Soul icon Clarence Carter dies aged 90 after hits including Patches and Slip Away

Clarence Carter has died at 90 years old (Picture: Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)

Clarence Carter, the Southern soul singer whose music helped shape the genre, has died aged 90.

The legendary musician, best known for classics including Patches, Slip Away, and Back Door Santa, died following health complications including pneumonia, according to reports confirmed by his management and family associates.

For generations of soul fans, Carter’s voice was a defining sound: rough-edged but deeply tender, he had countless hits throughout his six decade career.

Born in Montgomery, Alabama, in 1936, Carter was blind from birth and attended the Alabama School for the Blind before studying music at college.

He first ente...