The Dave Clark Five: the band Elton John compared to The Beatles and The Rolling Stones
When it comes to musical legends of the 1960s, one band almost always eclipses the successes of others. The Beatles may have experienced their own personal challenges, but they ultimately changed the landscape of mainstream rock ‘n’ roll forever. With an innovative approach and an ambition to always be better, no one could match their rapid trajectory. According to Elton John, however, there existed one other band which surpassed the impact of the Fab Four.
The influence of both The Beatles and The Rolling Stones cannot be understated. Although often pitted against one another, both bands contributed significantly to the growth of the counterculture, applying their own spin on creativity and innovation that forever inspired future generations of aspiring musicians. Although both spawned from similar pools, it’s difficult to thoroughly compare the two given the fact that one far outlived the other.
The tension that existed between the two groups was also oftentimes personal, despite some figures and outlets regarding the whole thing as nothing more than fan speculation. However, there were obvious signs that pointed towards a rivalry, no matter how small. This included John Lennon’s scathing attack on Mick Jagger when he called him a homophobic slur and a “joke”.
While it’s natural for the two to have felt in competition with one another, there were other bands at the time that likely held a lot of talent that became overshadowed by the success of the Liverpudlian foursome, including The Mamas and The Papas, and, according to Elton John, The Dave Clark Five. In fact, the singer attests that this group wasn’t just “a big live band” with a lot of “raw power”. He also claims they out-performed both The Beatles and The Rolling Stones in many areas of their success.
For starters, John says The Dave Clark Five “did many more shows than The Beatles ever did”, adding that “they were much more of a live band than The Beatles were” and one that “did The Ed Sullivan Show more times than any other British act.”
Unlike the final years of The Beatles, The Dave Clark Five also had a strong dynamic where frustrations and tensions rarely bubbled up to the surface. Mostly. As John explained: “They obviously got on together really well, they liked each other, they were having great fun, they were living the dream, but once that’s gone, they had four years of doing that, and then you don’t get it back. But those four years were just magical.”
Not only did the singer admire their unique ability to actually get on with each other, but he also went as far as to label Dick Clark “the most extraordinary man in the music business” and someone who “had complete control of his destiny.” As a result, his knowledge made him invincible. “We all went through our ups and downs,” John explained, “The Rolling Stones with Allan Klein, The Beatles with Allan Klein […] Never happened to Dave Clark because he didn’t have to. Bastard!”
The Dave Clark Five may not have accrued such an enduring legacy compared to their contemporaries, but in John’s eyes, their impact was untouchable.
