Aretha Franklin, “Through the Storm”     ”Clive’s Cringes,” by Hunter Pope, is an ongoing series examining Clive Davis’s more “interesting” signings  for Arista Records. Check out part one for a full explanation. Disclaimer: Aretha Franklin is the definitive queen of soul. Her voice still shines with gospel glory to this day. But,…

Kenny G.  ”Clive’s Cringes,” by Hunter Pope, is an ongoing series examining Clive Davis’s more “interesting” signings  for Arista Records. Check out part one for a full explanation. Kenny G. is the best selling instrumentalist of all time. More than Sonny Rollins. More than John Coltrane. More…than…(this is hard ) Charlie…Parker. His airy sound and contemporary…

Ray Parker Jr.  “Clive’s Cringes” is an ongoing series examining Clive Davis’s more “interesting” signings  for Arista Records. Check out part one for a full explanation. Respect first:  Ray Parker Jr. is a legendary guitarist who owns past stints with Dizzy Gillespie and Barry White. The Detroit native was merely a teenager when he…

Clive Davis could spot gold in a song. The Arista Records chief–whose tenure ran from 1975-2000–was responsible for signing huge acts like Air Supply, Annie Lennox, Aretha Franklin, and Ace of Base. His biggest discovery was the late Whitney Houston, who became one of the best selling artists in music history.   Bob Weir, of The Grateful…