Biography
Harold Clayton lent his songwriting talents to the platinum-certified R&B chart-topper “Take Your Time (Do It Right),” a dancefloor staple for the S.O.S. Band. His longtime friend from high school, Sigidi Abdallah, had landed a production task from Tabu Records founder Clarence Avant involving an Atlanta, GA outfit originally called Santa Monica. During one of Clayton’s visits, Abdallah was searching for fresh melodic ideas, and together they sketched the core framework that evolved into the eventual hit. Rechristened the S.O.S. Band, the group captured what became their signature recording. The two-million-unit seller “Take Your Time (Do It Right)” held the top R&B slot for five weeks and reached number three on the Billboard pop survey during spring 1980. It appeared on the ensemble’s first album, S.O.S., which held the number-two R&B position for three weeks and climbed to number twelve pop by summer 1980. The track surfaces on Club Epic, Vol. 1: A Collection of Classic Dance Mixes, Disco Years, Vol. 5: Must Be the Music, and Billboard Top Hits: 1980. Harold Clayton passed away at fifty-three in a car crash in Los Angeles, CA during fall 2000. Near that period, Sigidi Abdallah and S.O.S. Band members recounted with amusement on VH1’s The 100 Greatest Dance Songs how the group had initially turned down the song that defined their career.
Singles
