Cliff Nobles

Cliff Nobles (August 4, 1941 – October 12, 2008)^[1] was an American pop singer, who is best known for his instrumental hit, "The Horse."

Biography

Clifford James Nobles^[2] was born in Grove Hill, Alabama, Nobles grew up in Mobile, Alabama,^[3] and began singing in high school as a member of a local group, The Delroys. He moved to Philadelphia and recorded three singles for Atlantic Records, none of which charted. While living in a commune in Norristown, Pennsylvania, he formed a group, Cliff Nobles & Co., with bassist Benny Williams, guitarist Bobby Tucker, and drummer Tommy Soul. They recorded demos and, with the help of songwriter/record producer Jesse James, landed a recording contract with Phil-L.A. of Soul Records. Their second release for the record label was the single "Love Is All Right" b/w "The Horse", which featured the horn section from what would later be known as MFSB. "The Horse" was simply an instrumental version of the A-side, and Nobles, who was the lead singer, does not actually play on the track at all. Nevertheless, it caught fire at radio stations and became a hit, peaking at #2 for three weeks on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1968, as well as #2 on the Black Singles chart.^[4] It was held out of the #1 spot by Hugh Masekela's "Grazin' in the Grass", on the week of 29 July 1968 - resulting in the extremely rare occurrence of instrumentals occupying both the #1 and #2 slots of the pop charts in the same week.^[5] "The Horse" sold a million copies within three months of release, with the gold disc award from the R.I.A.A. made in August 1968.^[3]

Nobles' record label continued releasing instrumental singles on which Nobles himself did not play a note, though a later single on which Nobles actually sang narrowly missed the R&B Top 40. An album credited to Cliff Nobles & Co., entitled The Horse, was released consisting mostly of instrumentals, and hit #159 on the Billboard Hot 200 album chart.^[6] After his music career was over, Nobles worked in construction and later in the electricity generation industry.^[2]

The material Nobles recorded for Atlantic has yet to see re-release.

Nobles died in Norristown, Pennsylvania in October 2008, at the age of 67.^[1]

See also

• List of 1960s one-hit wonders in the United States

References

1. ^ ^{a b} Thedeadrockstarsclub.com Accessed April 2, 2010
2. ^ ^{a b} Timesherald.com Accessed April, 2 2010
3. ^ ^{a b} Murrells, Joseph (1978). The Book of Golden Discs (2nd ed.). London: Barrie and Jenkins Ltd. pp. 244–245. ISBN 0-214-20512-6. 
4. ^ Chart Positions, Allmusic.com
5. ^ Biography, Allmusic.com
6. ^ Billboard, Allmusic.com

Persondata
Name	Nobles, Cliff
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	August 4, 1941
Place of birth
Date of death	October 12, 2008
Place of death