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“At 22 years old, he changed my life when he signed me to Columbia Records. He treated me with the same respect and kindness as a 22-year-old nobody as he did after all my success. A great man. All our prayers and love,” Springsteen said after learning of Davis’ death.
Joel was another Columbia artist Davis put on.
“He recognized the talent of great musicians and understood the power of contemporary music. I will always be grateful to Clive for his recognition of the critical importance of songwriting. He undoubtedly enhanced the stature of the music industry during his tenure as president of Columbia Records,” he said.
Davis founded Arista Records in 1974, where he made Houston a global pop star and revitalized Aretha Franklin’s career in the 1980s. Houston tragically passed in 2012, the evening that she was expected to attend his pre-Grammy party. The party went on because, he told guests at the event, “To put it simply, Whitney would have wanted the music to go on and her family asked that we carry on.”
He and Franklin appeared to be thick as thieves up until her death in 2018. One year, Davis, an avid Page Six reader, witnessed Franklin’s wrath, as she scolded us about an item in the column she found unflattering. He calmly chuckled, as did we, as she told us to go back to the office and, “Hit whoever wrote [that] over the head. Give them a good hit over the head.”
“Clive was loyal to the end,” Haskell, who was at that party with him, said.
In addition to Franklin, Davis also revived Dionne Warwick’s career while he was head of Arista. Warwick described Davis as her “dear friend,” who “lived a more than promised allotted time and made each moment count,” in a statement to Page Six on Monday.
“I am truly going to miss him,” she said.
