My thoughts on "what if Clarence was still alive" are this. While he WAS alive he was very much working in a regimented session scene in LA, playing on records by the Monkees & Everlys, as well as the loose sessions like the Byrds, Maria Maulder etc.
That said, Clarence was a stylist, and stylists for the most part are not welcomed in Nashville's session scene. Producers do not lean towards One Trick Ponies, regardless of how amazing & influencial these stylists are.
Case in point, my friend Ray Flake had an extremely difficult time getting session work ( on a steady basis) after he left Ricky Skaggs. Times were very hard for him for years after Skaggs. He was just to left field for Nashville producers. What a shame.
Also, James Burton's session success was do, inpart, to the fact he was a much more dicipined, versitile player than Clarence, who could adopt to movie soundtrack work, jingles, as well as hipper sessions like Emmylou and others. But even James was limited to what he could play on those dates. Although he was one of the top session guys of the 60's and 70's, James played a very submissive role as a session player and his work never reached the constant commercial exposer as a Brent Mason.
Knowing Clarence, as I did, I just couldn't see him walking inthe same shoes as Brent Mason. And Visa Versa too. Clarence would have certainly followed his own drummer. Session playing ( ona day to day basis) requires a certain creative but submissive mind set. If Brent is reading this he knows that what I am saying is true.
Thats not taking a thing away from Clarence. I just believe that he woudl have passed on session work to tour and play worldwide on his own.
I believe Clarence would have followed along the same path as Albert Lee and toured worldwide with a variety of bands. But I could never see him working within the strict boundries of today's Music Row record production. He just was not that kind of a player. However, Clarence was a genious player. The likes of which we may never see again.
JB
www.johbeland.com