Clarence Anicholas Clemons Jr., born January 11, 1942, in Norfolk County, Virginia, United States, died June 18, 2011, in West Palm Beach, Florida, United States, was an American saxophonist and actor. Clemons received his first alto saxophone at age nine, later switching to tenor saxophone, and played college football at Maryland State College before a car crash ended his athletic career. Clemons gained fame as the saxophonist for Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, joining the group in 1972 and contributing saxophone solos to studio albums including Born to Run in 1975, Darkness on the Edge of Town in 1978, The River in 1980, and Born in the U.S.A. in 1984. As a solo artist and guest musician, Clemons released his solo studio album Hero in 1985, which featured the duet single “You're a Friend of Mine” with Jackson Browne, reaching number 18 on the Billboard Hot 100, and performed saxophone on Aretha Franklin's Top 10 single “Freeway of Love”. Clemons subsequently released the solo studio albums Peacemaker in 1995 and Get It On with Aja Kim in 1995, and performed on Lady Gaga's 2011 single “The Edge of Glory”. Clemons also acted in films including New York, New York in 1977 and Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure in 1989. In 2014, Clemons was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the E Street Band.
