# Sonny Clay

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American jazz musician (1899–1973)

Sonny Clay Born William Rogers Campbell Clay (1899-05-15)May 15, 1899 Chapel Hill, Texas, U.S. Died (1973-04-10)April 10, 1973 Los Angeles, California, U.S. Genres Jazz Occupations Musician bandleader Instruments piano drums Years active 1921-1941 Formerly of Charlie Green Jelly Roll Morton

Musical artist

**William Rogers Campbell "Sonny" Clay** (May 15, 1899, [Chapel Hill, Texas](/source/Chapel_Hill%2C_Texas) – April 13, 1973, [Los Angeles, California](/source/Los_Angeles%2C_California)) was an American [jazz](/source/Jazz) pianist, drummer, and bandleader,[1] who had an unusual impact on the development of [Australian jazz](/source/Australian_jazz).

Sonny Clay Band, Australia, 1928

## Biography

Clay's family moved to [Phoenix](/source/Phoenix%2C_Arizona) when he was eight years old; he played drums and [xylophone](/source/Xylophone) early in life. From 1915 he studied piano, playing with [Charlie Green](/source/Charlie_Green_(musician)) and [Jelly Roll Morton](/source/Jelly_Roll_Morton) in [Mexico](/source/Mexico) around 1920. He drummed for [Reb Spikes](/source/Reb_Spikes) in [California](/source/California) in 1921, and had his first recording experience backing [Camille Allen](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Camille_Allen&action=edit&redlink=1) in 1922. Later that year he played with [Kid Ory](/source/Kid_Ory) at the Hiawatha Dancing Academy in Los Angeles.[2]

In 1923 he formed his own band, the Eccentric Harmony Six; this ensemble recorded on [Vocalion Records](/source/Vocalion_Records) as the California Poppies[3] in 1923 and the Stompin' Six[4] in 1925. He also performed under the band names Plantation Orchestra[5] and Hartford Ballroom Orchestra. His band scored a regular gig broadcasting on radio stations [KNX](/source/KNX_(AM)) in 1925 and [KFI](/source/KFI) in 1926.

In 1928 Clay took his band (billed as Sonny Clay's Colored Idea) on a tour of [Australia](/source/Australia), with [Ivie Anderson](/source/Ivie_Anderson) (later a vocalist with [Duke Ellington](/source/Duke_Ellington)) as one of the singers accompanying the orchestra.[6] The group played in [Sydney](/source/Sydney) and [Melbourne](/source/Melbourne) to great success, but problems with [unions](/source/Trade_union) and with venue changes (their initial bookings were on [vaudeville](/source/Vaudeville) stages, but additional dates in dance halls led them into [race](/source/Race_(classification_of_human_beings))-related trouble with local authorities) resulted in their gaining some notoriety. As rumors of [drug use](/source/Recreational_drug_use) and [miscegenation](/source/Miscegenation) between the [black](/source/Black_people) band members and [white](/source/White_people) women flew, the group was subject to a [police raid](/source/Police_raid) which became a national press sensation.[7] As a result, Clay and his band were [deported](/source/Deportation) and the Australian government resolved to bar the entry of all black musicians into the country, a ban which kept [Louis Armstrong](/source/Louis_Armstrong) from touring the country until 1954.[8]

Upon Clay's return, he held a residency at the Vernon County Club in Los Angeles, then broke up this band and formed a new one called the Dixie Serenaders,[9] which counted [Teddy Buckner](/source/Teddy_Buckner) and [Les Hite](/source/Les_Hite) among its members. Clay played solo and led bands until 1941, at which time he led a band as a member of the [Special Services Division](/source/Special_Services_Division). He retired from music in the 1940s but returned around 1960 to record solo and play in clubs.

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** ["TSHA | Clay, William Roger Campbell \[Sonny\]"](https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/clay-william-roger-campbell-sonny).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** ["Sonny Clay (1899-1973)"](https://syncopatedtimes.com/sonny-clay-1899-1972/). *Red Hot Jazz Archive*. 21 July 2020. Retrieved 21 July 2020.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** ["California Poppies)"](https://syncopatedtimes.com/california-poppies/). *Red Hot Jazz Archive*. 21 July 2020. Retrieved 21 July 2020.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** ["Stompin' Six"](https://syncopatedtimes.com/the-stompin-six/). *Red Hot Jazz Archive*. 21 July 2020. Retrieved 21 July 2020.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** ["Sonny Clay's Plantation Orchestra"](https://syncopatedtimes.com/sonny-clays-planation-orchestra/). *Red Hot Jazz Archive*. 21 July 2020. Retrieved 21 July 2020.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** Johnson, Bruce (2011). ["Deportation Blues"](https://doi.org/10.5429%2F2079-3871%282010%29V1I1.5EN). *IASPM@Journal*. **1**: 1–13. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.5429/2079-3871(2010)V1I1.5EN](https://doi.org/10.5429%2F2079-3871%282010%29V1I1.5EN). [S2CID](/source/S2CID_(identifier)) [130252736](https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:130252736).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-7)** ["Clay's Colored Act Cancelled in Australia: Musicians Caught in Nude Orgy with White Women of Melbourne"](https://archive.org/details/variety90-1928-03/page/n210/mode/1up). *[Variety](/source/Variety_(magazine))*. New York City. March 28, 1928. p. 3. Retrieved February 25, 2024.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-8)** ["Sonny Clay (1899-1973)"](https://syncopatedtimes.com/sonny-clay-1899-1972/). *Red Hot Jazz Archive*. 21 July 2020. Retrieved 21 July 2020.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-9)** ["Dixie Serenaders"](https://syncopatedtimes.com/the-dixie-serenaders/). *Red Hot Jazz Archive*. 21 July 2020. Retrieved 21 July 2020.

## Additional references

Wikimedia Commons has media related to [Sonny Clay](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Sonny_Clay).

- [Sonny Clay](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/p508168/biography) at [Allmusic](/source/Allmusic)

- Howard Rye, "Sonny Clay". *[Grove Jazz](/source/The_New_Grove)* online.

- Andrew Bissett, *Black Roots, White Flowers: A History of Australian Jazz* (ABC Books, 1979)

Authority control databases International ISNI VIAF GND WorldCat National United States Artists MusicBrainz Discography of American Historical Recordings People Deutsche Biographie DDB Other Yale LUX

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