Alex Clare

Alex Clare
Clare performing on 28 January 2013 at Capitol Offenbach
Clare performing on 28 January 2013 at Capitol Offenbach
Background information
Birth nameAlexander George Clare
Born (1985-09-14) 14 September 1985 (age 38)
Southwark, London, England
OriginGolders Green, London, England
Genres
Occupation(s)
  • Singer
  • songwriter
Years active2007–present
Labels

Alexander George Clare (born 14 September 1985) is a British singer and songwriter. His debut album, The Lateness of the Hour, was released in the UK on 11 July 2011 on Island Records and was produced by Mike Spencer and Major Lazer.

His biggest hit, "Too Close", peaked at number 4 on the UK Singles Chart and number 7 on the US Billboard Hot 100. The song was nominated for the Brit Award for Best British Single at the 2013 Brit Awards.

Early life

Clare was born in London on 14 September 1985. He grew up listening to his father's jazz records; Clare described the experience as a "...benefit of having a dad who was born in 1936... very much into bebop and cool jazz. I just loved it." That drew the young Clare to blues and soul artists such as Donny Hathaway and Stevie Wonder, which eventually led to interests in drum and bass, dubstep and UK garage. Though he took up the trumpet and drums when he was young, he eventually placed an emphasis on guitar and songwriting, playing open mic nights with original material.

Clare attended Bishop Challoner School in Bromley and then Westminster Kingsway College from 2002, studying for an National Vocational Qualification (NVQ) in catering.

Career

A demo earned him a deal with the Island label in the UK. His debut album, The Lateness of the Hour, produced by Mike Spencer and Major Lazer was released in July 2011. The first single from the album was "Up All Night", followed by "Too Close" and "Treading Water".

On 19 May 2011, Reggie Yates made Alex Clare's cover of Prince's "When Doves Cry" his Song of the Day. A day later, the Dutch radio station 3FM announced single "Too Close" to be the '3FM's Megahit of that week.

On 21 June 2011, Clare performed at the Queens' College, Cambridge May Ball. On 14 August 2011, Clare performed at the Summer Well festival in Buftea, Romania. Following the disappointing performance of the album, Clare was dropped from his record contract with Universal Island in the UK.

In March 2012, Clare's song "Too Close" was featured in several Internet Explorer 9 advertisements. Following its use, the song debuted at number 68 on the US Billboard Hot 100, and later reached number 7, becoming his first top 10 hit. Clare saw success on the German charts too, reaching number one. On 13 May 2012, Clare's song peaked at number 4 on the UK Singles Chart. Soon after the song appearance in charts, Universal Republic signed Clare to a distribution deal that allowed The Lateness of the Hour to be released in America in March 2012. In mid-2012, it was announced that Universal Republic was going defunct moving artists from its roster to Republic Records including Alex Clare.

In May 2014, Clare released the video for his single "War Rages On" as the lead single from his second album Three Hearts, which was released on 11 August 2014. "War Rages On" has also served as the title sequence to the popular BBC Drama, Our Girl. On 8 October 2014, ASCAP named members Alex Clare and Jim Duguid Songwriters of the Year for "Too Close".

Clare performing in 2013

In October 2016, Clare's first single from his debut album, "Up All Night" was used as the opening theme for BBC Three science-fiction series Class.

In November 2016, he released the album Tail of Lions. The name is based on a Jewish proverb emphasizing correctness over power.

It was announced in July 2018 that Clare would be releasing an acoustic album called Three Days at Greenmount, to be released on 14 September 2018. The album, which features stripped-back versions of previous songs as well as unreleased tracks, was recorded during a three-day studio session in Leeds over the summer of 2017.

In October 2021, Clare released a new single, "Why Don't Ya", through ONErpm. The song, a ballad written for his wife following a personal tragedy, marked the end of a five-year hiatus from the music industry. Clare also revealed that he had been working on new songs with songwriter/producer Jamie Hartman during the COVID-19 lockdown and was planning a new EP for early 2022.

Collaborations with other artists include:

Clare is also an international speaker, and has appeared in several sessions of South Africa's Sinai Indaba program.

Personal life

Brought up in what he has described as a "very, very secular" environment (though he always believed in God), Clare became a baal teshuva to Orthodox Judaism in the mid-2000s. As such, he does not perform, travel or work on Shabbat or on Jewish holidays. He has said that he lost one record deal opportunity due to this observance, but has found other ways to continue his career successfully. Clare also keeps a strictly kosher diet and maintains a schedule of Talmud study on tour. He lost an album deal with Island Records because he had to turn down a radio concert for BBC in observance of the Succoth holiday in October 2011.

Though his parents remain secular, they are supportive of his lifestyle.

In 2006, before gaining critical success, Clare dated British singer Amy Winehouse, but the relationship only lasted about a year. They met while he was performing and working at a bar she frequented, the Hawley Arms in Camden, North London. When Winehouse started dating other men, Clare sold his story regarding his relationship with her to the tabloid News of the World, which ran it with the headline "Bondage Crazed Amy Just Can't Beehive in Bed".

He lived in Golders Green, an area in northwest London, before moving to Jerusalem in late 2015 together with his wife and daughter. He and his wife had a daughter c. 2013 and a son c. 2015, and later had a third child.

Discography

Studio albums

List of studio albums, with selected chart positions and certifications
Title Album details Peak chart positions Certifications
UK
AUT
BEL
FRA
GER
SWI
US
The Lateness of the Hour 17 16 190 95 8 49 48
Three Hearts 98 43 74
Tail of Lions
  • Released: 11 November 2016 (UK); 20 January 2017 (US)
  • Label: ETC Recordings
  • Formats: CD, digital download
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

Acoustic albums

Title Album details
Three Days at Greenmount

Singles

As lead artist

List of singles as lead artist, with selected chart positions and certifications, showing year released and album name
Title Year Peak chart positions Certifications Album
UK
AUT
BEL
CAN
DEN
FRA
GER
NL
SWI
US
"Up All Night" 2010 The Lateness of the Hour
"Too Close" 2011 4 5 36 14 29 9 1 33 12 7
  • BPI: Platinum
  • BVMI: 3× Gold
  • IFPI AUT: Gold
  • IFPI DEN: Gold
  • IFPI SWI: Gold
  • RIAA: 2× Platinum
"Treading Water" 179 59
"Hummingbird" 2012
"War Rages On" 2014 53 Three Hearts
"Never Let You Go"
"Tell Me What You Need" 2016 Tail of Lions
"Get Real" 2017
"Why Don't Ya" 2021
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

As featured artist

List of singles as featured artist, with selected chart positions, showing year released and album name
Title Year Peak chart positions Certifications Album
UK
AUS
BEL
(FLA)

BEL
(WA)

NL
NZ
"Not Giving In"
(Rudimental featuring John Newman and Alex Clare)
2012 14 12 54 77 71 11 Home
"Endorphins"
(Sub Focus featuring Alex Clare)
2013 10 134
  • BPI: Silver
Torus
"Give It All"
(Don Diablo featuring Alex Clare and Kelis)
Non-album singles
"Living"
(Bakermat featuring Alex Clare)
2016
"Heaven to Me"
(Don Diablo featuring Alex Clare)
2018
"Hold On"
(Ilan Bluestone and Maor Levi featuring Alex Clare)
2021 TBA
"Thunder Child"
(Jeff Wayne featuring Liam Neeson and Alex Clare)
2012 57 Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of War of the Worlds: The New Generation
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released.

Other appearances

Title Year Album
"Give You Up"
(Rudimental featuring Alex Clare)
2012 Home
(deluxe version)

Music videos

As lead artist

List of music videos, showing year released and director
Title Year Director(s)
"Up All Night" 2010 Blake Claridge
"Too Close" 2011 Ian Bonhote
"Treading Water" Sam Pilling
"War Rages On" 2014 Alex Southam
"Get Real" 2017 Shimmy Socol
"Why Don't Ya" 2021 Indy Hait

As featured artist

List of music videos, showing year released and director
Title Year Director(s)
"Not Giving In"
(Rudimental featuring John Newman and Alex Clare)
2012 Josh Cole

Awards and nominations

Year Organisation Award Work Result
2011 MOBO Awards Best Newcomer Himself Nominated
UK Music Video Awards Best Pop Video – Budget "Relax My Beloved" Nominated
2013 Best Dance Video – UK "Not Giving In"
(Rudimental featuring John Newman and Alex Clare)
Won
International Dance Music Awards Best Breakthrough Artist (Solo) Himself Nominated
New Music Awards New AC Artist of the Year Won
BRIT Awards British Single of the Year "Too Close" Nominated
2014 ASCAP Awards Night Songwriter of the Year (with Jim Duguid) Won
World Music Awards World's Best Video Nominated
World's Best Male Artist Himself Nominated
World's Best Live Act Nominated
World's Best Entertainer of the Year Nominated

This page was last updated at 2024-02-13 23:58 UTC. Update now. View original page.

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