Born in Lewiston, Maine, on June 7, 1944, Clarence Joseph LeBlanc aka Clarence White grew up in California and began playing guitar at an early age. At the age of ten, he joined his brother Roland White's band, The Country Boys, which became The Kentucky Colonels in 1954. Now a session musician, Clarence White switched from bluegrass to electric guitar, accompanying Gene Parsons, The Gosdin Brothers, with Gene Clark. After joining Nashville West in 1968, he was invited by Roger McGuin to join The Byrds that same year, following the departures of Chris Hillman and Gram Parsons. He only took part in the album of the same name before the split in 1973, accompanying Randy Newman and The Everly Brothers, then playing with Muleskinner for one album. Back with The Kentucky Colonels, while he was also preparing a solo album, Clarence White was mowed down by a hit-and-run driver and died instantly on July 14, 1973, at the age of 29.
