The Butler Twins
Clarence and Curtis Butler were born on 21/01/1942 in Florence, Alabama. They were in the middle of sixteen siblings. Their father, Willie "Butch" Butler was a well known local guitar player. He would play with a harmonica player called Raymond Edwards and they would both tutor. By the age of seven, the twins won a talent contest and played in a house where W.C. Handy once lived, that was now abandoned. At the age of 14 they put on their first musical ensemble. At 16 they started to tour the South of the US.In 1960 they moved to Detroit. There they worked at automobile assembly plants. In addition, they would also be a part of the local nightclub scene. They would join Clarence Butler on harmonica and vocals and Chris Butler on rhythm guitar. They would also sit in with other musicians. By the late 1960s, the blues scene would start to fade away.
In the early 1980s, the Butler Twins were still in residence.
In 1995 they released the album "Not Gonna Worry about Tomorrow" with JSP Records. This was followed up the next year with the album "Pursue Your Dreams". The albums were relatively successful and they toured the US, Canada and Europe. They were more successful overseas than they had been in the US.
In 2000 the Detroit Music Awards gave the Outstanding Blues Writer award to Clarence Butler.
The Alabama Music Hall of Fame granted The Butler Twins, Music Achiever status.
On December 22 2003, Clarence Butler died of a heart attack in Hamtramck, Michigan. Just three months later on April 9 2004, Curtis Butler died.