Friends and family remember ‘the man with the golden ears’ Clive Davis
Friends and colleagues shared their memories of the great pop impresario Clive Davis with Page Six.
Davis, who had become synonymous with the Grammy Awards was expected to to be honored there next year.
“He was really looking forward to that,” Davis’ friend, restaurateur Max Tucci –who last spoke with him on June 8 — told us, I said, “‘We have a lot of things to do,’ and he said, ‘We do. We do.”
Two weeks later, he passed away peacefully in his sleep.
Nikki Haskell, Davis friend “since the 70s,” told us the one-time Columbia Records boss was getting ready to go to a concert when doctors “told him to go to a hospital instead,” a few weeks ago. Still, she says, “Nobody [had] more life than he has… There’s no one more fabulous than he is.”
And nothing epitomized fabulous, as Haskell put it, more than his annual pre-Grammy parties. It’s been the main event – before the main event – since he launched the bash in 1975. In 2014, the Grammys labeled the event the second -most-coveted ticket in town. “Davis is nothing short of a living legend in the music industry, and his parties have become legendary as the most star-studded and excitement-packed of VIP bashes,” the academy said at the time.
“Through the years, an array of A-lists talents have performed at these events, turning the celebrations into the ultimate, intimate, ‘insider,’ concerts,” it added.
Discovering artists such as Janis Joplin, Bruce Springsteen, Billy Joel, Whitney Houston, and Alicia Keys, among others, is how he helped create the soundtrack of generations – and how the music industry came to know him as “the man with the golden ears.”
But it was the great American songbook of the early 20th century that really inspired Davis’ tastes, his friend of 15 years, former New York Post critic, Michael Riedel, told us.
“He loved Vincent Youmans, George Gershwin and Cole Porter… His sensibility was, he knew music was changing. His mentor was Goddard Lieberson,” Riedel said of the composer who ran Columbia Records from 1956 to 1976.
Davis eventually became the president of Columbia Records, where he established himself as a music mogul by 35. It was there, where he signed a young Bruce Springsteen. In a statement to Page Six, Springsteen called Davis a “great record man and close friend.”
“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.
Tucci told us Davis was expecting Warwick at his annual Memorial Day celebration at his Pound Ridge estate, but he made an announcement that “she called and sent her regrets, but she won an award and had to fly to Germany as she was on tour there.”
Ironically, Warwick added in her statement, “He always wanted to know ‘where’s my Dionne.’ I referred to him as the brown shoe, white sock record executive. I can think of no other record man that seemed to have that magical ability to know a hit when he heard a song. The entire music industry I’m sure will mourn his passing. He was one of a kind.”
Davis was not only responsible for launching music stars. Republic Records co-founders Monte and Avery Lipman, the music industry brother duo behind stars like Taylor Swift, The Weeknd and Ariana Grande, owe their music industry takeover to Davis.
“Avery and I got our start in the music business working for Clive at Arista Records in the late 1980s. By virtue of being in his orbit, we had a front-row seat to his extraordinary success as he discovered and championed legendary artists who’ve gone on to make the world a better place,” Monte told us.
Avery’s first job was as Davis’ part-time secretary.
“On my very first day, I handed him a list of missed calls and mentioned that his son had called while he was in a meeting. Clive immediately told me, ‘If any of my children call, you need to grab me,’” he said.
“From that day forward, I interrupted meetings and calls whenever one of his children reached out and every single time, he stopped what he was doing and took the call… I’ll always remember the example he set as a parent, mentor and leader,” Avery said.
Davis honored the brothers at his last pre-Grammy bash in February. “To stand alongside him nearly after 40 years later was a deeply meaningful full moment that we will always cherish and hold dear in our hearts. We love you Clive,” Monte said.
Davis’ final run as a label was at J Records, the label he founded in 2000 after Arista. The world was introduced to “Songs in A Minor” singer Alicia Keys and “American Idol” winners, Fantasia, Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood and Jennifer Hudson.
Keys and Hudson posted tributes on Monday, with the latter explaining, “I needed a moment…This was a huge blow to wake up to. I know nobody lives forever, but Clive’s impact and legacy will always live on… We will always celebrate your life and legacy,” she wrote.
Keys shared collage art of her and Davis designed by her graphic artist. “To Clive Davis, the visionary who transformed dreams into reality,” it read.
In 2022, Keys helped him ring in his 90th birthday at Casa Cipriani, where she gushed about her family’s love and admiration for Davis. That same year, I was the only journalist to interview Davis at his Park Avenue apartment for “Extra.” There was no signs of slowing down as Davis told me, “It is my life. It’s what I do, and as long as health permits I’m doing what I like.”
Davis spent his final weeks doing what he loved, gallivanting around New York City, going to his favorite restaurants, attending, and hosting friends to watch the Knicks. On May 29, he was forced to slow down after being hospitalized with a respiratory infection. Reidel told us he was expected to escort him to a concert to see Air Supply, an Australian band he helped break through into America.
“They had one song that had a lyric that only made sense in Australia. Clive changed one word and he was very proud of the fact that he got royalties,” Riedel recalled.
Davis took his final breath nearly one month later at 10:58 a.m. on June 22, with his longtime partner, Greg Schreifer by his side. “I was holding his hand as he took his final breath, surrounded by family and dear friends who loved him deeply,” Shriefer told us.
Davis came out as bisexual in 2013, and wrote about Schriefer in his autobiography, “The Soundtrack of My Life.”
Shriefer told us, “For the past 21 years, Clive has been my partner, my greatest source of inspiration, my teacher, my confidant, and my best friend. Together we traveled the world, shared countless adventures, celebrated life’s greatest joys, and faced life’s challenges side by side. Every day with him was a gift… The world lost an icon today, but I lost the man I loved,” he said.
Davis is survived by Schriefer and his sons Fred, Doug and Mitchell, daughter Lauren, and his eight grandchildren Austin, Charlie, Matthew, Hayley, Harper, Sloane, Billie and Cody, two great grandchildren, and cousin Jo Schuman.
“To the world, our father was the iconic music legend whose vision, instincts, and relentless pursuit of excellence shaped the soundtrack of countless lives,” said Schriefer, “He discovered, mentored, and championed the greatest artists in modern music history, leaving an indelible mark on culture that will endure for generations.”
In a statement, the Davis family said that “through every chapter of his remarkable life, family remained Clive’s greatest pride and deepest joy.”
“Today, we celebrate not only a towering figure whose influence changed music forever, but the man who led our family with grace, generosity, and kindness,” the said, “We will miss him greatly, cherish him always, and carry his love with us for the rest of our lives.”
“There will never be another like him. I will miss him beyond words, and I will carry his love, his wisdom, and the memories of our life together with me for the rest of my days. So long my babe,” Schriefer concluded.
