville Sound string section with some gorgeous steel guitar, creating the perfect soundtrack for a small town church wedding.
Roy Clark had a handful of top ten hits after this, reaching as high as No. 2 with two more singles, but as with many artists of his era, the hits faded as the seventies progressed.
Unlike many of his contemporaries, however, Clark’s high profile hosting gig for Hee Haw kept the superstar in living rooms until the nineties.
Clark’s overdue Country Music Hall of Fame induction came in 2009. He passed away in 2018 at the age of 85.
“Come Live With Me” gets an A.
Every No. 1 Single of the Seventies
Previous: Charlie Rich, “Behind Closed Doors” |
Next: Tanya Tucker, “What’s Your Mama’s Name”
No doubt that Roy Clark is extremely talented and very underrated. That being said, this was not one of my favorites. Good, but a bit boring. “B-“
Kevin,
This was not Roy Clark’s final #1 single, He would also hit #1 for 1 week on the Radio & Records chart with If I Had To Do It All Over Again in 1976 during the week of April 2, 1976. so we’ll see him again one more time when we get to 1976 in the Every #1 Single of the Seventies feature. so I just wanted to let you know about that.
For as revered as Roy Clark deservedly is, he wasn’t exactly the most prolific hitmaker. This was his only Billboard number one, and some of his most famous songs (Tips of My Fingers, Yesterday When I Was Young) stalled out in the lower part of the Top 10. But as for this song, I love the classic countrypolitan arrangement and Clark’s voice sounds quite nice here. But when your legacy mostly comes from your astounding musicianship and Hee Haw, it’s not too surprising Clark isn’t thought of for this smooth ballad.
Roy Clark was as good a player of stringed instruments–guitars, banjos, mandolins and everything else as anyone who ever lived and was a great performer-entertainer. Those are not the skills that necessarily lead to hit records. He could also sing, but his singing usually impressed people in the way of “Wow, I didn’t know that Roy Clark could do this.” That was the case with this song and also with his siganture hit “Yesterday, When I Was Young.” That one was good, too, but not something that could challenge the Charles Aznavour original. Though Roy, and not Charles, was asked to–adn did–sing it at Mickey Mantle’s funeral.
Bonus Beats:
Here’s the version of “Come Live with Me” that Ray Charles released later in 1973, which became a minor R&B and easy listening hit:
https://youtu.be/jfERwi6n_U8
And here’s the version that the British folk rock greats The Waterboys released as the B-side to their classic 1990 single How Long Will I Love You (which would make a great country song itself, having been produced by Barry Beckett):
https://youtu.be/A-eivgU6Ze0
I love the production and sound of this single, although this is the first time I have ever heard it. It is so pretty and gentle.
Clark has a tender sensibility as a vocalist on his ballads. He reminds me of Little Jimmie Dickens.
As for his virtuosity, his talents were obscured by his celebrity, a bit like Barbara Mandrell. He, along with Buck Owens, was too easy to pigeonhole and dismiss as a country music rube, the cheapest of stereotypes. I similarly underappreciated Dolly Parton while growing up for similar reasons.
So, between Little Jimmie Dickens, Buck Owens, Barbara Mandrell, and Dolly Parton, Clark keeps pretty good musical company in my world.
I think Clark’s 1970 single, “I Never Picked Cotton,” is a brilliant song.